Opinion by Khmerization
18thth September, 2008
I am a non-violent person and I love peace. But if somebody punch me I will punch them back. This is called self-defence.
I raised the points above as an analogy to the ongoing gross violations of Cambodian territories by Thai forces. Thailand has repeatedly sent in its troops to violate Cambodian sovereignty and territorial integrity since time immemorial, but particularly in the last two months. First, it sent the troops to occupy Preah Vihear and then Ta Moan Thom and Ta Moan Toch temples. Recently, Thai troops are occupying Ta Krabey and Sdok Kok Thom temples, and now the Thai violations have reached O’Plok Damrey in Pursat province.
It is time for Cambodia to react strongly and not weakly as Cambodia has shown in the past. To react cowardly is a sign of military weakness and this will only provide Thailand with more reasons to bully Cambodia. Now, Thailand is testing the water. In fact it is testing Cambodia’s patience. The Cambodian patience should have run out long time ago.
Militarily, Cambodia is not as weak as Thailand would have thought. At the end of the civil war in 1998 Cambodia was thought to have around 130,000 armed forces. After some demobilisations, Cambodia still has a substantial size of the armed forces. The fact that Cambodia appears not to have enough troops to protect our borders is because all the troops are stationed at the wrong locations. They are stationed in the cities and towns to protect Mr. Hun Sen’s power.
These troops should be brought to our troubled borders in a show of military force that Cambodia is militarily capable of standing up to Thailand’s bullying. Cambodia has over 30 years of battlefield experience. Our troops are battle-hardened. The Thai troops has none. This would make them cowed when it comes to wars. If Cambodia and Cambodian troops mean business, then the Thai troops will never dare to bully Cambodia and Cambodian troops the way they have done up until now. The fact that the Thai troops are so arrogant is due to Cambodia’s weak reactions, giving Thai troops the impressions that Cambodia is terrified of them.
By advocating the military show of force, at no time that I prefer a military solution to the border crisis with Thailand. Diplomatic solutions, whether bilateral or multilateral, should be sought and exhausted. But personally, I believe that Cambodia’s fruitless bilateral diplomatic engagements with Thailand for the last two months have been exhausted. Thailand has never been sincere in its diplomatic engagements with Cambodia regarding the issues, because legally it doesn’t have the claims to the areas it has occupied. Thailand’s diplomatic engagements with Cambodia were used only to appease Cambodia and the internationally community in order to prolong Thailand’s occupation, with the intention of permanently staking the claims to the areas they have occupied.
So, the steps to reaching the solutions would be to seek multilateral approach, such as inviting a third party, like France who signed the 1904-1908 treaty with Thailand on Cambodian borders, or the UN Security Council to get involved. If this is failed, then Cambodia can try its second luck with the International Court of Justice in The Hague. If all of the above options failed to yield a satisfactory result, then the last resort would be military options.
Military options I envisage here is not an all out war with Thailand. Military actions in the forms of small scale clashes in the disputed zones should be employed as a mean to push the Thai troops out of Cambodian territories and to get the UN Security council involved. Without any armed conflict, the UN Security Council would turn a blind eye.
18thth September, 2008
“It is time for Cambodia to react strongly and not weakly as Cambodia has shown in the past. To react cowardly is a sign of military weakness and this will only provide Thailand with more reasons to bully Cambodia. Now, Thailand is testing the water. In fact it is testing Cambodia’s patience. The Cambodian patience should have run out long time ago.”
I am a non-violent person and I love peace. But if somebody punch me I will punch them back. This is called self-defence.
I raised the points above as an analogy to the ongoing gross violations of Cambodian territories by Thai forces. Thailand has repeatedly sent in its troops to violate Cambodian sovereignty and territorial integrity since time immemorial, but particularly in the last two months. First, it sent the troops to occupy Preah Vihear and then Ta Moan Thom and Ta Moan Toch temples. Recently, Thai troops are occupying Ta Krabey and Sdok Kok Thom temples, and now the Thai violations have reached O’Plok Damrey in Pursat province.
It is time for Cambodia to react strongly and not weakly as Cambodia has shown in the past. To react cowardly is a sign of military weakness and this will only provide Thailand with more reasons to bully Cambodia. Now, Thailand is testing the water. In fact it is testing Cambodia’s patience. The Cambodian patience should have run out long time ago.
Militarily, Cambodia is not as weak as Thailand would have thought. At the end of the civil war in 1998 Cambodia was thought to have around 130,000 armed forces. After some demobilisations, Cambodia still has a substantial size of the armed forces. The fact that Cambodia appears not to have enough troops to protect our borders is because all the troops are stationed at the wrong locations. They are stationed in the cities and towns to protect Mr. Hun Sen’s power.
These troops should be brought to our troubled borders in a show of military force that Cambodia is militarily capable of standing up to Thailand’s bullying. Cambodia has over 30 years of battlefield experience. Our troops are battle-hardened. The Thai troops has none. This would make them cowed when it comes to wars. If Cambodia and Cambodian troops mean business, then the Thai troops will never dare to bully Cambodia and Cambodian troops the way they have done up until now. The fact that the Thai troops are so arrogant is due to Cambodia’s weak reactions, giving Thai troops the impressions that Cambodia is terrified of them.
By advocating the military show of force, at no time that I prefer a military solution to the border crisis with Thailand. Diplomatic solutions, whether bilateral or multilateral, should be sought and exhausted. But personally, I believe that Cambodia’s fruitless bilateral diplomatic engagements with Thailand for the last two months have been exhausted. Thailand has never been sincere in its diplomatic engagements with Cambodia regarding the issues, because legally it doesn’t have the claims to the areas it has occupied. Thailand’s diplomatic engagements with Cambodia were used only to appease Cambodia and the internationally community in order to prolong Thailand’s occupation, with the intention of permanently staking the claims to the areas they have occupied.
So, the steps to reaching the solutions would be to seek multilateral approach, such as inviting a third party, like France who signed the 1904-1908 treaty with Thailand on Cambodian borders, or the UN Security Council to get involved. If this is failed, then Cambodia can try its second luck with the International Court of Justice in The Hague. If all of the above options failed to yield a satisfactory result, then the last resort would be military options.
Military options I envisage here is not an all out war with Thailand. Military actions in the forms of small scale clashes in the disputed zones should be employed as a mean to push the Thai troops out of Cambodian territories and to get the UN Security council involved. Without any armed conflict, the UN Security Council would turn a blind eye.
