Kaing Guek Eav, otherwise known as Duch, head of the infamous Tuol Sleng torture centre will be the first of these to stand trial, sometime in early 2009

The other four are Noun Chea or ‘Brother No 2’ as he was known in the Khmer Rouge hierarchy, former Democratic Kampuchea head of state Khieu Samphan, and former Foreign Minister Ieng Sary and his wife, Ieng Thirith, the regime’s Minister of Social Action

Why concentrate on only the top five when there are others out there?

many believe the Cambodian government is keen to restrict the tribunal’s focus

fearing that any further arrests could potentially open a Pandora’s Box of additional prosecutions

second half of the 1990s saw the government embark on a largely successful strategy

encouraging members of the guerrilla movement to defect

sometimes in exchange for high-level positions in

military and provincial power structures

Many believe the government is concerned that further arrests could disturb some of these arrangements and create unrest