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The court was in session as it had been two months into the trials for the murder of Kim Jong Nam.
The two women – Indonesian Siti Aisyah and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong – stand jointly accused along with four men from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) of having “common intent” to kill Kim Jong Nam. But from the beginning, the police described the men as the masterminds. The women, the prosecution contends, were their protegees, trained to assassinate the estranged half-brother of the DPRK leader in broad daylight, in a packed air terminal, using a deadly nerve agent.
On a rare occasion that he spoke to the media, prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin said the defense had the upper hand.
The defense lawyers are happy to talk to the media. / CGTN Photo
“We are fighting an uphill battle in this case. We are the underdogs,” he said.
It seemed a tacit admission of the weakness of the prosecution’s case: Attempting to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the two women knew they were taking part in an assassination and should be hanged, though the women’s comportment immediately after the attack, as revealed in the court, suggests otherwise.
The two ladies did head to a toilet apparently to wash their hands. However, as the defense attorneys pointed out after a court session held at the air terminal, the women went to a toilet on another floor when there was one just meter from where the attack allegedly took place – not what you’d expect if they were worried about exposure to a deadly toxin.
The exhausted defendants were in wheelchairs for the hectic airport court session. / CGTN Photo
While the four DPRK men changed their clothes and their appearances, with one of the men even shaving off facial hair, the women ambled off in the same clothes, including the highly distinctive sweat shirt emblazoned with the words "LOL," which was easily captured on security cameras. Instead of hopping on flights to rush out of the country with the four men, the women headed to nearby hotels.
Surely anyone who has watched the occasional police procedural on TV would know the tactics used after killing someone: A disposal of the murder weapon and the clothing as the operation carried out, even if you know it could be contaminated with a deadly nerve agent.
But, the turnout was abnormal.
When the women were arrested in the following days, they were still in possession of the incriminating clothing. It did not help the prosecution build a compelling picture of them as trained assassins.
Police presence has become less heavy as the trial itself got underway. / CGTN Photo
Rather, the evidence seems to be bolstering the defense's contention the women were duped, thinking they were taking part in a prank for a reality TV show.
Amid the media circus and the international intrigue of this case, it’s easy to forget the tragic and painful end Kim Jong Nam met: His blood ties to the leader of the DPRK.
Kim Jong Nam appeared to have been a man trying to quietly live his life as a private citizen, out of the spotlight, with no interest in political power.
A friend of mine met Kim Jong Nam here in Kuala Lumpur on several occasions. He described him as affable and humble, and a lover of music.
A court session took place at KL's budget air terminal to retrace the defendants' and the victims' steps. / CGTN Photo
With the people Malaysian authorities believe were the masterminds of the killing having fled to the DPRK, regardless of the outcome of this current trial, it looks as if Kim Jong Nam’s loved ones are unlikely to ever see justice properly done.
(CGTN)
