PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – A war crimes tribunal sentenced the Khmer Rouge's chief jailer on Monday to a prison term that will see him serve less than half a day for every person killed at the notorious torture center he commanded.
Survivors expressed anger and disbelief that a key player in the genocide that wiped out a quarter of Cambodia's population could one day walk free — in spite of being convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
"I can't accept this," sobbed Saodi Ouch, 46, shaking so hard she might hardly talk. "My family died ... my older sister, my older brother. I am the only one left."
Kaing Guek Eav, known as Duch, was the first major Khmer Rouge figure to face trial more than 3 decades after the "killing fields" regime tried to turn the country into a vast agrarian society — leading to the deaths of 1.7 million people.
As commander of the top secret Tuol Sleng prison — code-named S-21 — the 67-year-old Duch (Kaing Guek Eav) admitted to overseeing the torture and deaths of as many as 16,000 people.He was sentenced to 35 years in prison, but will spend only 19 in jail — 11 years were shaved off for time served and another five for illegal detention in a military prison.
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Survivors expressed anger and disbelief that a key player in the genocide that wiped out a quarter of Cambodia's population could one day walk free — in spite of being convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
"I can't accept this," sobbed Saodi Ouch, 46, shaking so hard she might hardly talk. "My family died ... my older sister, my older brother. I am the only one left."
Kaing Guek Eav, known as Duch, was the first major Khmer Rouge figure to face trial more than 3 decades after the "killing fields" regime tried to turn the country into a vast agrarian society — leading to the deaths of 1.7 million people.
As commander of the top secret Tuol Sleng prison — code-named S-21 — the 67-year-old Duch (Kaing Guek Eav) admitted to overseeing the torture and deaths of as many as 16,000 people.He was sentenced to 35 years in prison, but will spend only 19 in jail — 11 years were shaved off for time served and another five for illegal detention in a military prison.
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