A battle at the temple of doom

12-02-2554
By Achara Ashayagachat
IndochinaPublishing.com

KI-Media would like to thank Lok Bora Touch for pointing out this article.

But deep down, observers said border disputes always involved business dealings that would come with the success of demarcation. There were talks about Hun Sen, his deputy prime minister Sok An and Hun Sen's would benefit from oil and gas concession fees from multinational companies if Cambodia could convince Thailand in negotiating the maritime territorial in the format of Joint Development Area (JDA) development and with the same revenue-sharing as featured in the Thailand-Malaysia JDA model.

Stepping out from self-centrism, it would be easier to understand why Thailand and Cambodia have recently re-engaged in nasty battlefield and table wars again-----the two countries have fallen victim to the myths of nationalism during the past century incomplete nation-building process.

Sharing the Ankorean heritage thousand years ago, Siam and Khmer empires had been positively and negatively emulated each other through cultural and language exchanges such as mythology, royal cults, dance and architecture. But with the newly-emerged concept of space and border, they have to outdo each other economically and politically as well.

Disputes involving the Hindu Preah Vihear Temple have begun since the International Court of Justice ruling in 1962 that the over-900-year-old Temple belonged to Cambodia.

However, the less-clear reference to the land surrounding the temple has ignited the controversial contest again when the "owner" would like to exploit the ruined artifacts de facto in economic terms by unilaterally listing the Temple as a world heritage site in 2008.

Thanks to Thailand's messy politics, the Cambodia-friendly nominee government of the ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinwatra was forced to bow out to the old powers-appeasing new leadership led by Abhisit Vejjajiva, who pledged during his opposition time to "reclaim the Temple" --- the mission in which Marshal Sarit Thanarat (in the ICJ ruling era) could never finish.

In the past two years, we therefore witnessed verbal attacks and small-scaled skirmishes, if not military confrontation, between the two neighboring nations.

The worse major turn came in December last year when the newly-elected Democrat MP and also former vice minister for foreign affairs Panich Vikitsreth and six other members of the ultra-nationalist People's Alliance for Democracy were arrested and tried in Cambodia for trespassing.

The once Abhisit-friendly PAD since then turned sour to the head of the Thai government---using an ace card 'treason' against whoever preventing their dreamful mission of "defending territory."

The Yellow-Shirted alliance was hoping that ranting against the belligerent Hun Sen and rallying around sovereignty issues would yield the more important and in fact ultimate goal of the PAD's key sponsors--- setting up a new strong leadership under the benevolence of the powerful and budgeted-rich military and shunning any crumbling forces led by the exiled fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra.

Thai miscalculations and short-lived memories VS vengeful Cambodians leadership.

Thai civilian officials have been thinking (in fact moaning) loudly during the New Year' Eve that Thailand must not confront this neighbor with troops. When first clash erupted in 4th February, historical haunt reminded the diplomats that the cunningly smart Cambodia would re-list its agenda at the United Nation Security Council again.

Cambodia believed in bilateral negotiations, they could not force Thailand to accept their positions but third party could do so.

That was why in 2008, during Vietnam's presidency of the United Nations Security Council, Cambodia instigated incidents at border and got the veteran foreign minister Hor Nam Hong planning to fly to New York to attend the Council meeting to accuse Thailand of aggression against Cambodia.

Bangkok lobbied the Council members very hard and with Washington's help, in particular then Ambassador Eric john, the UNSC meeting did not take place. Now the Monday meeting was a deja vu.

"If Security Council were to ask ICJ's opinion on Prasat (temple)'s boundary and accept ICJ's ruling, Thailand would be bound by it. It was a close call last time," a senior Thai diplomat recollected.

Also thanks to other Asean friends including the secretary general Surin Pitsuwan, the then Asean chair Singapore suggested to Cambodia that they should allow bilateral and regional approaches to be exhausted before forwarding the issue to the international arena.

But this time Prime Minister Abhisit was too stubborn or too confident that Thailand could deal with the less-educated and poorer neighbour so he did not take heed to such calls that he softened a bit and make direct contacts and humbly offered olive lei to the rival Hun Sen first.

As key Cambodian cabinet members were veteran politicians-- shrewd in guerilla and propaganda warfare, they exploited every strategy at one battle and their moves were much better well-planned.

"Negotiations are like bayonets --if they find the rival mush, they will keep thrusting, if they find steel, they withdraw," said the diplomat.

Technically, Thailand should succeed in meeting Cambodian challenge at the UN meeting. More positive development was that Indonesia would call Asean meeting on 22 February to discuss Thai-Cambodian--a more proper channel than at the international arena--at least to many Thai officials now.

Precedence in the 1980s confirmed that when Laos took Thailand to the Security Council on the three-village incident took place, then New York-based ambassador M.L. Bhirabhongse Kasemsri single-handedly rebutted every accusation by Laos.

But the authorities' competence (in negotiations) this time might be futile if political leadership has remained crumbling and offered wrong signals and envoys that might be counter-productive to other technical efforts.

"Abhisit usually said it's the matter for foreign ministry, but when the PAD pushed for a harsh nationalistic tone, he silenced the ministry's legal experts," said another retired diplomat.

His government has sent problematic signals from day one, diplomatic sources said, "The outspoken PAD-allied Kasit Piromya was appointed foreign minister. When the ministry's veteran legal expert Vasin Teeravejayan, chair of the Joint Boundary Committee (JBC), was replaced by Kasit's friend Asda Jayanama, who during the PAD rallies has made public disparaging remarks about the Cambodian strongman," sources said.

Yet, Asda, who retired as ambassador to the UN-New York, has now showed his muscles by postponing the UNESCO expert visit to the damaged Temple.

But Kasit's remarks to the House committee for foreign affairs early this week about who-support-who at the UNSC, though bluntly true, would certainly cost him a dim stature in convincing the UNSC members.

It's quite clear that Russia, one of the Council's five permanent members, would not side Thailand due to our mishandling in extraditing to US its national--alleged arms dealer Viktor Bout. France has traditionally supported its former colonies against Thailand. China, whose economic influence in Cambodia was eminent and its regional security clout was stronger, was expected to toe neutral line and pushing for bilateral dealings---as it has been preaching non-interference principle as its mantra all along.

For U.S., it has to hide its traditional backing with Thailand. The UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon, with the helping hands from Asean chair Indonesian foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa and Asean secretary general Surin Pitsuwan, would try to keep all 15 Council members all necessary perspective of the closed session discussion Monday.

In term of diplomatic fighting, Cambodia was winning a brownie point as it was making progress in its strategy to multilateralize this border issue, the Thai official conceded.

Now Cambodia insisted that none of bilateral mechanism including the JBC worked, so the Thai plan to have the JBC talks by the end of this month was now totally dashed.

"If the Council on Monday merely listens to three FMs and urges Thailand and Cambodia to continue their negotiations perhaps with ASEAN's or Indonesia's assistance, then we'll have time to continue the negotiations with Cambodia although with more parties looking over our shoulders," said a seasoned Thai diplomat.

However, if the Council were to do otherwise, Thailand had to be very careful because the Council's decision was binding on all UN members.

A Bangkok-based diplomat from one of the five permanent members said most likely outcome was "no statement, no vote, and discussion that urges the two countries to work together to resolve the disputes bilaterally."

He said it was indeed a shame for both countries which have far more pressing priorities to deal with.

Another Bangkok-based European diplomat has said Thailand has become more isolated in the international arena since the 2006 coup. The non-stop political turbulence has cost Thailand position as a hub for regional diplomatic consensus.

"Just recently, Thailand was always a voice to be listened, a stop-over for major powers to seek consultations in regional issues. Now they choose to deepen more links with Indonesia," the sources said.

He noted that Thailand's losing sympathy internationally might be attributed to its wrong signals during its efforts to recuperate international reputation with obsession on chasing Thaksin. The fugitive-favoured internal force Red-Shirted demonstrators had also buried Thailand's shining chairmanship of the Asean in 2009 with its summit storming in Pattaya.

Last but not least another deciding factor in the Thai-Cambodian conflict was the personality and vested interests around the strongman Hun Sen.

Superstitiously, the UNSC move was coincidently the same time as the first anniversary of Hun Sen's infamous Khmer voodoo curse on Abhisit.

"If you don't tell the truth about Thai troops invading Cambodia, let magic objects break your neck, may you be shot, be hit by a car, may you be shocked by electricity or (may you be shot) by misfired guns. Will Abhisit swear on having all his family members killed and having them (perish) in a plane crash, if (he still claims) that Thai troops did not invade Cambodia?" Hun Sen was quoted as saying by Cambodian website Deum Ampil News.

On a positive note, Thai historian Thamrongsak Petlert-anan from Rangsit University, said Hun Sen regarded the World Heritage as a tool to get foreign aid to the impoverished northwestern Cambodia--perhaps a similar fashion as the late Thai leader Sarit Thanarat used communism spread-over in Isan to attract American aid in the 1960s.

But deep down, observers said border disputes always involved business dealings that would come with the success of demarcation.

There were talks about Hun Sen, his deputy prime minister Sok An and Hun Sen's would benefit from oil and gas concession fees from multinational companies if Cambodia could convince Thailand in negotiating the maritime territorial in the format of Joint Development Area (JDA) development and with the same revenue-sharing as featured in the Thailand-Malaysia JDA model.

But this JDA, though should proceed discreetly without having to wait for the settled on land border demarcation, the proposed revenue sharing structure should be different from the existing model, experts said.

If there was any recent lesson to learn for despotic leaders in the region, it should be the timely ouster of long-time Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak.

At the end of the day, Hun Sen's Preah Vihear Temple pawn as a booster to him and to his two-star general son Hun Manet, now in charge of the border clash with Thailand, may turn out to be a Pyrrhic victory when truth could be told in Cambodia.