05 September 2013
On behalf of the national judicial officers and staff of the ECCC, I would like to acknowledge
the efforts made by all involved stakeholders -- the Royal Government of Cambodia, the United
Nations, and the donors -- to support the court to fulfill its mandate from the beginning until
now.
As at 31 August 2013, total cumulative funds provided by the donors countries to the ECCC
National Component amount to US$46.7 million, including in-cash contributions of US$8.7
million from the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC). The latter has continuously increased
its funding contributions on yearly basis from its US$0.6 million in 2006 to US$1.8 million in
2013. In addition, the RGC has also provided in-kind contributions totalling US$9.5 million from
2006 to 2012. In total, the contributions from the RGC are equivalent to 10% of the Court’s
overall costs.
Once again, the ECCC is facing the same crisis of lack of funding that has occurred every year,
and which is seriously damaging to the morale of all the national judicial officers and staff, as
well as to our international colleagues. Due to fact that this time the national judicial officers
and staff have not received their salary for three months, it is hardly surprising that the Court is
presently facing a high risk of disruption of its work.
I wish to express our thanks to a number of donors who worked with the Royal Government of
Cambodia and the United Nations to take new measures to address the previous funding crisis
several months ago, and who are again at this crucial moment actively considering possible
further measures. We remain hopeful that this present crisis will be resolved, preferably on a
firm basis that prevents its recurrence, so that the ECCC can go on smoothly to discharge its
historic mandate.
I am also thankful to all the national judicial officers and staff who are at this moment calm and
patient, and I hope that those who have suspended their work will be willing and able to return to
active duty as soon as we receive positive news on resolving the current funding crisisis.
In this regard, we appreciate the renewed commitment expressed in the statement made on 04
September 2013 by Ambassador David Scheffer, the U.N. Secretary-General’s Special Expert on
United Nations Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials, as well as his efforts, together with
Cambodian government representative, His Excellency Keo Remy, Secretary of State of the
Office of the Council of Ministers, to seek further contributions, especially from new donors.
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