The Incorporation of International Justice Standards into the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia

The topic of this thesis is the upcoming proceedings of the Extraordinary Cambers in the Courts of Cambodia. These Extraordinary Chambers take their place in international justice as part of a third generation, so-called internationalized or hybrid courts, which combine the needs for international involvement in international justice mechanisms and the need for domestic involvement in transitional justice. As the Extraordinary Chambers were established through an agreement between the United Nations and the Royal Goverment of Cambodia in March 2003, a complex system of balancing the international-domestic control was put into place. The capacity of structure of the Extraordinary Chambers to ensure a fair trial and respect of international standards of justice has since received various criticisms. This thesis does not aim to reach any conclusions on whether the Extraordinary Chambers will indeed fulfil this aspect of its mission. Rather, as the Extraordinary Chambers are presently initiating their work, this thesis will consitute a case study, examining the various international standards of justice which the Extraordinary Chambers, like any other court, will need to respect, and how these standards are being implemented into the structure and regulations of the Extraordinary Chambers. In doing so, the author studies international treaties such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the General Comments of the Human Rights Committee, as well as non-binding documents such as the UN Principles on Detention and the UN Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary. Furthermore, the author uses the experiences and jurisdictions from the ad hoc tribunals and other internationalized courts to establish what international justice standards exist, and to compare their implementation in different situations. The situation of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia is unique in that more than 25 years have passed since the atrocities committed during the Khmer Rouge reign. Consequently, part of the problem for the court proceedings will relate to the age of defendants, victims and witnesses, yet attempting to remember and provide justice for the events taking place so long ago. In spite of problems concerning the independence of the Cambodian judiciary, the proceedings of the Extraordinary Chambers are a last chance of justice, and a step for reconciliation, for the people of Cambodia