The Prisoners' Dilemma

The Cambodian government now must decide how to deal with its past. Some believe that the only way to truly bring an end to the era of the killing fields is to seek justice against those responsible. With Pol Pot himself dead, many justice-seekers see the three leaders in custody (all rather elderly themselves) as the last chance to bring retributive justice to Cambodia.

Others envision a South African-style "Truth and Reconciliation Commission," where the former guerilla leaders receive amnesty in return for a detailed description of everything they know about the crimes they perpetrated. That way, the reasoning goes, the full truth can be discovered, and the questions that plague the nation even today can begin to be answered. How many were killed? How complicit were foreign powers? Who were the true leaders of the movement, and who were "just following orders"? Most importantly, how relevant was Hun Sen's role in the killings?

Proponents of amnesty believe that forgiveness will end the cycle of revenge. Proponents of a trial believe that justice will end the cycle of impunity. Both camps have a point, but the successful implementation of either tack is problematic in the extreme. Amnesty would bring outrage not only from international observers, who aren't particularly important in Cambodia, but also from domestic opposition parties, who would see forgiveness as an unforgivable gesture from former Khmer Rouge crony Hun Sen.

A trial, seemingly the better solution then, is even more practically problematic. Hun Sen cannot simply pardon Ta Mok and the others due to the pressures, but neither does he want their fate out of his hands. The government has ruled out (on questionable Constitutional grounds) the international tribunal that UN legal experts have been recommending, virtually ending all hope for a fair trial by impartial professional judges. A fair domestic trial in the current politically charged environment is impossible. Their innocence or guilt, and sentence if guilty, will depend more on what the government wants than any actual evidence provided at trial.

Given this background, an interesting theoretical question is what Ta Mok and his cronies ought to do. Should they confess, and cooperate, hoping for some mitigating mercy? Or should they keep silent and wait to see what happens, hoping that their non-cooperation will frustrate efforts to collect evidence against them?

Usually, the logic of the prisoners' dilemma would tell the smart prisoner to keep silent, because if every

Go To Page: 1 2 3 4 5