A UN-backed tribunal sentenced a senior Khmer Rouge commander to 35 years in prison today in its first verdict on the "Killing Fields" revolution blamed for 1.7 million deaths in Cambodia three decades ago.
But 67-year-old Kaing Kek Ieu, known as Duch, will only serve 19 years after the court subtracted 16 years for time already served - short of the maximum 40 years sought by the prosecution and the life behind bars many Cambodians demanded.
The former schoolteacher admitted during the eight-month trial to overseeing the torture and the killing of more than 14,000 people but said he was only following orders.
He was found guilty of murder, torture, rape, inhumane acts, crimes against humanity and other charges as commander of Tuol Sleng prison, a converted high school also known as S-21 that symbolised the horrors of the ultra-communist regime blamed for 1.7 million deaths in 1975-79.
He betrayed no emotion as a judge read the verdict. Duch could be released after just 11 years if authorities believe he is sufficiently rehabilitated and grant him parole.
"We hoped this tribunal would strike hard at impunity but if you can kill 14,000 people and serve only 19 years -- 11 hours per life taken -- what is that? It's a joke," said Theary Seng, a Cambodian who is now a U.S. citizen and who lost his father at S-21.
"My gut feeling is this has made the situation far worse for Cambodia."
Duch had said during the trial he had no choice but to carry out orders, that he had to "kill or be killed" and operate like an "obedient machine".
Prosecutors had insisted Duch was "ideologically of the same mind" as the Khmer Rouge leaders and did nothing to stop torture. An estimated fifth of the population died during the Khmer Rouge's 1975-79 rule over the already war-scarred country.
Some Cambodians wept loudly in the courtroom. Others expressed outrage at the joint UN-Cambodian court which has spent $78.4 million of foreign donations over five years to bring the first of five indicted Khmer Rouge officials to trial.
"There is no justice. I wanted life imprisonment for Duch," said Hong Sovath (47), sobbing. Her father, a diplomat, was killed in the prison. Khan Mony, whose aunt was executed after passing through S-21, said he was devastated.
"The verdict is not fair. This warranted life. Duch killed so many people. If this court was fair, people would have been calm and accepted this," she said.
Thousands huddled around televisions in cafes and homes to watch live broadcasts of the verdict, many hoping it would bring closure to one of the darkest chapters of the 20th century when a quarter of Cambodia's population died from starvation, disease, exhaustion, or by torture and execution under the Khmer Rouge.
The court said it decided against life in prison for several reasons, including Duch's expressions of remorse, cooperation with the court, his "potential for rehabilitation" and the coercive environment of life under the Khmer Rouge.
"The chamber has decided there are significant mitigating factors that mandate a finite term imprisonment rather than life imprisonment," the tribunal's president said in a statement. Cambodia does not have capital punishment.
Now a born-again Christian, Duch had expressed "excruciating remorse" for the S-21 victims, most of them tortured and forced to confess to spying and other crimes before they were bludgeoned to death at the "Killing Fields" execution sites during the agrarian revolution, which ended with a 1979 invasion by Vietnam.
The court said at least 12,273 people were killed at Tuol Sleng but acknowledged the number could be as high as 14,000.
Foreign investors see the Khmer Rouge trials as a gauge to whether rule of law is taking root in one of Asia's fastest-growing frontier markets. Justice, however, could be elusive as controversy surrounds other cadres awaiting trial.
The cases of former President Khieu Samphan, 'Brother Number Two' Nuon Chea, ex-foreign minister Ieng Sary and his wife, Ieng Thirith are highly complex and politicised. Many fear they may never go to trial, or they might die before seeing a courtroom.
Standing in the way of justice, analysts say, is not just the excessive bureaucracy and a drawn-out legal process, but a powerful single-party government that has never fully backed the tribunal and has historical ties to the Khmer Rouge.
Many former Khmer Rouge members are now part of Cambodia's civil service and occupy top positions in provincial and central government and experts say they are keen to curtail the court's progress and limit the scope of future investigations.
Long-serving prime minister Hun Sen is himself a former Khmer Rouge foot soldier who says he defected to eventual conquerers Vietnam. He has warned of another civil war if the court expands its probes into the horrors of Pol Pot's "year zero" revolution.
Finance minister Keat Chhon has also admitted his involvement as an interpreter for late Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, while foreign minister Hor Namhong has been accused of having Khmer Rouge connections and heading a detention centre. He denies the claims.
Reuters