Summary: 17 December 2009, New York – Statement by Roland Tricot, Counsellor for Legal and Disarmament Affairs of the European Union Delegation to the United Nations, at the Formal presentation of the 2010-2011 Budget Proposal for the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) to the Group of Interested States.
Excellencies,
I would like to thank the Controller of the United Nations for organizing this formal presentation of the 2010-2011 Budget Proposal for the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) to the Group of Interested States. We have been strong supporters of the ECCC since its inception, and we are delighted to have this opportunity to contribute to this dialogue on the future progress of the Court.
Our support to the ECCC stems from our commitment to and pursuance of global justice and our commitment to the fight against impunity. In this regard, we welcome the conclusion, while not free of difficulties, of the substantive hearings in Case 001 as an important milestone in the Court's work, and look forward to the judgment of the Court in the first quarter of 2010.
Having contributed generously to the continuing mandate of the Court, the future financing of the ECCC is a matter of great concern to the European Commission Services. The allegations of serious corruption at the Court are, therefore, highly regrettable. Such repeated allegations not only jeopardize the continued flow of funds to the Chambers, but moreover, threaten its important role in bringing to justice the perpetrators of the genocide witnessed in Cambodia during the late 1970s.
The appointment of the Independent Counsellor presents an opportunity for the ECCC to take concrete action to provide guarantees that no allegation of corruption will resurface in the future. However, as explained during a demarche to the EU Delegation, for which we are grateful, we take note that UNDP does not find this measure, nor other measures put in place, a sufficient guarantee that funds contributed will be used appropriately and with the necessary transparency. The European Commission Services take the warning of the UNDP seriously. We nevertheless hope that the UNDP will find a way to continue its management of the project, so that we may capitalize on its experience in this field. Failing this, the European Commission Services hope that a replacement organization, endowed with the necessary capacity to ensure sound management and to continue to improve governance on the national side of the ECCC, can be found within the UN.
Overall, we recognize the mutual efforts that have been made to improve the management of the national side of the ECCC. Such improvement has largely been facilitated through the increased engagement of donors, particularly in the implementation of mitigation measures to prevent corruption.
In recognition of the efforts that have been made at the ECCC, and of the continued role of the ECCC in ending impunity, the European Commission Services are pleased to announce that last month we agreed a new contribution of €2 million (around $3 million) to the national side of the ECCC. This figure represents double that of our previous donation, and is part of a package of €5.2 million that will go towards the justice and governance sectors in Cambodia.
Disbursement of these funds will be conditional on the effective and continuing implementation of good management and anti-corruption measures for the benefit of the people of Cambodia. We are confident that the ECCC will be successful in this task, and that the distractions from the Court's primary focus - that of achieving justice for Cambodian victims - will be put behind it.
Thank you.
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