By Jurgen Schmidt
DPA
Phnom Penh - Cambodia plans to appeal a case in which lengthy sentences were handed down by a Thai court to a group of its nationals after they were convicted of logging and entering Thailand illegally, local media reported Thursday. The 16 men who are from adjacent provinces in north-west Cambodia were arrested on July 23 by Thai authorities. Fifteen of them were sentenced to nine years and three months each while the last was given six years and two months.
The Thai court in Ubon Ratchathani province has granted a one-month period to appeal.
The cabinet chief of Cambodia's Preah Vihear province told the Phnom Penh Post newspaper that the sentences were "revenge" by Thailand for the unresolved border dispute between the two kingdoms while Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said government lawyers would appeal the convictions.
"Let our lawyers do their work until the end [of the legal process]; then we will use another measure," Koy Kuong told the newspaper.
Defence lawyers had pleaded that the men were not engaged in logging and had not realized they had crossed into Thai territory.
Much of the 800-kilometre-long common border between the two nations has not yet been demarcated. Tensions have been high for the past year with several soldiers on both sides killed and injured in skirmishes around the Preah Vihear temple, an 11th-century structure that sits on the border between the two kingdoms.
The Thai court in Ubon Ratchathani province has granted a one-month period to appeal.
The cabinet chief of Cambodia's Preah Vihear province told the Phnom Penh Post newspaper that the sentences were "revenge" by Thailand for the unresolved border dispute between the two kingdoms while Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said government lawyers would appeal the convictions.
"Let our lawyers do their work until the end [of the legal process]; then we will use another measure," Koy Kuong told the newspaper.
Defence lawyers had pleaded that the men were not engaged in logging and had not realized they had crossed into Thai territory.
Much of the 800-kilometre-long common border between the two nations has not yet been demarcated. Tensions have been high for the past year with several soldiers on both sides killed and injured in skirmishes around the Preah Vihear temple, an 11th-century structure that sits on the border between the two kingdoms.
7 comments:
Yes, this is a revenge acts by Siemese. The thais who live and do business in Cambodia are treated well while their military and authority treat our people like animals. I heard the same from Burmese people who were shoot and treated like animals by Thais. Thais are better off because of their exploitation politically and economically on the neighbors Laos, Burma and Cambodia. Once Thailand will fall into civi war they will know how their lives will be.
Cambodian authority must put pressure on Thai authority to turn in that thai soldier over to us, and punish the bastard too! why let them taken advantage on our people alone? that bastard must sentence and punish under cambodian law also...
the siem are the cruelest people i've known. this is a sign of them taking revenge on khmer people because siem can't seem to steal from khmer anymore as cambodia and the world is not in the dark ages anymore!
Those poor innocent khmers people are just in the wrong place and the wrong time, i blamed Thai villager, bcause they are the one that lured them to works for...or they may team up with Thai soldiers to take advantage on these poor innocent people, as we all knew how cruelty Thais people are....THAILAND HAS NO DIGNITY! THAILAND IS CURELTY COUNTRY! THAILAND IS COWARDS COUNTRY!
You see this is what happened when the stupid khmer government is too weak and to lenient to the fake ass smile thai. we should of kept those thai soldiers when we captured them for bargain table but instead we let them go freely. And now, look what happen to our khmer national when they captured us? they put a harsh punishment for being accused that we crossed inside their territory. we never learn from our past. dam its a shame that we are still like this...
Gosh this is not even a serious crime! Is not like they are killing anyone and yet they get almost 10 yrs of prison! This is totally revenge and taken advantage of the Cambodian people. Our government is too soft and gullible with the Thais. Feel for my people omg...
Khmer people who live along the border always crossing into Thai villages for works, they did and done this for a decade, as their normals and daily life for them, but i think Thai taken an advantage on these poor people, they went there because Thai villagers employed them? we caught alot of Thais people illegally crossing into our territory, but we alway send them back without any harms at all...? Thai shot our people and burns our people alive?
Cambodian leaders are blinds!
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