The tribunal announced yesterday that submissions  for additional investigations would be allowed to go forward after the Pre-Trial Chamber failed to resolve the nine-month dispute between the national and international co-prosecutors.

The opinions of the five judges, who were split along national and international lines, can be read at the end of this redacted version of the chamber's August 18 filing on the issue.

Though Prime Minister Hun Sen has previously warned that additional prosecutions could lead to civil war, the government had little to say on the move yesterday. Council of Ministers spokesman Phay Siphan told the Post that the government would leave any decisions about additional prosecutions to the tribunal.

The Post's article is not yet posted online, but I will post a link when it goes up. In the story, Thet Sambath interviews former Khmer Rouge army divisional commander Meas Muth:

Sharp criticism of the decision came from former Khmer Rouge cadres, including Meas Muth, an army divisional commander who was cited as a possible suspect in the 2001 report “Seven Candidates for Prosecution: Accountability for the Crimes of the Khmer Rouge”, by Stephen Heder and Brian D Tittemore.

“Why are they trying to make problems for living persons to find justice for the dead?” Meas Muth asked. “To satisfy the dead will not bring any good results and will instead lead to splits in society.”

He added, though, that he was not concerned for himself.

“I have nothing to worry about,” he said. “I have rice, vegetables and fruit to eat, and I sleep well. I did not commit any crimes directly. Only the top leaders did, and they know who they are.”