DPA
Phnom Penh - A Cambodian official accused Thai troops of fatally shooting a Cambodian national who tried to cross the border illegally, local media reported Wednesday.
The incident marked the second time in two months that Thai troops have been accused of killing Cambodians along the border in north-western Cambodia.
The Phnom Penh Post newspaper cited the governor of the provincial capital of Oddar Meanchey province as saying the victim, Sim Bun Chhim, 25, was crossing the border with two other men Monday night when Thai soldiers opened fire. The other men escaped, but Sim Bun Chhim was seriously injured and died on his way to hospital.
Thon Nol, the governor of Samrong, condemned the act.
'They crossed the border illegally, but [Thai troops] shot them like animals,' Thon Nol told the newspaper. 'They should have arrested them and sent them back to the Cambodian authorities.'
The Foreign Affairs Ministry was awaiting an report from local authorities before deciding on any course of action, spokesman Koy Kuong said Wednesday.
Last month, a Cambodian teenager was reportedly tied to an ox cart and burned alive by Thai troops after being caught logging illegally in Thailand.
The Thai government had said 16-year-old Yon Rith was already dead from gunshot wounds when troops burned his body.
The ministry spokesman said Phnom Penh had received a note from the Thai government refuting the allegation. Cambodian officials were still investigating the teenager's death.
'The note says that the Thai side agrees to cooperate with Cambodia to bring the offenders to justice but asked Cambodia to provide more evidence,' Koy Koung said. 'I don't know how long that [investigation] will take.'
Cambodia and Thailand have had a tense and long-running dispute over their 804-kilometre-long border. Violence has flared on occasion between troops on both sides, most recently in the area around the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple on Cambodia's northern border.
The incident marked the second time in two months that Thai troops have been accused of killing Cambodians along the border in north-western Cambodia.
The Phnom Penh Post newspaper cited the governor of the provincial capital of Oddar Meanchey province as saying the victim, Sim Bun Chhim, 25, was crossing the border with two other men Monday night when Thai soldiers opened fire. The other men escaped, but Sim Bun Chhim was seriously injured and died on his way to hospital.
Thon Nol, the governor of Samrong, condemned the act.
'They crossed the border illegally, but [Thai troops] shot them like animals,' Thon Nol told the newspaper. 'They should have arrested them and sent them back to the Cambodian authorities.'
The Foreign Affairs Ministry was awaiting an report from local authorities before deciding on any course of action, spokesman Koy Kuong said Wednesday.
Last month, a Cambodian teenager was reportedly tied to an ox cart and burned alive by Thai troops after being caught logging illegally in Thailand.
The Thai government had said 16-year-old Yon Rith was already dead from gunshot wounds when troops burned his body.
The ministry spokesman said Phnom Penh had received a note from the Thai government refuting the allegation. Cambodian officials were still investigating the teenager's death.
'The note says that the Thai side agrees to cooperate with Cambodia to bring the offenders to justice but asked Cambodia to provide more evidence,' Koy Koung said. 'I don't know how long that [investigation] will take.'
Cambodia and Thailand have had a tense and long-running dispute over their 804-kilometre-long border. Violence has flared on occasion between troops on both sides, most recently in the area around the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple on Cambodia's northern border.
10 comments:
All Thais soldier has to do is jails them, punish them under the law, you don't just shoot people unarmed again and again? those khmer people are stubborn too! i knew we are poors and needed the money, but you shouldn't risking your life for this kind of money, if we could survive during Pol Pot's regims, why we can not do it right now??
people are greedy! that's a problems...
Khmer soldier at the border should retaliate, if Thailand did this to Vietnam, they will be in big trouble, Vietnam will retaliate right a way! only Khmer leaders are soft and scared, hesitate, this is to make Thais even wants to shoot more khmer people, everytime they see one....
Oh my Buddha, I am so so hurt to hear that Thai troop have been killing Cambodian people near the bother! I wonder why Thai troop are so rude and cruel to its neighbours?
I wish Thai government and Cambodian government have good relation both diplomatie and politics and wish the killers could be in jail!
I hope Cambodian government will be partly responsible on all the cases happened, and condemn the Thai troop as soon as possible.
This is push me to hate Thai as a whole when i hear they killed again and again my beloved Cambodians!
Hean Padhi
Not long ago ,Hun Sen ordered Cambodian soldiers to shoot and kill Thai whoever dare to cross the border . Thai have been doing the samething because they learned it from Hun Sen . Now who to blame ?
Thai,
If you are Buddhists, please don't cheat the world and Khmer more. Whereas Khmer had the civil war, you said to foreigners that Angkor Wat belong to Thai, but new most of those who I meet don't believe you more, esp. in Germany.
Despite we still have the power conflict in our country after the killing fields but we have a free hand to publish our original Khmer culture to the wold and those trust in Khmer wher we are?
We (Khmers) has always respect for Thailand people as friend.
If the 16-year-old Yon Rith was dead from gunshot what you don't give this body to Khmer authority on the spot or inform them as proof. That is cleary proof you are speak lie.
Khmer Son
One Khmer died, we got one new hero.
This will strengthen our mind and brain.
This is all for politics and future votes. The government don't care about those who died. They probably want more people to cross illegally and get shot; so that the issue gets bigger. The khmer government is only involved in order to fool the ignorant masses that the government cares about them. If the government did care, they would have been more consistent. Why focus only on the Khmer/Thai border and not the Khmer/Vietnam border?
Why do Cambodian keep on crossing the boarder illegally when they know the consequences?
These people have already survived during pol pot's time, why can't they survive now..? remembered we didn't have enough foods to eat..? i would do what i can to stay inside my homeland, farming, fishing, livestock raising...whatever to survive, i think people these day too greedy!!, they seen someone had nice things, they wanted the same...
Some Thais and including their government are barbaric and sea pirates.
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