Dina Indrasafitri
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Just hours after trading words at the ASEAN summit, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen shook hands on Sunday morning in front of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
The leaders then sat face-to-face in a triangular formation in a room at the Jakarta Convention Center, with ASEAN summit chair Yudhoyono flanked by Abhisit to his left and Hun Sen to his right.
Foreign ministers from the three nations attended the heads of government.
Yudhoyono was accompanied by Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa and by Teuku Faizasyah, his special adviser for foreign relations.
The President initiated the meeting, fearing that Cambodia and Thailand’s border dispute might reduce the summit to a single-issue meeting and undermine Indonesia’s credibility as summit host and ASEAN chair.
Critics doubted that the meeting could influence the dispute.
However, Abhisit, a young but talented politico, and Hun Sen, an old political cat who has been active since the 1970s, both acknowledged Indonesia’s positive leadership, stating that the atmosphere had improved on Sunday.
However, the pair said that problems still remained, and agreed to allow their foreign ministers to stay an additional day in Jakarta to continue to discussions. “At the end, the President of Indonesia gave a recommendation to the prime ministers of Cambodia and Thailand. The foreign ministers of Cambodia and Thailand will stay another day to work with the foreign minister of Indonesia. This is the role of the chair of ASEAN, who provided recommendations to find a solution,” Hun Sen said at a press conference after the summit.
Abhisit, in an exclusive interview with The Jakarta Post, said: “The atmosphere was better than [Saturday] when [Hun Sen] suddenly launched a long speech in the plenary session. Differences remain — that has to be recognized — and the complexity remains. But at least we are talking — which is important.
“We’ll see how the foreign ministers, who have been tasked to follow up, how they will do,” Abhisit said.
At another press conference, Yudhoyono said that he had offered Cambodia and Thailand several solutions, such as establishing a joint border committee to settle problems peacefully since the two nations had fundamental differences.
Cambodia and Thailand fought along their border just a week after Cambodia’s Preah Vihear temple was proclaimed a World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008. The conflict erupted after Thailand laid claim to a 4.6-square-kilometer area near the temple.
The ensuing exchange of artillery fire killed and wounded soldiers and civilians on both sides, causing tens of thousands of villagers on both sides of the border nearby the disputed area to flee to safe shelters.
3 comments:
Koh Tral Island must not be forgotten
By Ms. Rattana Keo
Why do Koh Tral Island, known in Vietnam as Phu Quoc, a sea and land area covering proximately over 30,000 km2 [Note: the actual land size of Koh Tral itself is 574 square kilometres (222 sq miles)] have been lost to Vietnam by whose treaty? Why don’t Cambodia government be transparent and explain to Cambodia army at front line and the whole nation about this? Why don't they include this into education system? Why?
Cambodian armies are fighting at front line for 4.6 km2 on the Thai border and what's about over 30,000km2 of Cambodia to Vietnam. Nobody dare to talk about it! Why? Cambodian armies you are decide the fate of your nation, Cambodian army as well as Cambodian people must rethink about this again and again. Is it fair?
Koh Tral Island, the sea and land area of over 30,000 square kilometres have been lost to Vietnam by the 1979 to 1985 treaties. The Cambodian army at front line as well as all Cambodian people must rethink again about these issues. Are Cambodian army fighting to protect the Cambodia Nation or protecting a very small group that own big lands, big properties or only protecting a small group but disguising as protecting the Khmer nation?
The Cambodian army at front lines suffer under rain, wind, bullets, bombs, lack of foods, lack of nutrition and their families have no health care assistance, no securities after they died but a very small group eat well, sleep well, sleep in first class hotel with air conditioning system with message from young girls, have first class medical care from oversea medical treatments, they are billionaires, millionaires who sell out the country to be rich and make the Cambodian people suffer every day.
Who signed the treaty 1979-1985 that resulted in the loss over 30,000 km2 of Cambodia??? Why they are not being transparent and brave enough to inform all Cambodians and Cambodian army at front line about these issues? Why don't they include Koh Tral (Koh Tral size is bigger than the whole Phom Phen and bigger than Singapore [Note: Singapore's present land size is 704 km2 (271.8 sq mi)]) with heap of great natural resources, in the Cambodian education system?
Look at Hun Sen's families, relatives and friends- they are billionaires, millionaires. Where did they get the money from when we all just got out of war with empty hands [in 1979]? Hun Sen always say in his speeches that Cambodia had just risen up from the ashes of war, just got up from Year Zero with empty hands and how come they are billionaires, millionaires but 90% of innocent Cambodian people are so poor and struggling with their livelihood every day?
Koh Tral was a Cambodian island, and technically and legally, remained a Cambodian island until today.
Smart Khmer girl Ms. Rattana Keo,
hello Ki Media i like blog very well
you can add
http://domkhmer.blogspot.com/
siem kept saying and tell everyone that the borderlines have not been demarcated! that is a lie, in fact, the borderlines have been properly demarcated since 1907, the franco-siam treaty! what the hell is siem thugs talking about! they obviously continue to disrespect the international law, treaty, etc, etc, you know... that's why they have proble with cambodia, you know, because siem failed to respect the international treaty, law, etc by violating at will the icj, the international law, etc, etc, you know! the world should tell siem or thailand to start respecting and stop violating the international law, international treaty, etc, etc, ok! or the problem with cambodia will never go away, really!
Post a Comment