Monday, September 10, 2007

Cambodia's Border Committee's letter to US Ambassador Joseph Mussomeli regarding "Cambodia’s rights on her territorial integrity"

[KI-Media Note: A French version of the letter is included at the bottom of the English text]

CFC:CBC 04/09/07e
Paris, September 4, 2007

To His Excellency, Mr. Joseph Mussomeli, US Ambassador to Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Subject: Cambodia’s rights on her territorial integrity

Your Excellency,

According to the Voice of America program, during your meeting with Cambodian-American citizens in Atlanta, GA, USA, last August 4th, you broached the crucial current borders issue between Cambodia and her neighbors, Vietnam and Thailand, in which you suggested to the Cambodian people that “It's important to always find compromises and always, always, especially if you are the less-populated and less-politically and militarily strong country, find a legal, sensible, legitimate border.” You then supported your argument with the fact that: “Thailand, with 65 million people, and Vietnam, with 85 million, would naturally keep encroaching on Cambodian territory...”

With the political and diplomatic corollary thus asked, what “compromise,” and for how long, the Cambodian people could eventually accept for their national borders?

In view of the contemporary relationships history, for the past two centuries, the borders between States, whether they be large or small, weak or strong, were protected by international law against the encroachments by the stronger states, and this was done to preserve stability and peace. In 1991, the USA, with the UN approval, took the duty to militarily intervene in Kuwait to kick out Saddam Hussein’s Iraqis forces which usurped the right to annex this small country. In Europe, Switzerland is not that large either, however, the civilized Superpower countries which surround it, continue to respect Switzerland’s territorial integrity. The same happens to other small ASEAN countries such as Singapore and Brunei.

Since the last century, Cambodia’s territory is definitely defined by international law, a law which was successively recalled and reconfirmed by the 1954 Geneva Accords on French Indochina, and by the 1991 Paris peace Agreements on Cambodia concluded under the UN aegis.

On the other hand, as Your Excellency stressed with an obvious conviction, bypassing all these international agreements, Vietnam and Thailand continue and will continue to encroach on Cambodia’s territories because they are the strongest, “politically and militarily” – two criteria which seem, for the time being, to constitute the real bet for stability and peace for countries in the region.

Under these conditions, shouldn’t the USA – who was also a signatory of the 1991 Paris Peace Agreements on Cambodia – vigorously intervene with the governments of Hanoi and Bangkok to remind them of the respect of the law, instead of accommodating itself with the “present de facto condition” as you showed here – most likely with a seemingly illusory, dangerous and unacceptable “tranquility of the moment” because this is unfair and humiliating for the entire Cambodian people?

To establish peace among civilized nations and a lasting stability in the region, the Cambodia’s Border Committee in France and Worldwide never ceased, nor does it cease to claim the respect the territorial integrity of Cambodia by Vietnam and by Thailand.

Our Committee is enclosing herewith our letters dated May 27, 2003, April 29, 2005, and June 10, 2006, addressed to Mr. Kofi Annan, then-UN Secretary-general, as well as the reply by Mr. Hans Correll, Mr. Annan’s deputy, to our request to annul the illegal and unequal Treaties and Agreements between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the People’s Republic of Kampuchea which were concluded under the 1979-1991 Vietnamese occupation – an occupation which was vigorously condemned by the UN, as well as by the USA.

You will enclosed here as well, the then-reactions issued by His Majesty King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia, by Prince Norodom Ranariddh, President of the National Assembly, by Prince Norodom Sihamoni, Cambodia’s Ambassador to UNESCO, and by Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The Cambodia’s Border Committee in France and Worldwide would like to take this opportunity to express also our highest regards to Your Excellency.

President Cambodia’s Border Committee in France and Worldwide

Sean Pengse
Mining Engineer,
Former Industry, Mining and Handicraft Minister

Cc:
  • All CBC/CFC members worldwide
  • Signatory countries of the 1991 Paris Peace Agreements on Cambodia
  • Cambodian institutions in Phnom Penh
-----
Cfc:cbc 04/09/07 01F
Paris le 04 septembre 2007

A Son Excellence Monsieur JOSEPH MUSSOMELI, Ambassadeur des Etats-Unis d’Amérique
A Phnom Penh, Cambodge

Objet : Les droits du Cambodge à son intégrité territoriale.

Excellence,

Lors de votre réunion avec des Cambodgiens-Américains à Atlanta, GA, USA, le 4 août dernier, selon la radio VOA, vous avez bien voulu aborder la question cruciale des frontières du Cambodge avec le Vietnam et la Thaïlande voisins en ce moment, en suggérant aux Cambodgiens qu’«il est important de toujours et toujours trouver des compromis (avec ces voisins), particulièrement si vous êtes les moins nombreux et les moins forts politiquement et militairement, (et de) trouver des frontières légaux (légales ?), raisonnables et légitimes». Vous avez appuyé ensuite votre argument sur le fait que «la Thaïlande, avec ses 65 millions d’habitants, et le Vietnam, avec ses 85 millions, continueraient naturellement à empiéter sur le territoire cambodgien...»

Le corollaire politique et diplomatique ainsi posé, quel « compromis », et pour combien de temps, les Cambodgiens pourraient-ils éventuellement accepter pour leurs frontières nationales ?

Au regard de l’histoire des relations contemporaines, depuis deux siècles, les frontières des Etats, grands et petits, forts et faibles, sont protégées par le droit international contre les empiètements par les plus forts, ce pour la stabilité et la paix. En 1991, les Etats-Unis d’Amérique, avec l’approbation de l’ONU, ont cru devoir intervenir militairement à Koweït pour chasser les forces irakiennes de Saddam Hussein qui s’arrogeaient le droit d’annexer ce petit pays. En Europe, la Suisse n’est pas très grande non plus, mais les grandes puissances civilisées qui l’entourent continuent à respecter l’intégrité territoriale de la Suisse. De même que pour d’autres petits Etats de l’ASEAN, comme Singapour et Brunei.

Le territoire du Cambodge, depuis plus d’un siècle, est défini définitivement par le droit international, droit rappelé et reconfirmé successivement par les Accords de Genève sur l’Indochine française de 1954 et par les Accords de Paix de Paris sur le Cambodge de 1991, sous l’égide de l’ONU.

Par contre, comme Votre Excellence l’a souligné avec une évidente conviction, par-dessus tous ces Accords internationaux, le Vietnam et la Thaïlande continuent et continueront à empiéter sur le territoire du Cambodge, car ils sont les plus forts « politiquement et militairement » , deux critères qui semblent donc, pour le moment, constituer les véritables enjeux pour la stabilité et la paix des pays de la région.

Dans ces conditions, les Etats-Unis d’Amérique, signataire également des Accords de Paris sur le Cambodge de 1991, n’auraient-ils pas dû intervenir avec vigueur auprès des gouvernements de Hanoi et de Bangkok pour les rappeler au respect du droit, au lieu de s’ accommoder de la « situation de fait présente » comme vous l’aviez montré, probablement sans doute eu égard à une certaine « tranquillité du moment », illusoire, dangereuse et inacceptable parce qu’injuste et humiliante pour tout le peuple cambodgien ?

Pour la paix entre les peuples civilisés et une stabilité durable de la région, le Comité des Frontières du Cambodge en France et dans le Monde n’a cessé et ne cesse de réclamer le respect de l’intégrité territoriale du Cambodge par le Vietnam et la Thaïlande.

Notre Comité prie Votre Excellence de bien vouloir trouver ci-joint, ses lettres des 27 mai 2002, 29 avril 2005 et 10 juin 2006 adressées à M. KOFI ANNAN, alors Secrétaire Général de l’ONU, et la réponse de son adjoint, M. HANS CORELL, à notre demande d’annulation des Traités et Accords illégaux et inégaux entre la République Socialiste du Vietnam et la République Populaire du Kampuchea, conclus sous l’occupation vietnamienne de1979 à 1991, occupation condamnée vigoureusement par l’ONU - et aussi par les Etats-Unis d’Amérique.

Vous trouverez ci-joint également les réactions d’alors de Sa Majesté le Roi NORODOM SIHANOUK, du Prince NORODOM RANARIDDH, Président de l’Assemblée nationale, du Prince NORODOM SIHAMONI, Ambassadeur du Cambodge auprès de l’Unesco et de M. HUN SEN, Premier ministre.

Le Comité des Frontières du Cambodge en France et dans le Monde saisit cette occasion pour renouveler à Votre Excellence les assurances de sa très haute considération.

Le Président du Comité des Frontières du Cambodge
en France et dans le Monde

SEAN Péngsè
Ingénieur des Mines,
Ancien Ministre de l’Industrie, des Mines et de l’Artisanat

Copie à:
  • Tous les membres du CFC /CBC de par le Monde
  • Les Pays signataires des Accords de Paix de Paris sur le Cambodge de 1991
  • Les Entités cambodgiennes à Phnom-Penh.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

WOW WOW WOW !!!!!! thanks you this is what the real Cambodian People need.

Anonymous said...

Thank you sir !!


khmer people this is a good example of the fact that we khmer need to make our voices heard !!

No demands, no voices, no justice.
Justice comes, only if we all stand together and demands it.
There is laws, but only if its " enforced " !


we khmer cannot depends on hun sen and his clowns. hun is history as history is in the making of another bad khmer leader.

sralang tee moy

Anonymous said...

Excellent work, Mr. Sean Pengse and company!!

Keep fighting until the end! All Khmer around the world will be united and fight until the end!

Anonymous said...

I have serious doubt if Uncle SAM will ever recognize the real Cambodian map before the Vietcong invasion. So far Uncle SAM had been publishing the world map according to the Thaicong and the Vietcong claimed over Cambodia and that is a real tragedy for Cambodian people.

If Uncle SAM continue to favor the Vietcong and the Thaicong because they have military and economic power over Cambodia in redraw the world map and it won’t be long many smaller countries around the world will be disappeared from the face of the Earth just like Cambodia and soon more wars and instabilities will erupt around the globe!

Uncle SAM is using DARWINIAN THEORY to make Cambodian people unfit to have a country and I suggest that Cambodian people must use violence and more violence to disprove and to destroy DARWINIAN THEORY!

Cambodian people had destroyed the concept of DOMINIO THEORY during the cold war and now it is time to take on DARWINIAN THEORY!

Anonymous said...

In the pass, Uncle Sam always sided with the powerful Thai and Viet on the expense of Cambodia. I thought Uncle Sam learned the lesson during the Vietnam war and gave up this injustice treatment toward Cambodia. This is the main reason why King Father keep shifting his political stand to sided with China because(whether we cambodia like it or not) China is the only super power that willing to recognize Cambodian territory.

I used to put blame on King father for gaving up his Neutrality stand to sided with Communist China. But, when I learned that its Uncle Sam who refused to treat Cambodia fairly b/c of her small population combined with no military power, I reserve my judgement on the ex-king.

I wish that Uncle Sam realize that in order for peace to prevail in S.E Asia, Uncle Sam must learn to treat all the S.E.A countries equaly and provide justice to the less fortunate country like Cambodia.

Anonymous said...

4:53 AM,
You are right on the money. If you go back to 1953 during fighting for Cambodian independent, US refused to support Cambodia. Sihanouk never forgot that and took it real personal. America you are deserved to be hated by many counties around the world.... I hope god is tired of blessing USA.

Anonymous said...

This is a great letter and is a legitimate cause. Don't let this issue slip away as a footnote in history. I would not rely on the US ambassador to help, he does not care and neither does the US.

Keep campaigning & Good luck!