Lawyers representing the two Khmer Rouge leaders accused of committing genocide said they would boycott the UN backed trial, which began this week, until they had filed appeals against the convictions of the two men for crimes against humanity.
Nuon Chea, known as Brother Number Two and the former head of state Khleu Samphan, were sentenced to life in prison in August by the court for the killing of 2 million Cambodians during their rule from 1975 to 1979. Both men are in their 80s.
On Friday the UN backed court in Cambodia began proceedings on the charge of genocide. The pair are accused of committing a genocide against Muslim and ethnic Vietnamese people.
"As long as we have not filed appeal brief, we won't be able to attend," Samphan's lawyer told a press conference on Saturday in Phnom Penh.
"Our boycott will not paralyse the court because we have a clear timeframe, it is until we finish our appeal, around two months," his colleague said.
The defence lawyers have also put forward a motion to disqualify the court's judges on grounds of bias, the Straits Times reports.
Nuon Chea, known as Brother Number Two and the former head of state Khleu Samphan, were sentenced to life in prison in August by the court for the killing of 2 million Cambodians during their rule from 1975 to 1979. Both men are in their 80s.
On Friday the UN backed court in Cambodia began proceedings on the charge of genocide. The pair are accused of committing a genocide against Muslim and ethnic Vietnamese people.
"As long as we have not filed appeal brief, we won't be able to attend," Samphan's lawyer told a press conference on Saturday in Phnom Penh.
"Our boycott will not paralyse the court because we have a clear timeframe, it is until we finish our appeal, around two months," his colleague said.
The defence lawyers have also put forward a motion to disqualify the court's judges on grounds of bias, the Straits Times reports.