Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Parliament delays debate on border talks

August 18, 2010
The Nation
Thai nationalists and some senators want the government to revoke the 2000 MoU because they fear losing territory to Cambodia, as the document recognises a French map that suggests areas adjacent to Preah Vihear temple on the border belong to Cambodia.
Reports from recent Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Committee (JBC) meetings were not considered by MPs in Parliament yesterday after pressure from a nationalist group protesting over the border dispute.

Parliamentary Speaker Chai Chidchob said he did not put the JBC reports on the agenda, despite saying the gathering of a nationalist group led by activist Veera Somkwamkid in front of Parliament was nonsense.

Yesterday's session only heard a proposal from a parliamentary committee to keep reports from the session on boundary demarcation secret.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said he had submitted agreed minutes from three JBC meetings on boundary talks held over the past two years, but he had no idea when they would be on the agenda for MPs to consider.

Article 190 of the Constitution requires the ministry to submit any negotiation framework, which could lead to changes of borders or territory, so they are approved by Parliament.

The JBC was set up in accordance with a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with Cambodia in 2000 to survey and demarcate the boundary line with officials from the neighbouring country.

Thai nationalists and some senators want the government to revoke the 2000 MoU because they fear losing territory to Cambodia, as the document recognises a French map that suggests areas adjacent to Preah Vihear temple on the border belong to Cambodia.

Thailand and Cambodia have been at loggerheads over the temple and adjacent territory after it was listed as a World Heritage site in 2008. Thailand fears the listing process may undermine its claim to disputed areas adjacent to the temple.

The last JBC meeting was in April last year and talks are only able to continue once the Thai Parliament has endorsed the agreed minutes from the three last meetings.

Veera told his supporters to disperse from their rally outside Parliament after a news report revealed consideration of the JBC documents had been delayed.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think Khmers are really stupid and dump, they have their own lands but they don't know where are the borders, so Ah Youns and Siems just take little by little, in the future Khmers will have no lands like Charm if Khmers are still stupid and more dump.

Anonymous said...

Ah Hun Xen and CPP had somethings secret with Ah Thais that is why they don't want to go the UN for help, all Khmers should understand about this Hun Xen Youn. The UN can help if any country should have any problems.

Anonymous said...

10:39 AM,

Come on, let us be fair here. It it not that we, Khmers do not know where our borders should be; we know exactly where it should be.

The Thais and the Vietnamese are much stronger than us, they are quite aggressive and in trying to violate Cambodian territorial integrity. It is not easy to defend our land from these 2 stronger and unreasonble neighbours who never respect our country; in addition, Cambodians have unity problem as well.

So before you look down on us by calling us stupid, you should ask yourself what the Vietnamese and Thais would say if we tell them that many provinces in their countries were once Khmers provinces.

You know full well that the 2 countries have violated Cambodian territorial integrity!

Anonymous said...

10:59 AM,

They have gone to the UN now so you have to wait and see what your UN can do.

I hope you won't curse your trusted UN down the road!

Anonymous said...

Hun Sen is just a puppet.The state of Cambodia is Kampuchea,but all land is belong to Vietnam.Khmer has no land. Khmer is second Champa. Vietnam treats Khmer and Lao like Champa. Did Vietnam come to rescue or save Khmer in 1979 ? No. Who killed Khmer two million people ? Vietnam used Khmer to kill Khmer,then Vietnam gets the land. Wake up, stand up,and protest against puppet in Phnom Penh. Hun Sen is happy today,but tomorrow he will die because Khmer people hate him.

Anonymous said...

Since Hun Sen was a Khmer Rouge commander, now a Khmer Rouge leader and had many of his political opponents and journalists assassinated, I wonder if he have any plan to assassinate the Thai Prime Minister (Ahbullshit Vejjajiva)?