Searching for the truth Issues 21 - Documentation Center of Cambodia
Searching for the truth Issues 21 - Documentation Center of Cambodia
Searching for the truth Issues 21 - Documentation Center of Cambodia
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Number <strong>21</strong>, September 2001<br />
24<br />
<strong>Searching</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>truth</strong> ⎯ Legal<br />
EVIDENCE IN THE PROSPECTIVE TRIALS<br />
OF FORMER KHMER ROUGE OFFICIALS<br />
(Continued from <strong>the</strong> August 2001 issue)<br />
C. Some Practical Evidentiary <strong>Issues</strong><br />
In <strong>the</strong> preceding section, I discussed <strong>the</strong><br />
potential evidentiary applications <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> materials held<br />
by DC-Cam. However, in order to utilize <strong>the</strong> DC-Cam<br />
materials effectively in a court <strong>of</strong> law or a special<br />
criminal tribunal, <strong>the</strong> prosecution will have to address<br />
a number <strong>of</strong> practical evidentiary issues. While <strong>the</strong><br />
specific rules <strong>of</strong> evidence to be applied in prospective<br />
Khmer Rouge trials remain unclear, <strong>the</strong>re are certain<br />
steps <strong>the</strong> prosecution will undoubtedly face,<br />
regardless <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> particular rules adopted by <strong>the</strong><br />
responsible court or tribunal. This section briefly<br />
discusses some such considerations.<br />
1. Criminal Investigation<br />
To be applied as evidence against <strong>for</strong>mer CPK<br />
<strong>of</strong>ficials, <strong>the</strong> DC-Cam materials must first be reviewed<br />
as part <strong>of</strong> a thorough criminal investigation. As DC-<br />
Cam holds over 350,000 pages <strong>of</strong> documentation, <strong>the</strong><br />
investigation process will necessarily be limited to<br />
some fraction <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> total materials. The DC-Cam<br />
Director and Staff intends to manage its affairs in <strong>the</strong><br />
manner that will best assist <strong>the</strong> criminal investigators,<br />
ensuring that <strong>the</strong> investigators review and collect all<br />
potentially relevant and probative evidence.<br />
2. Au<strong>the</strong>ntication<br />
Be<strong>for</strong>e submitting <strong>the</strong> DC-Cam materials as<br />
evidence, au<strong>the</strong>ntication procedures will also be<br />
necessary. The original CPK documents are over<br />
twenty years old, and <strong>the</strong> tribunal will undoubtedly<br />
require <strong>the</strong> prosecution to demonstrate that <strong>the</strong><br />
documentary evidence is au<strong>the</strong>ntic and has not been<br />
corrupted. Those showings will require both <strong>for</strong>ensic<br />
testing and <strong>the</strong> establishment <strong>of</strong> a chain <strong>of</strong> custody <strong>for</strong><br />
each submitted document. DC-Cam will to assist <strong>the</strong><br />
John Ciociari<br />
prosecution in <strong>the</strong> au<strong>the</strong>ntication process in any way<br />
possible and to establish that <strong>the</strong> documentary<br />
evidence is not tainted by corruption.<br />
3. Custody<br />
Documents <strong>of</strong> potential evidentiary value must<br />
be held in custody and preserved <strong>for</strong> <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />
court. DC-Cam is experienced in <strong>the</strong> physical storage<br />
and handling <strong>of</strong> deteriorating documents. However,<br />
DC-Cam is not a legal institution and is thus<br />
unfamiliar with <strong>the</strong> procedures employed by criminal<br />
courts and tribunals <strong>for</strong> maintaining and preserving<br />
documents in custody. DC-Cam intends to facilitate<br />
that aspect <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> trials as much as possible and has<br />
sought <strong>the</strong> guidance <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> ICTY on how to be <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />
greatest assistance.<br />
4. In<strong>for</strong>mation Management<br />
Given <strong>the</strong> large number <strong>of</strong> documents <strong>of</strong><br />
potential evidentiary value, <strong>the</strong> responsible court or<br />
tribunal may implement a relatively sophisticated<br />
system <strong>for</strong> in<strong>for</strong>mation management. Such a system<br />
would be apt to include a numerical means <strong>of</strong> tracking<br />
documents. DC-Cam has consulted <strong>the</strong> ICTY and will<br />
make every ef<strong>for</strong>t to facilitate <strong>the</strong> clear and efficient<br />
tracking <strong>of</strong> its documents and o<strong>the</strong>r materials. DC-<br />
Cam will also provide <strong>the</strong> prosecution with a detailed<br />
explanation <strong>of</strong> its own tracking system and any<br />
necessary training.<br />
5. Access Regulation<br />
Throughout <strong>the</strong> course <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> upcoming trials,<br />
DC-Cam will have to carefully preserve <strong>the</strong> state <strong>of</strong> its<br />
holdings. To do so, DC-Cam must implement a sound<br />
policy limiting public and institutional access to its<br />
documents. DC-Cam has been working with <strong>the</strong> ICTY<br />
and o<strong>the</strong>rs to prepare a policy that will meet <strong>the</strong> needs<br />
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> responsible court or tribunal while preserving<br />
<strong>Documentation</strong> <strong>Center</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Cambodia</strong> (DC-Cam)