A Tribunal Winds Down

Published on Aug 22, 2021 by Luke Hunt

A podcast with Helen Jarvis. Khieu Samphan – the last of Pol Pot’s living henchmen – is slated to appear and deliver an oral defense of the crimes committed between 1975 and 1979.A bench of Cambodian and international judges will then deliberate on the 90-year-old’s appeal against his convictions for genocide and crimes against humanity.Nine days have been reserved for the hearings, following which the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) will start finalizing more than 15 years of legal work.The Diplomat’s Luke Hunt spoke with Helen Jarvis at her home on the banks of the Mekong River, north of Phnom Penh, about the “Herculean” efforts required to establish the tribunal, its successes, and other issues.Listen here..

Khmer Rouge, a Last Appeal

Published on Aug 21, 2021 by Luke Hunt

A television production for Voice of America. Produced by Luke Hunt, Video Editor David Potter and journalist Ny Chhan. The last surviving leader of the Khmer Rouge, Khieu Samphan, has made his final appeal against his conviction for genocide at the Khmer Rouge tribunal in Cambodia. Watch and read here..

Out of Afghanistan, a podcast with Lynne O'Donnell

Published on Jun 15, 2021 by Luke Hunt

Veteran Australian war correspondent Lynne O’Donnell has returned to Afghanistan to cover the withdrawal of U.S. and allied forces, two decades after the troubled country was invaded following the al-Qaida attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. The Taliban and the government of Ashraf Ghani are positioning themselves for renewed struggle, and O’Donnell says Afghans are worried about their future amid a sharply reduced U.S. military presence. Between 2009 and 2017, O’Donnell was bureau chief in Kabul for The Associated Press and the French news agency AFP. She now writes for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, Tortoise Media, and the South China Morning Post. She holds an MA in War Studies from King’s College London, where she is....

Mafia and War in Myanmar

Published on Jun 2, 2021 by Luke Hunt

 a podcast with Australia-based security-risk consultant Ross Milosevic who has worked across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East for almost three decades but his focus has often remained on Myanmar, which has been torn apart by the February 1 military coup.The bloody protests that followed have pushed Myanmar to the brink of nationwide civil war, with the many ethnic insurgents and ousted politicians rallying against the generals through the establishment of the National Unity Government and the People’s Defense Force.Those military leaders – Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing, Deputy Commander-in-Chief Soe Win, Brigadier General Than Oo and Brigadier General Aung Aung – also head the list of those most wanted by United Nations-backed investigators for the ethnic cleansing of more than....

Cambodian Rebels Jailed for 20 Years

Published on Mar 2, 2021 by Luke Hunt

Phnom Penh Municipal Court has sentenced former opposition leader Sam Rainsy to 25 years in prison and deprived him of the right to vote or stand as a candidate in upcoming elections for plotting to overthrow the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen.The court also sentenced two senior figures from the dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), Mu Sochua and Eng Chhay Eang, in absentia to 22 years behind bars.Sentences of 20 years were also handed down to other officials. They include Sam Rainsy’s spouse Tioulong Saumura and former CNRP senior officials Men Sothavarin, Ou Chanrith, Ho Vann, Long Ry and Nuth Romduol.They were charged following Sam Rainsy’s 2019 promise to return to Cambodia from self-imposed exile in France, lead....