Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos speed up border demarcation to create a "triangle economic zone"

sVar Kimhong showing off map of the proposed triangle economic zone

Monday, 20 June 2011
By Khmerization
Source: FPMOnline
Click here to read the original article in Khmer

The Cambodian, Vietnamese and Laotian governments are speeding up border demarcations between the three countries in order to create a "triangle economic zone" on the border in Cambodia's Ratanakiri province.

The agreement draws strong criticism from the Cambodian oppositions as they think that to demarcate the borders in such a hurry, without proper consultation and studies, would cause Cambodia to lose territory.

Last Thursday, 16th June, the Cambodian parliament voted to support the agreement with 83 MPs out of 100 MPs attended supporting it.

Mr. Var Kimhong, Cambodian chairman of Border Committee, said this is a historic agreement. "This convention is the fairest basis for the three countries to create a peaceful and cooperative triangle economic zone", he said.

Mr. Var Kimhong said Cambodia had already planted 229 border posts out of 272 posts to be planted along the Cambodian-Vietnamese border. He also said that Cambodia had already planted 121 border posts out of 148 posts to be planted along the Cambodian-Laotian border.

Mrs. Ke Sovannaroth, Secretary General of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said the party opposed the agreement because it has received reports from border villagers who had complained of losing their lands to Vietnam due to the demarcations. "We cannot spend only one hour to decide on the future of our country. We don't support it. We want to ask His Excellency Var Kimhong to show how many square kilometres of territory Cambodia still has", she said.

In the past, the ruling Cambodian People's Party, which holds the majority in the parliament, had voted to ratify the controversial 1985 supplemental treaty in 2005 which the oppositions and critics said had ceded large territory to Vietnam because the 1985 treaty was signed at a time when Cambodia was under the occupation of the Vietnamese forces and as such it was signed under duress.