Battle for Preah Vihear begins in Hague court

Virachai asks public to withhold judgement

15 Apr 2013
Bangkok Post

The Thai team will also point out that the Cambodian government of the time accepted the line defined by the Thai government on July 10, 1962. Defining a boundary requires agreement from both sides under the framework of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission.

Mr Virachai said Cambodia's request is essentially a new case about the boundary line, and Thailand will argue the ICJ has no jurisdiction to decide on the demarcation. (sic!)

The final chapter of Thailand and Cambodia's 51-year battle for Preah Vihear temple and its surrounding area begins today in the Netherlands.

The Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) will open its hearing on the territorial dispute by listening to oral statements from both sides over the course of this week.

Thailand lost ownership of the temple on June 16, 1962, when the World Court, as it is also known, ruled in favour of Cambodia. However, the ICJ did not rule on the 4.6 sq km area around the temple and both countries have laid claim to it.

The Cambodia government filed a case with the ICJ two years ago, requesting a verdict on the disputed area.

The ICJ will listen to the Cambodia legal team today and on Thursday, while the Thai team, headed by ambassador to the Hague Virachai Plasai, will speak on Wednesday and Friday. There will be no hearing tomorrow.

Mr Virachai will deliver the opening and closing remarks, while four foreign lawyers will also back the Thai position.

"This issue is on the national agenda and should be free from political interference," Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said yesterday.

"The legal team has our full support in defending the country's sovereignty. The government will closely monitor the oral presentations," she said.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul, Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Phongthep Thepkanchana and Defence Minister Sukumpol Suwanatat will also join the hearing.

Representatives from the Foreign and Defence ministries, the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters, the Royal Thai Army, the Royal Thai Survey Department, the Office of Attorney-General and the Council of State will also be present.

Mr Virachai said the Thai team is fully prepared for the court battle and will present Thailand's claims thoroughly.

He said he has confidence in the transparency of the process and the public's discretion on this delicate issue.

"I would like Thais to read [the written explanation sent to the ICJ] and listen to the verbal hearing [before making comments]," Mr Virachai said. "Do not say we will not fight on. We will fight hard."

His remark was a response to critics who suggested the Thai team may not give its best effort, following remarks by Mr Surapong early this year that Thailand was at a disadvantage in the case and he would not even go to the Hague. But Mr Surapong later changed his stance and said he would fight for the country.

Thailand and Cambodia submitted written explanations to the ICJ in 2011.

Thailand submitted two files of documents totalling 1,000 pages on Nov 21, 2011, and June 21, 2012, to counter Cambodia's claims. Cambodia submitted a 300-page document to the court on March 8 last year.

The half-century-old case erupted again in 2007 when the Cambodian government applied to Unesco to list Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site.

However, the application covers the disputed land around the temple.

As Thailand also claims this land, the government objected to the Unesco application.

This prompted Phnom Penh to ask the ICJ to reinterpret its 1962 verdict so that ownership of the land around the temple could be decided once and for all.

Cambodia's claim is based on a 1:200,000-scale map drawn by France.

However, the Thai side based its claim on a Thai-French treaty which used the watershed as the border line.

Thailand's main defence point will argue that an interpretation of a final ruling made 51 years ago was inadmissible.

The Thai team will also point out that the Cambodian government of the time accepted the line defined by the Thai government on July 10, 1962. Defining a boundary requires agreement from both sides under the framework of the Thai-Cambodian Joint Boundary Commission.

Mr Virachai said Cambodia's request is essentially a new case about the boundary line, and Thailand will argue the ICJ has no jurisdiction to decide on the demarcation. (sic!)

The ICJ's ruling is expected to be made in October.

Meanwhile, a network of civic groups will gather in Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district on Wednesday to oppose the ICJ's role in the dispute.

Network member Sanit Thongpan said the group would erect a large Thai flag in the area near Preah Vihear temple in a symbolic protest against the ICJ's jurisdiction. The group believes the ICJ does not have the authority to rule on the territorial row.