Anti-Thai sentiment 'increases in Cambodia'

Monday, August 4, 2008

Phnom Penh (dpa) - Reports that a second sacred temple on the Thai- Cambodian border has been occupied by Thai troops has drawn an angry reaction from the public, Cambodian media reported Sunday.

Ta Muen Thom temple, at the border of Surin province and Cambodia's Banteay Meanchey, has been manned by Thai troops for more than five years, the chairman of the government's border committee, Var Kimhong, told locally broadcast Radio France Internationale (RFI).

However the nation's largest selling newspaper, Rasmei Kampuchea, as well as the French-funded RFI and US-funded Radio Free Asia began running reports of its alleged occupation Sunday.

Kimhong said there was no legal doubt Ta Muen Thom was Cambodian.

Public outrage has grown steadily since areas around Preah Vihear temple, which Cambodia says are sovereign and Thailand says are disputed, were occupied by Thai troops on July 15, days after it was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site against Thai wishes.

At a press conference held just before national elections last month, Cambodian government spokesman Khieu Kanharith declined to answer a question on whether troop build-ups had also occurred on the Thai border with Banteay Meanchey.

The Cambodian government has tried to dampen the nationalist sentiment sweeping the country and urged the public to allow bilateral diplomacy to work, or, failing that, UN mediation.

In 2003 an angry mob torched the Thai embassy and several businesses over a false story a Thai actress had claimed the nation's icon, Angkor Wat temple, was Thai - a serious setback for trade and diplomatic relations.

Claims published in the Thai media accusing Cambodia's First Lady Bun Rany, wife of Prime Minister Hun Sen, of leading a black magic ritual when she hosted a Buddhist ceremony attended by more than 1,000 people at Preah Vihear Friday have not helped.

To be accused of sorcery is regarded as a terrible insult by Cambodians, who regularly kill those accused of it.

Hun Sen's wife hosts huge Preah Vihear temple ritual

Saturday August 02, 2008
BANGKOK POST and DPA

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen's wife Bun Rany yesterday hosted a huge ritual at the Preah Vihear temple to bless the country with good luck and to give it power against the backdrop of a dispute with Thailand over the area surrounding the temple.

The ceremony, chosen to coincide with a solar eclipse yesterday, was attended by about 1,000 people, including high-ranking officials, priests and experts in rituals. The ritual started at 9.30am.

Far from softening its stance on the temple after it was declared a World Heritage site by Unesco, angering Thailand, Cambodia is flaunting the site.

"We have all been preparing for Bun Rany's arrival. We have no security concerns because as a World Heritage site, the temple is a tourist destination, not a war zone," Preah Vihear Deputy Governor Ka Lean said by telephone.

Although Bun Rany is the wife of Prime Minister Hun Sen, she is a powerful political force in her own right.

Her presence was expected to boost the morale of Cambodian civilians and military on the border near the temple.

Thailand sent troops into what it maintains is disputed land, but Cambodia declared the area to be its sovereign territory more than two weeks ago in a move that severely strained diplomatic relations.

The Cambodian ritual at the Preah Vihear temple raised fears among many Thai people, who say it could bring bad luck to Thailand.

The anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leaders last night led thousands of their supporters in a rival ritual to protect the country and block any ill-effects from the Cambodian one. Many Thais believe some Cambodians have expertise in black magic.

Thai people in Si Sa Ket and nearby provinces who heard about the Cambodian ritual at the Preah Vihear temple persuaded others to wear yellow, a colour they say will help the country stave off the effects of the ceremony.

One resident said that it was also a full moon last night and Cambodian people believe it was a sacred day - a good day for holding a ritual.

Thailand: Preah Vihear celebration was to mark Hun Sen's election victory only

Cambodia holds ceremony at temple site

SI SA KET, Aug 1 (TNA) — Cambodia on Friday organized a national merit-making ceremony near the Preah Vihear temple, presided over by the country’s first lady, Bun Rany.

The ceremony, held at the 4th gopura (monumental tower) on the Cambodian side of the border, was apparently part of a celebration marking the victory of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen in last Sunday’s general election.

The Cambodian first lady was expected to join the full-day event which will be highlighted by a pre-sunset ceremony at around 6 pm when sunlight will simultaneously beam through the tower entrances.

Meanwhile, the situation remains calm in Kantralak District of this northeastern province on the Thai border where Thai troops have been on alert as usual.

The 11th-century Preah Vihear temple was made a World Heritage site by UNESCO last month after which Thai and Cambodian authorities have held a few rounds of talks on the 4.6-sqkm disputed area on the border. Both sides have earlier deployed troops in the area and later agreed in principle to withdraw their troops.

Cambodian PM's wife prays at disputed Hindu temple

Bun Rany, wife of Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen, lights a candle during a Buddhism prayer ceremony for peace called Krong Pealy at Preah Vihaer temple compound atop Dang Reak mountain 245km (152 miles) north of Phnom Penh August 01 , 2008. REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea

Fri Aug 1, 2008
By Chor Sokunthea

PREAH VIHEAR, Cambodia (Reuters) - The wife of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen led Buddhist monks and soldiers in prayers at a 900-year-old Hindu border temple on Friday amid a three-week military stand-off with Thailand.

With Thai troops and artillery dug in only meters away, Bun Rany thanked the soldiers, mostly battle-hardened ex-Khmer Rouge guerrillas, for resisting what Cambodia says is Thai encroachment on a disputed patch of land next to the ruins.

"The first lady called on the ancestral spirits to defend Preah Vihear and chase away the enemy," Min Khin, chairman of the Southeast Asian nation's Festival Committee, told reporters after the ceremony, shrouded in early morning mist.

Preah Vihear sits on top of a jungle-clad escarpment that forms a natural boundary between Thailand and Cambodia, and has been a bone of contention between the two countries for decades.

The International Court of Justice in the Hague awarded the site to Cambodia in 1962, a ruling that has rankled in Thailand ever since, although it did not rule on ownership of the 1.8 square miles of scrub at the centre of the latest spat.

The trigger for the latest row came from Bangkok's backing of Cambodia's bid to have the temple listed as a World Heritage site, support that was seized on by nationalist street protesters bent on overthrowing the Thai government.

With a general election campaign underway in Cambodia at the time, it quickly escalated into a serious confrontation, with hundreds of troops and artillery sent to both sides of the border. In some places, the two sides are only a few yards apart.

Both foreign ministers vowed on Monday to resolve the stand-off peacefully and pull back troops, although nothing has changed on the ground, with Bangkok and Phnom Penh reluctant to redeploy in case they are painted as weak.

Bun Rany's high-profile visit, flying in by helicopter and a heavily armed security detail, suggests her husband, a wily former Khmer Rouge soldier who won a landslide victory in Sunday's election, is in no mood to compromise.

A group claiming Preah Vihear for Thailand described the ceremony as a black-magic ritual meant to bring bad luck, one newspaper reported.

Preah Vihear is not the only temple to have hit relations between the two countries.

In 2003, a nationalist mob torched the Thai embassy and several Thai businesses in Phnom Penh after erroneously reported comments from a Thai soap opera star that Cambodia's famed Angkor Wat actually belonged to Thailand.

(Additional reporting by Ek Madra in Phnom Penh and Nopporn Wong-Anan in Bangkok; Writing by Ed Cropley; Editing by David Fogarty)

Rubbing salt on Thai wound? Cambodia preparing lavish celebration at border temple

Cambodia preparing lavish celebration at border temple

Jul 31, 2008
DPA

Phnom Penh - Cambodia will host a huge post-election celebration at Preah Vihear temple attended by the country's first lady, Bun Rany, and other high ranking officials, the government said Thursday.

Far from softening its stance on the 11th century border temple after it was made a Cambodian World Heritage site by UNESCO, angering neighboring Thailand, Cambodia is defiantly flaunting the site.

'We are all in preparation for Bun Rany's arrival. We have no security concerns because as a World Heritage site, the temple is a tourist destination, not a war zone,' Preah Vihear Deputy Governor Ka Lean said by telephone.

Although after recent talks with Thailand both sides agreed in principal to withdraw troops estimated to have reached more than 2,000 in the area, observers on the Cambodian side say no troops have been redeployed so far.

The celebration is scheduled for Friday, according to government spokesman Khieu Kanharith and Ka Lean.

Bun Rany is the wife of Prime Minister Hun Sen, and is a powerful political force in her own right, as well as being the head of the nation's Red Cross.

Her presence is expected to significantly boost the morale of Cambodian civilians and military on the border near the temple, around 300 kilometres north of the capital.

Thailand sent troops into what it maintains is disputed land but Cambodia says is sovereign territory more than two weeks ago in a move that has severely strained bilateral diplomatic relations.