The Trial Chamber of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) is scheduled to hear the testimony of Kaing Guek Eav alias Duch, former Chairman of S-21 Security Centre, from 26 May 2016. He is called to testify on the fourth trial topic in Case 002/02: Security Centres and Internal Purges and more particularly S-21. Nine days have been allocated to the questioning of this witness.
This is the second time Kaing Guek Eav will be appearing as a witness in Case 002 against Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan. He first appeared as a witness in Case 002/01 in March and April 2012. Kaing Guek Eav was the first person on trial before the ECCC in Case 001. On 3 February 2012, the Supreme Court Chamber upheld his conviction for crimes against humanity and grave breaches of the 1949 Geneva Conventions and increased his sentence to life imprisonment.
Since the beginning of the trial in Case 002/02 in October 2014, the Trial Chamber has heard a total of 84 witnesses, 39 Civil Parties and 3 experts over the course of 185 hearing days. After the Trial Chamber concludes hearings on security centres and internal purges, the next (fifth) trial topic will focus on allegations related to the regulation of marriage during the Democratic Kampuchea regime. This will be followed by hearings related to the armed conflict between Cambodia and Vietnam, before the Chamber will hear evidence on the final trial topic: the roles of Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan. It is expected that evidentiary hearings will conclude later this year, with a judgement to follow in 2017.