The 11th century 
June 24, 2009
By Chak Sopheap
Guest Commentary
UPI Asia Online
Niigata, Japan — It has been more than four decades since the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was established. While ASEAN and its supporters claim that this regional institution has contributed significantly to peace and stability in Asia, there are still many challenges. The dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over the Preah Vihear Temple that stands on their shared border provides a striking example of ASEAN’s failure to mediate regional conflict.
The group’s Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, which dates to 1976, promised to promote peace, solidarity and cooperation among its people. Article 2 in particular highlighted the principles of noninterference, settling disputes through peaceful means, and mutual respect for members’ sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.
The more recent ASEAN Charter – which came into force in December last year after Thailand was the last nation to ratify it – again lists maintaining regional security and respecting members’ sovereignty among its principles and purposes. In reality, however, ASEAN is not even capable of resolving the current conflict on the Thai-Cambodian border.
Thailand and Cambodia have been in confrontation over a small stretch of disputed land since the United Nations approved Cambodia’s application to have its Preah Vihear Temple recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site in July 2008. The Thai government has repeatedly violated Cambodia’s sovereignty by deploying military forces to the border, twice sparking battles that killed a few soldiers on both sides, destroyed a Cambodian market and damaged part of the temple site.
Yet there has been no compensation or even acknowledgment of the Thai attacks on Cambodian territory. Instead of making stronger efforts to resolve the border issue during his visit to Cambodia last week, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has taken another provocative step by proposing that UNESCO reconsider its decision and list the temple as a World Heritage site under the joint management of Cambodia and Thailand.
This constitutes direct interference in Cambodian affairs and a violation of Cambodian sovereignty as guaranteed by international law. It also violates the principles of ASEAN, over which a Thai general secretary currently presides.
The border tension appears to be politically motivated to distract attention from the internal turmoil that has plagued Thai society ever since the military coup that toppled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra from office in 2006. In revenge, Thaksin has stirred up popular sentiment and appealed to his rural supporters to protest against the military regime.
Diverting attention away from this internal conflict to the border dispute with Cambodia appears to be a political strategy on the part of the Thai government to gain support from its citizens.
This provocative behavior should be condemned or at least discussed by ASEAN, but it has never been raised on the group’s agenda. It seems that ASEAN is simply irrelevant when it comes to member states’ security.
If this continued violation of another member state’s sovereignty is acceptable to ASEAN, regional stability will surely deteriorate. Other states with conflicting territorial claims can use this populist strategy to incite nationalistic sentiment against their neighbors. They can divert their citizens’ attention from internal conflict by creating international conflict.
Thailand, as a civilized state whose former foreign minister, Surin Pitsuwan, is the current secretary general of ASEAN, should respect the rule of law and the principles aimed at securing regional stability. Otherwise ASEAN cannot continue to be considered a crucial regional body.
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(Chak Sopheap is a graduate student of peace studies at the International University of Japan. She runs a blog, www.sopheapfocus.com, in which she shares her impressions of both Japan and her homeland, Cambodia. She was previously advocacy officer of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights.)
The group’s Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, which dates to 1976, promised to promote peace, solidarity and cooperation among its people. Article 2 in particular highlighted the principles of noninterference, settling disputes through peaceful means, and mutual respect for members’ sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.
The more recent ASEAN Charter – which came into force in December last year after Thailand was the last nation to ratify it – again lists maintaining regional security and respecting members’ sovereignty among its principles and purposes. In reality, however, ASEAN is not even capable of resolving the current conflict on the Thai-Cambodian border.
Thailand and Cambodia have been in confrontation over a small stretch of disputed land since the United Nations approved Cambodia’s application to have its Preah Vihear Temple recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site in July 2008. The Thai government has repeatedly violated Cambodia’s sovereignty by deploying military forces to the border, twice sparking battles that killed a few soldiers on both sides, destroyed a Cambodian market and damaged part of the temple site.
Yet there has been no compensation or even acknowledgment of the Thai attacks on Cambodian territory. Instead of making stronger efforts to resolve the border issue during his visit to Cambodia last week, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has taken another provocative step by proposing that UNESCO reconsider its decision and list the temple as a World Heritage site under the joint management of Cambodia and Thailand.
This constitutes direct interference in Cambodian affairs and a violation of Cambodian sovereignty as guaranteed by international law. It also violates the principles of ASEAN, over which a Thai general secretary currently presides.
The border tension appears to be politically motivated to distract attention from the internal turmoil that has plagued Thai society ever since the military coup that toppled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra from office in 2006. In revenge, Thaksin has stirred up popular sentiment and appealed to his rural supporters to protest against the military regime.
Diverting attention away from this internal conflict to the border dispute with Cambodia appears to be a political strategy on the part of the Thai government to gain support from its citizens.
This provocative behavior should be condemned or at least discussed by ASEAN, but it has never been raised on the group’s agenda. It seems that ASEAN is simply irrelevant when it comes to member states’ security.
If this continued violation of another member state’s sovereignty is acceptable to ASEAN, regional stability will surely deteriorate. Other states with conflicting territorial claims can use this populist strategy to incite nationalistic sentiment against their neighbors. They can divert their citizens’ attention from internal conflict by creating international conflict.
Thailand, as a civilized state whose former foreign minister, Surin Pitsuwan, is the current secretary general of ASEAN, should respect the rule of law and the principles aimed at securing regional stability. Otherwise ASEAN cannot continue to be considered a crucial regional body.
--
(Chak Sopheap is a graduate student of peace studies at the International University of Japan. She runs a blog, www.sopheapfocus.com, in which she shares her impressions of both Japan and her homeland, Cambodia. She was previously advocacy officer of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights.)
14 comments:
Some of the foreigners like to talk about corruption in Cambodia. Just look at Asean or and other international organizations. It's as clearly definite as white and black that Preah Vihear is Khmer but yet none of these so-called world organization would step in or voice their concern in defending what is Khmer.
Why? Because Khmer doesn't have as much money and benefits to them as Thai. If Khmer has as much benefits to them, they would be all over already. There is so much hypocrisy in this world, if it was a pollution, we'd all be dead by now.
I don't think that Hun Sen's government needs any outside helps to solve this problems with Thailand. He's the "strong man". He can do anything or is he "strong" only with the Khmers? He insulted Ms. Mu Sockhu and then turned that victim into another victim of his regime again. Can he show his big muscle to the Thais? Can he teach the Thais a lesson?
Thailand say that the easy access to Preah Vihear Temple is from Thailand, so the the temple should be belonging to Thailand. This kind of idea is so idiot, don't thai people never learn about the other countries's geographie around the globe ? Just an example : Corse Island in south of France is so close to Italia, why the Italian do not say that Island should be belong to Italia ?
khmer in France
11:02 PM
Well, it shall remain to be seen with the Preah Vihear issue. As for Mu Sochea, it looks like Mu Sochea messed with the bull and now she got the horns lol haha.
I saw boys in Mexico shot the ferocious Bull and each year they celebrate. How ferociously Cambodian is? He will be dead sometime somehow. If not him his children or family members will be dead by others whom family members (Hok Lundy) was killed by him. Hok Lundy children knew Hun Sen killed their Father.
Now, people start to appreciate Heng Pov said " I told you so about the bull Hun Sen".
"the best access to it is through Thailand. " not so true, i was last month. the best access entrance is on cambodia side.
You don't cross out Buddhist when you write the Khmer Buddhist Temple. So why would you cross out Hindu when you write the Hindu Khmer Temple?
The word Hindu denotes a specific world faith just as the word Buddhist is another designation for another faith.
Khmer should not deny Hindu influence and culture in our history, even Buddhism is sometimes considered part of the branch of Hinduism, the 'unorthodox' one of course.
The point is, Khmer were Hindus at the time of the great empire, and even though Buddhist also co-exist, they were not the majority and did not become national religion until later.
perhaps asean member states should get rid of its outdated "no interference" policy. how else will it become effective as an organization if it keep silent all the time even though they knew what thailand did is wrong! i say asean needs to overhaul or change its outdated law if it to become a respected organization in my khmer view!
ASEAN is like a group asian men meet up for gambling halls.
They don't care about each other, but each interests only. Winner takes all organization. Looser in debts for a life.
good abservation, in human history, people changed religion all the time. what's new about that? nothing is wrong with that. that's why there were recorded history for a period of time in the chronological chart of every history in of the world. hello! remember ignorance is the root of all evil as lord buddha and other wise men had learnt thousands of years ago. please learn from the wise ones. god bless.
តើអាចុយម្រ៉ាយ ខ្ញុំកញ្ជះបាតជើង យួន ភីភីយូ ទៅណ៎ាបាត់ហើយហ្ន៎?
The whole of ASEAN does not have any strong backbone. Wrong or right, PM Hun Sen has more guts than all of those ASEAN leaders combined.
It is good for group therapy, but not much substance has come out of its existence.
Fucken stupid SOUTHEAST ASEAN NATIONS, these fucker always take side toward Thailand! i said fuck you! fuck SOUTHEAT ASEAN NATIONS!!
7:52am
អាចុយម្រ៉ាយ អញគ្មានទៅណាទេ អញនៅមើលបក្សពួកអាឯង
ចុយកន្តួយម៉ែអាឯងហ្នឹងណា
អាឆ្កួត អាភ្លើ អាឆ្កែបស្ជឹមប្រទេស។
ពី អញ
ភីភីយូ
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