Khmer Rouge ‘Brother Number Two’ fit for trial

AFP/Phnom Penh

Pol Pot’s former deputy Nuon Chea is fit to continue standing trial for war crimes and genocide, medical experts told Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge court yesterday following the death of a co-defendant.

“From a physical point of view, I felt he is well enough to continue with the trial,” Professor John Campbell, a geriatrician from New Zealand, told the UN-backed tribunal.

Another expert who examined the physical and mental state of the 86-year-old “Brother Number Two”, British forensic psychiatrist Seena Fazel, said his mental health and cognitive function “is currently good”.

Nuon Chea, the most senior surviving leader of the genocidal communist regime which oversaw the “Killing Fields” era in the late 1970s, is currently on trial alongside former Khmer Rouge head of state Khieu Samphan, 81.

The court will rule on Friday on whether Nuon Chea remains fit for trial, according to Trial Chamber president Judge Nil Nonn.

The death on March 14 of regime co-founder Ieng Sary at the age of 87 intensified fears that the remaining two elderly co-defendants may also die before verdicts can be reached in their trial, which began in June 2011.

Nuon Chea has suffered a number of illnesses, including high blood pressure, acute bronchitis and back pain.

“One of the questions we asked ourselves is, would we be surprised if this person was not alive in six months? I have to say in Nuon Chea’s situation, we would not be surprised,” Campbell said.

“Life is very unpredictable at age 86, especially with the underlying problems that he has,” he added.

Nuon Chea’s defence team argued that their client was too weak and suffered from dizziness, urging the court to send him to hospital for treatment before the trial continues.

“He cannot hear properly. His concentration is not good enough to follow the proceedings. I consider this a violation of my client’s rights to a fair trial,” said his lawyer Son Arun.

Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan deny charges including war crimes and genocide over their roles in a regime blamed for the deaths of up to 2mn people. Ieng Sary’s widow Ieng Thirith, the regime’s former social affairs minister, was freed in September after being deemed unfit for trial due to dementia.