Another Delay for Justice?

In the report, UNDP auditors objected to weak oversight, bloated salaries and recruitment problems so severe that that they said all staffing decisions on the Cambodian side of the court should be nullified. They added that if the tribunal does not adopt necessary reforms, UNDP should consider pulling out of the project entirely. In nearly two-thirds of the personnel files auditors reviewed, staffers did not meet the qualifications for their jobs. In one case, the job called for a degree in English and a minimum of 3 years experience in interpretation, but the selected candidate, who was paid $3,500 a month (an enormous sum in Cambodia), had only part-time experience as a translator and was pursuing a degree in education. One candidate was hired for a position he did not apply for. In another case, a candidate's job application letter was dated the day after she was offered a contract. Auditors also objected to large raises—in one instance, from $650 to $2,850 a month—paid to four staff appointed by the government, whose personnel files they weren't able to access.

In its response to UNDP, the ECCC said most of the perceived irregularities were honest mistakes, which could have been clarified had UNDP auditors not unilaterally cancelled their exit interviews with the court's head of personnel and director of administration. The tribunal has brought in a battery of consultants to help it shape up. And it has already embraced some light reforms, publishing a manual that formalizes recruitment procedures, adopting a mandatory code of ethics, deepening the involvement of international staff in personnel management, and embarking on a round of skills testing to ensure that staffers are in fact qualified for their jobs. But the ECCC objects to the big suggestions—that the UNDP take a more direct oversight role, Cambodian contracts be nullified and salaries cut. Those steps would be "tantamount to internationalizing the ECCC," Cambodian officials said, a prospect they called "unacceptable and non-negotiable."

Internationals aren't eager to return to the negotiating table either. It took about 8 years to hammer out the rickety structure of this hybrid tribunal, and prolonged haggling over the court's procedural rules this year made plain that Cambodians are serious about their sovereignty. "This is a Cambodian court. We are only mandated to provide assistance," Foster says.

UNDP and members of the diplomatic community say they're confident they can put the court back on the road to health, even working within the existing structure, which may do more in the long run than a purely international court could to improve Cambodia's beleagured judiciary. "In our view, there is sufficient international presence in the ECCC to allow the hybrid model of the tribunal to succeed," said Rafael Dochao-Moreno, the charge d'affaires for the European Commission, which has given $1.4 million to the Cambodian side of the court. "it was the best solution which allowed the tribunal to be established and to ensure overall Cambodian ownership at the same time."

Neither report addresses thoroughly the long-standing allegations that Cambodian employees had to pay kickbacks for their jobs. One Cambodian, who spoke to NEWSWEEK on condition of anonymity, said he had to hand over 25 percent of his salary in exchange for his job at the tribunal. "They make a business in this office," he said. "It's not fair." He said that before signing an employment contract, he was called for an interview to "negotiate his salary," at which the payment scheme was discussed. "Everyone has to pay," he said, adding: "If we don't say OK, there's no need to be employed."

He said that he was required to make the payments, in cash, shortly after his paycheck was direct deposited in his bank account each month. He said he did not know for sure where the money ended up. "You cannot get evidence," he said. For him, it's a question not just of lost salary, but also of what kind of legacy the ECCC will bequeath to Cambodia. "I want to improve good governance in this court, especially the Cambodian side," he said. "They teach Cambodian employees how to make corruption."