WHAT IS A BULLET GOING FOR THESE DAYS?

Cambodia approves Khmer Rouge tribunal (Peter Lloyd, ABC News, October 4th, 2004)

Cambodia's Parliament has passed a law to establish a war crimes tribunal to try surviving members of the Khmer Rouge regime.

Up to 2 million people were killed or died of starvation and disease during the regime's brutal rule between 1975 and 1979.

After more than five years of talks the vote was unanimous.

The new law provides a framework for the operation of a United Nations backed tribunal that will put surviving Khmer Rouge leaders on trial.

None of the regime's top leaders has been brought to justice.

The movement's chief, Pol Pot, died in a jungle hideout in 1998.

Several of his top lieutenants still live freely in Cambodia. Only two are in custody.

Despite today's vote, Cambodia's current Government has cast doubt over the planned trials going ahead because of a shortage of money to fund the process.
The United Nations and Cambodia believe the war crimes prosecution will cost nearly $70 million.

The only donation so far is a little over $2 million from Australia.

Do you get the impression there is a certain lack of gravitas here? Perhaps the human rights industry is exhausted after investing so much in chasing down Pinochet for his three thousand victims. It can't have anything to do with ideology, can it?