by Steve Herman
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| FILE - A Cambodian temple security guard stands at Preah Vihear temple, Cambodia. |
“If one country gains it will mean one country loses... We may see more complications or even more violence within the countries or between the two countries,”
November 08, 2013
BANGKOK — The prime ministers of Cambodia
and Thailand are vowing to comply with an international court verdict
regarding a small chunk of disputed territory along their shared border.
Nevertheless, analysts in both countries are expressing concerns that
Monday's legal decision has the potential to provoke violence.
Cambodia’s prime minister, Hun Sen, explained to the Cambodian people that he and his Thai counterpart, Yingluck Shinawatra, have agreed in advance to comply with the decision by the International Court of Justice and maintain peace and stability along the disputed border.
The prime minister also implored Cambodia’s armed forces to fulfill their duty to protect the border in the name of peace and avoid any action that could lead to further tension or clashes.
The ICJ will announce its verdict on Monday of which country should get the land surrounding an ancient Hindu temple. The court, in The Hague, awarded the Preah Vihear temple site to Cambodia in 1962.
The Khmer kingdom temple in 2008 was named by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
As recently as two years ago, Cambodia and Thailand exchanged artillery fire along the border. Clashes that year killed dozens of people and forced tens of thousands to flee nearby villages.
In Thailand, Chulalongkorn University associate professor Panitan Wattanayagorn is among those worried about the ramifications of the verdict.
“If one country gains it will mean one country loses... We may see more complications or even more violence within the countries or between the two countries,” said Wattanayagorn.
Cambodia’s prime minister, Hun Sen, explained to the Cambodian people that he and his Thai counterpart, Yingluck Shinawatra, have agreed in advance to comply with the decision by the International Court of Justice and maintain peace and stability along the disputed border.
The prime minister also implored Cambodia’s armed forces to fulfill their duty to protect the border in the name of peace and avoid any action that could lead to further tension or clashes.
The ICJ will announce its verdict on Monday of which country should get the land surrounding an ancient Hindu temple. The court, in The Hague, awarded the Preah Vihear temple site to Cambodia in 1962.
The Khmer kingdom temple in 2008 was named by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
As recently as two years ago, Cambodia and Thailand exchanged artillery fire along the border. Clashes that year killed dozens of people and forced tens of thousands to flee nearby villages.
In Thailand, Chulalongkorn University associate professor Panitan Wattanayagorn is among those worried about the ramifications of the verdict.
“If one country gains it will mean one country loses... We may see more complications or even more violence within the countries or between the two countries,” said Wattanayagorn.
Another Thai academic, Thammasat University professor Chanvit Kasetsiri, explained that the verdict could quickly become a rallying cry for the demonstrators who have been on the streets of Bangkok in recent days concerning a controversial amnesty bill.
“It’s very difficult to separate the Preah Vihear issue from domestic politics of Thailand, because in the past few years many rallies and demonstrations exploit the nationalistic sentiment among the people concerning loss of territory to Cambodia,” said Kasetsiri.
An independent Cambodian analyst, Lao Monghay, expressed hopes that his compatriots will accept the verdict in a mature manner should it be perceived as a loss.
The political analyst cautioned that an escalated dispute with Thailand would likely cause hardship for the hundreds of thousands of Cambodians who cross back and forth across the border to work.
Monghay hopes a calm outcome can lead to the two countries also resolving their disputed maritime border; the nearby waters are rich in natural resources.
The territorial dispute originated in the early years of the 20th century, when Cambodia was part of French Indochina. In its 1962 decision, the ICJ referenced agreements between the French and Siam (as Thailand was internationally known until 1939) that awarded the temple itself to Cambodia but left unresolved the ownership of 460 hectares of land surrounding the sacred site.
Steve Herman - A veteran journalist, Steven L Herman is the Voice of America Asia correspondent.
17 comments:
Thailand can not cross the red line, that, has been set up by UNSC on 2012- 17 squares miles away from PREAH VIHEAR ..
WHAT ABOUT LEFT EYE?
WE HEADING TO THE WEST?
THEY MOVING IN FROM EAST!
I am Kaun Khmer I prefer Thai instead of Yuon.Cambodia should be given to Thai not Yuon. Because we share the same culture.
Stupid comment 7:09, why should Cambodia land to a foreigner? Protect your land. Protect your land with blood if you can't resolve it peacefully. It belongs to your children.
7:09 AM ,
You are just AH CHAUR SIAM ( SIAM THIEVE )
Do not even try asshole
it's not about one country gains the other loses. it is more about repecting the in the first place! it's funny how siem riling ahead of the icj verdict. they know very well and they still do it!if their gov't can't educate their unruly people, who can?
7:09am, cambodia prefers neither yuon nor siem, honest! what the hell you say? siem and yuon the same. just ask khmer refugees in the 1980s. siem no friendly to khmer refugees then; they raped, robbed and sent helpless khmer refugees down the preah vihear temple cliff, etc... those who survived know the true color of siem people. as for yuon, they seem to think cambodia and khmer people are easily taken advantage of. siem always talks bad about cambodia to their foreign friends, yuon do the same. so, no khmer people in their right mind prefer siem over yuon or vice versa. they all the same greedy, unfriendly neighbors if you ask khmer people who live along the borders or both countries and khmer refugees in the 1980s can testify about siem's cruelty to helpless khmer people then. so, what are you talking about, prefer siem over yuon or yuon over siem? none of them, i say! they have not proved otherwise!
if siem thieves respect the 1907 map, icj wouldn't have this case in the first place! thanks for the UN and icj, cambodia and thailand would be at war already with them!
just because cambodia's interest was bounced back and force between neighbors thailand and vietnam, doesn't mean cambodia is at their disposal. wrong! it seems siem people have no concept of the exception to the rule because preah vihear temple was located on the dangrak mountain range! i think cambodia should demand all the old khmer provinces back from thailand and vietnam. historians of the world know very well that cambodia was powerful and an empire during angkor civilization. so, what is thailand and vietnam whining about now? i think historians of the cambodian history should educate siem and yuon about cambodia's angkor khmer civilization, so to remind that khmer people once rule over much of present thailand, laos and vietnam. these neighboring countries are so ungrateful to cambodia's civilization!
Siem will indirectly or intentionally make Hun Xen a new Khmer Hero, and most of us unconsciously forget about the East!
some khmer should specialize in study khmer detailed map, so we can learn to love our beautiful rich country cambodia! study geography, it's fun and fascination, like the universe out there!
if siem crooks respect the 1907 map in the first place, there wouldn't be gain nor loss. because siem crooks not respecting the legitimate map, icj had to get involved! siem is asking for it! why they so worried now?
What about the issue of election fraud? I'm sick and tired of the unsolved border issues.
thai and youn the same but thai at lease they have religious same of us and they list to international during hard time they set up camp tha propose by american-jewish(ambassadoor)hlep khmer people to setle theother country.look at youn no religious and cool kill us by used khmere name tell international they come to help khmere.remember they burn and they help took erything from cambodia 1979 people servive from ppol-pot regime come back home they never let people stay or give back to the owner. some people die during pol-pot no moor hurt but people survive come home getting moor hurt everyday because our own home working hold life before you have a house insteat they sold to people who have money tis is cpp youndog.so youn worth than seam
“If one country gains it will mean one country loses... "
-First of all does Steve Herman know what the hell he is talking about! Of course not! Obviously Steve Herman doesn't know the geography of Khmer Preah Vihear temple! The fact is Preah Vihear temple was always a Khmer temple and the temple itself is situated in Khmer territory! So to say one country gain it will mean one country loses is pure bullshit! Cambodia is the one that stand to loose everything if the court awards the temple to Thailand! Whether the Siem leaders and the Siem people like it or not! They can't demand something that doesn't belong them! Stop being a thief, a bully, and create instability in the region! The whole Thailand and the rest of the temples in Thailand once belong to Khmer empire! Don't push Khmer people to pursue for mutual assured destruction!
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