Poll: [Thai] Respondents fear temple row will impact Thai-Cambodian relations

BANGKOK, August 1 (MCOT online news) - The Thai public is concerned about the impact of the current diplomatic wrangling and four out of 10 respondents in a new poll -- 40 per cent -- expressed concern that the current dispute over Preah Vihear temple could negatively affect relations between Thailand and Cambodia, according to a survey conducted by Dusit Poll.

The survey conducted among 1,148 people from July 30 through August 1 showed that one in four -- some 25 per cent of respondents worry that Thailand might eventually lose the area adjoining Preah Vihear temple.

Almost 21 per cent of the respondents fear that more clashes between soldiers of the two countries would take place, causing unsafe conditions for residents living near the border, while 14 per cent said the dispute would affect the livelihood of people living near the border and those in the tourism business.

The survey was conducted after UNESCO's World Heritage Commission on Thursday deferred its decision on Cambodia’s request to review its management plan for the temple for one more year. It will be reviewed during next year's WHC meeting in Bahrain.

Thailand and Cambodia recognise different border demarcations, having resulted in clashes along the disputed border between the two countries. The clashes have occurred periodically since the temple was awarded to Cambodia by the International Court of Justice in 1962.

The situation has worsened after the UNESCO named the temple a World Heritage site in 2008 after Cambodia applied for much-valued status.

The Dusit Poll said one third of the respondents -- 33 per cent -- believed the government should present facts on the temple to Thais and foreigners, 26.5 per cent said Thailand must prepare information and maps marking the boundary between the two countries in details and that it must work on an proactive basis.

Twenty-one per cent said Thailand must monitor Cambodia's movements and provide security to residents the border and 19 per cent suggested the Thai government to be patient and resolve the problem through negotiations.

No Injuries Reported in Brief Border Clash

A Cambodian soldier carries a B-40 rocket launcher as he heads to his tent near the famed Preah Vihear temple at the Cambodia-Thai border at Preah Vihear province, about 245 kilometers (152 miles) north of Phnom Penh, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2009. (Photo: AP)

Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Tuesday, 08 June 2010

“The soldiers of Trapaing Prasath district were patrolling, and they met accidentally with Thai soldiers who were on patrol as well,” he said. “Both sides opened fire.”

Cambodian and Thai troops engaged in a brief exchange of gunfire on Tuesday, but neither side reported injuries.

The clash, which began just before 10 am in the Dangrek Mountains of Oddar Meanchey province, lasted only five minutes, said Chhum Socheat, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, who blamed the exchange on a “misunderstanding.”

“The soldiers of Trapaing Prasath district were patrolling, and they met accidentally with Thai soldiers who were on patrol as well,” he said. “Both sides opened fire.”

Chhum Socheat said the Thai soldiers likely thought they were firing on illegal loggers, not soldiers. Commanders on both sides were already discussing the issue, he said.

Cambodia and Thailand have both amassed troops along the northern border, following the inception of Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site under Cambodian control. Both sides lay claim to land near the temple, fueling a standoff that has gone on since July 2008. Sporadic clashes have left a handful of killed soldiers on each side. The latest clash took place in O’smach district in April, though no one was hurt.

A Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday the Thais had not yet verified reports of the engagement.

Cambodia, Thai troops border clash: Cambodian army

Tuesday, June 08, 2010
AFP

PHNOM PENH — Cambodian and Thai troops exchanged fire briefly on their border Tuesday, the latest in a series of clashes between the neighbours, a Cambodian official said.

The shoot-out on Cambodia's northwestern border lasted for about six minutes, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, Cambodian defence ministry spokesman Chhum Socheat told AFP.

The incident occurred as soldiers from both sides were patrolling the border area, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) away from Cambodia's ancient Preah Vihear temple, which is at the centre of a land dispute between the two nations.

"It was a misunderstanding because the area is a place where illegal smuggling of timber usually takes place," the spokesman said, adding that the exchange of fire ended after the two sides contacted each other.

Cambodia and Thailand have been locked in nationalist tensions and a troop standoff at their disputed border since July 2008, when the Preah Vihear temple was granted UNESCO World Heritage status.

Relations deteriorated further in November after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen appointed fugitive former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra as his economic adviser and refused to extradite him to Thailand.

Cambodian and Thai troops exchange fire, no injuries reported

Tue, 08 Jun 2010
DPA

Phnom Penh - The Ministry of Defence said Cambodian and Thai troops briefly exchanged fire along the border early Tuesday.

General Chhum Socheat, a ministry spokesman, said no Cambodian soldiers were injured in the morning exchange. He said he did not know whether there were Thai casualties.

"After the fighting stopped, the two sides met each other and said that a mistake caused the (clash)," he said of the six-minute clash.

"I heard that we were in our area and the Thais were in theirs, and (the soldiers) could not see each other clearly," he added.

The exchange of gunfire took place in Oddar Meanchey province around 40 kilometres west of Preah Vihear temple, a regular flashpoint between the two nations.

The relationship between Cambodia and Thailand has been tense for nearly two years with sporadic clashes. Much of their common border has yet to be demarcated.

Diplomatic relations worsened markedly in October when Cambodia appointed Thailand's fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra as a government adviser.

Khmer and Thai troops clash in Chhouk Run region, Trapaing Prasat district

08 June 2010
DAP news
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Oddar Meanchey province – A source reported to DAP news at 9:50 AM on 08 June 2010 that there was an armed clash between Cambodian and invading Thai troops at O’Chambak point, near Chhouk Run area, Trapaing Prasat district, Oddar Meanchey province.

General Chea Dara, the RCAF deputy –commander, told DAP that the clash took place when 15 Cambodian soldiers were patrolling the border and Thai troops opened fire on them using M-16 machine guns and M-79 grenade launchers. Cambodian troops responded with their PKM guns.

According to reliable source, Thai troops were killed and injured during the clash, but Cambodian troops did not sustain any casualties or injuries.

Cambodian, Thai troops clash at disputed border area

PHNOM PENH, June 8
KYODO

Cambodian and Thai forces exchanged small arms fire at a disputed border area Tuesday, but no casualties were reported, a senior Cambodian military official said. Chea Dara, deputy commander-in-chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, told Kyodo News by telephone the skirmish broke out at 9:50 a.m. Tuesday and lasted for about 15 minutes at a border point in the Trapaeng Prasat district about 60 kilometers west of an ancient temple that has been at the center of a border dispute between the two countries since 2008.

(Additional news are upcoming)

Cambodian, Thai troops clash

Jan 30, 2010
AFP

PHNOM PENH - CAMBODIAN and Thai troops have had a brief shoot-out on their disputed border, a Cambodian defence ministry spokesman said on Saturday, in the latest such flare-up.

Mr Chum Socheat told AFP that soldiers from the two countries exchanged fire for two or three minutes on Friday evening.

'We are now further investigating into the problem to find out how it started. We can't tell who started it first,' he said. He added that Cambodian troops reported a Thai soldier was killed in the skirmish, however Thai military officials were not immediately available to comment.

Troops from the two countries briefly exchanged fire in disputed territory near an ancient Khmer temple last Sunday.

Cambodia and Thailand have been at loggerheads over their border for decades. Nationalist tensions spilled over into violence in July 2008, when the Preah Vihear temple was granted Unesco World Heritage status.

Four soldiers were killed in clashes in the temple area in 2008 and three more in a gunbattle last April. The border has never been fully demarcated, partly because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia.

Cambodian, Thai troops exchange second fire

PHNOM PENH, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- A Cambodia's National Defense Ministry official said Saturday that there was another small fire between Thai and Cambodian troops in Veal Veng district in Pursat province.

Maj. Gen. Chhum Socheat, spokesman of Cambodia's National Defense Ministry told reporters that the clash happened at about 10 p.m. on Friday night but "we are still investigating the reason and who started the fire first." He said he also learned from the troops that the fire has resulted in the death of one Thai solider and injury of a few others.

But no one was reportedly killed or injured from the Cambodian side, he said.

Keo Sokunthear, vice police chief of Pursat province told reporters that as many as 20 Thai soldiers were trying to trespass Cambodian territory on Friday night before fire exchanged.

He said no Cambodian soldiers had lost lives in the fire, but one Thai soldier was killed and a few others might be injured, but he could not give the actual number.

On Sunday last week, Thai and Cambodian troops also exchanged a fire at the border area, east of Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple, a place of the border dispute between the two countries since July 2008.

Thai, Cambodia Clash Kills Soldier

JANUARY 30, 2010
Associated Press

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- Cambodia reported Saturday its troops killed one Thai soldier in the latest border clash between their militaries.

Khuy Sokha, governor of western Pursat province, said troops from the two sides fought for about 15 minutes late Friday after about 20 Thai soldiers crossed into Cambodian territory and refused to leave when confronted by Cambodian soldiers.

Cambodian Defense Ministry spokesman Lt. Gen. Chhum Socheat said one Thai soldier was killed, with Cambodian troops firing AK-47 assault rifles and B-40 rocket propelled grenades.

Thai officials were not immediately available for comment.

Cambodia's relations with Thailand deteriorated two years ago, when nationalistic public opinion forced Bangkok to withdraw its support for a Cambodian application to designate a famous border temple a U.N. World Heritage site. The issue sparked renewed interest in some small tracts of disputed territory near the Preah Vihear temple, and the two countries' soldiers since then have clashed several times.

Khuy Sokha said the body of the Thai soldier killed in the latest clash was turned over to Thai authorities Saturday morning after negotiations.

Thai Nationalism Heats Up

Monday, September 21, 2009
By PAVIN CHACHAVALPONGPUN
The Irrawady

Thailand has not only been plagued by divisive domestic political turmoil. Its relations with neighboring Cambodia have also deteriorated and intensified, resulting in fatal clashes along their common border.

Competing political factions have incessantly used nationalism to legitimize their political activities. The violent confrontation between Thai nationalists and Cambodian villagers in the past few days could further strain this vulnerable bilateral relationship.

Nationalism in Thailand has become a highly destructive force both in domestic and international politics. From late 2007, in their campaign to topple the governments that emerged from the post-coup elections, the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD), and some elements of the Democrat Party, claimed to represent the true face of Thai nationalism.

In this, they claimed to stand on the side of righteousness by protecting the nation’s territorial integrity, to rid the people of corrupt politicians, and in their duty to challenge an allegedly predatory neighbor.

Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and successive pro-Thaksin governments were grouped together with alien foreigners, like Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen, who was regarded as a deranged person. These alien characters were represented as having a single objective: selling the country out and tarnishing the good reputation of Thailand built up by past monarchs.

The conflict over the Preah Vihear Temple, to the PAD, was indeed a conflict between those who are true Thais versus Thaksin suporters. It saw its duty as that of protecting Thailand’s national interests, and the best way to do so was to stir up nationalistic feelings.

At first glance, nationalism seemed to serve the political need of both the PAD and the Democrat Party. Both were unable to unseat Thaksin-backed governments of Samak Sundaravej and Somchai Wongsawat and to uproot Thaksin’s influence in politics. The Preah Vihear Temple issue emerged at the right moment when the PAD and also the military that supported anti-Thaksin sentiment were facing a legitimacy crisis themselves.

But little did they know that in employing the Preah Vihear conflict to eliminate Thaksin, the PAD was also jeopardizing its position in politics, and in particular endangering its representation of Thai nationalism. It played along with the theme of lost territories, falsifying historical facts and portraying Thailand as a vulnerable state perpetually victimized by immoral foreigners.

In this paranoid narrative, Thaksin was helping immoral foreigners to take away the country’s sacred assets and pride. The PAD then adopted certain nationalistic tactics against its opponents, such as condemning them for selling out the country and through its own rhetoric provoking military confrontations with the Cambodians.

The reality is that Preah Vihear Temple belongs to Cambodia, according to the International Court of Justice ruling of 1962. But the loss became an unacceptable political reality because it deals with the national pride that has been deeply ingrained in the mindset of Thais.

The outcome of these political tactics has been destructive. Thai domestic politics has become increasingly polarized. Thailand’s relations with Cambodia have reached a critical point, verging on full-blown war. Who has gained what out of this nationalistic crusade?

As a consequence, the issue of overlapping territories returned to the attention of the Thai public. The spirit of nationhood was high. Thaksin was once again labeled as a Thai who betrayed his motherland.

However, the PAD also became a casualty in the game of nationalism. It opened up a Pandora’s box of bewilderment about Thai self-identity. Was the PAD brand of nationalism a reflection of the Thai way to express love for country?

Didn’t its call for war with Cambodia run against its earlier representations of Thainess: of being a peaceful nation, as enunciated in the words of Thailand’s national anthem?

The PAD might have found nationalism an effective way of deposing of the Thaksin-backed regimes in the past, but the nationalist flame has been fanned and the conflagration has shown the potential to rage out of control.

The latest clashes near the Thai-Cambodian border demonstrated that the PAD is not willing to give up its nationalist tactics.

This is perhaps due to the fact that the PAD recently transformed itself into a legitimate political party—the New Politics Party. It now hopes to exploit the Preah Vihear Temple issue to score political points should elections be called by the current government in the next few months.

It is therefore anticipated that the temple issue will become more intense as Thailand heads into an even more uncertain future.

Dr Pavin Chachavalpongpun is a visiting research fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore.