PHNOM PENH, July 29 -- The televised trial of Pol Pot elicited strong reactions from a reporter who had interviewed the Khmer Rouge strongman nearly two decades ago and the United States did not recognize the alleged trial at all. ABC's Nightline aired segments Monday night of the supposed trial in Cambodia of the allegedly 69-year-old Pol Pot, accused of genocide and other atrocities during his reign of terror which began 30 years ago.
Elizabeth Becker of the New York Times, one of two Western journalists granted the last interview with Pol Pot in 1979, said, 'It's a show trial in the sense this was a way to denounce Pol Pot and declare that he is no longer the leader of this political movement.' Becker, who was with The Washington Post in 1979, said, 'He is a monster. He ranks among a dozen or so as one of the worst tyrants of this century. 'If you're going to understand about the cruelties that have come out of Asia, you have to understand about Pol Pot.' The trial, which resulted in a life imprisonment sentence, was held in a northern Camodian field under a corrugated tin roof supported by poles. As to why Pol Pot had not been turned over to an international war tribunal, Becker said, 'If Pol Pot were brought to justice, other people would be implicated. If you're a person of some rank, how do you avoid being pulled in with Pol Pot?' State Department spokesman James Foley said, 'We do not condone trials in absentia or legal proceedings inconsistent with accepted United Nations and international legal norms, as this jungle trial appears to be.' ---
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