PM Hun Sen warned Thailand: withdraw or face a ‘Death Zone’

Opinion by Khmerization

14th October, 2008

I advocate that some sorts of strong diplomatic, and to a certain extent, strong military pressures, be exerted on Thailand. By saying this I mean that, should Thailand refuse to withdraw its troops, some sorts of armed clash should occur, especially at Ta Moan Thom, Ta Krabey and Phnom Trop. And any attempts by Thai troops to cross into Cambodian territories in the future must be met with armed resistance. These sorts of actions are the effective deterrence against future encroachments, as has been proven by the actions of the Laotian troops.

At long last PM Hun Sen has done what should be done a long time ago, and that is warning Thailand of a 'death zone'. The strong reactions displayed by Mr. Hun Sen and that of Foreign Minister Hor Namhong in the face of continued territorial violations by Thailand and its refusal to withdraw troops from Cambodian territories are signs that the Cambodian patience is wearing thin and that Mr. Hun Sen is stepping in the right directions and his strong statements against Thailand’s aggression should be wholeheartedly welcomed by all Cambodians from all political persuasions.

I have been advocating for a strong reaction for sometimes to these Thai flagrant and gross violations of Cambodian sovereignty and territorial integrity. In the face of renewed and continued violations and Thai intransigence, Cambodia must send a strong message to Thailand that its actions could no longer be tolerated by Cambodia.

Since Cambodia’s inactions and, to a certain extent, frightened reactions, to the first Thai invasion of the Preah Vihear area on 15th of July 2008, Thailand has been waging a campaign of relentless violations of Cambodian territories without any attempts to resist those violations from the Cambodia troops. Preah Vihear, Ta Moan Thom, Ta Krabey, O’plok Damrey in Pursat, Veal Indri at Phnom Trop and as recently as a few days ago, a Buddhist pagoda at Rumchet at Choam Ksan of the Golden Triangle between Laos, Thailand and Cambodia’s borders have been encroached by Thailand. These sorts of violations must not be allowed to go unchallenged. They must be stopped at all cost.

I, and I hope that other compatriots, have also said in the past that the continuation of bilateral talks with Thailand will produce no results because Thailand was not and has never been sincere in its talks with Cambodia, as was evident in the many fruitless bilateral talks in the past. Thailand came to the negotiating tables just to appease Cambodia and the UN Security Council not to get involved. The same will happen with the future meetings that were agreed on Monday. The only solutions Thailand want out of the meetings are that Cambodia must agree to give ownership to Thailand all the territories it has claimed and occupied.

If Cambodia does not resort to using force to deter future encroachments, Thailand will continue to encroach at its free will. And unless Cambodia will seek international involvements, or by using force to push Thai troops out, Thailand will never withdraw from the Cambodian territories that they have occupied and the Thai occupation of those territories will be a fait accompli.

Cambodia might be no match for Thailand militarily. The same can be said of Laos. But Laos has taught Thailand a lesson at the battle of Ban Romklao in 1989 when nearly 600 Thai troops were massacred by Laotian troops during the fighting for the control of that village. Since then, Thailand never mess around with Laos anymore. And a few days ago Laotian troops had fired on a group of Thai soldiers trying to trespass Laotian territories. The Thai troops withdrew in split seconds.

In drawing an analogy with the Laotian situation, Cambodia should employ the same actions a long time ago, when Thailand first sent in their troops to invade Preah Vihear. If Cambodia was firm then, encroachments at Ta Moan Thom, Ta Krabey, O’plok Damrey and Veal Indri at Phnom Trop would never have happened.

In summing up this editorial, I advocate that some sorts of strong diplomatic, and to a certain extent, strong military pressures, be exerted on Thailand. By saying this I mean that, should Thailand refuse to withdraw its troops, some sorts of armed clash should occur, especially at Ta Moan Thom, Ta Krabey and Phnom Trop. And any attempts by Thai troops to cross into Cambodian territories in the future must be met with armed resistance. These sorts of actions are the effective deterrence against future encroachments, as has been proven by the actions of the Laotian troops.