Reuters reported that Kaing Guek Eav, known as Duch, received less than the maximum 40 years sought by the prosecution for his role in the “Killing Fields” regime blamed for 1.7 million deaths from 1975 to 1979.

Duch was found guilty of murder,  rape, crimes against humanity and other charges as chief of Tuol Sleng prison, a converted school known as S-21 that symbolized the horrors of a regime that wiped out nearly a quarter of Cambodia’s population.

Duch betrayed no emotion as the judge read the verdict, which cut his sentence to 19 years for time already served. He could be released even earlier on parole if authorities believe has been rehabilitated, according to the court.

“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,” Theary Seng, a Cambodian American who lost her father at S-21, told Reuters.

Duch’s verdict comes as many countries in the Southeast Asia have acted with impunity against perpetrators of human rights abuses.

In the aftermath of the massacre in the then Indonesian province of East Timor during the independence referendum in 1999, no alleged military perpetrators were punished as Jakarta and Dili opted to settle the issue through the Commission for Truth and Friendship.

Although the case is considered settled, human rights groups, as well as the UN, have put pressure on Jakarta to end impunity against members of the military involved in atrocities.

Baskara T. Wardaya, a history professor at Sanata Dharma University in Yogyakarta, said new democracies faced a choice in making the transition from authoritarian rule.

“We can forget the past and turn over a new leaf to democracy or we can continue to proceed with justice against perpetrators,” he said.

“In the case of Timor Leste, we see that Indonesian government chose the first option despite protests from people seeking justice.”  

Benny Widyono, a former UN official during Cambodia’s UN-brokered peace process in the early 1990s, said perpetrators should be brought to court regardless of the current situation.

“We are a democracy now but we should not forget past atrocities. Justice must be served,” he said.

Reuters reported that some Cambodians wept after hearing the verdict and expressed outrage at the joint UN-Cambodian court, which has spent US$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 in the courtroom. Her father, a diplomat, was killed in the prison. Khan Mony, whose aunt was executed at S-21, said she was devastated.

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