The view from Cambodia [PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE]

Phnom Penh Post, February 17, 2011
By Michael Hayes
COMMENT

When I was publisher and editor-in-chief of the Phnom Penh Post I was sued once by then-Second Prime Minister Hun Sen, accused of spreading disinformation and trying to create political instability. Over the years, several Cambodian government officials even accused me and my newspaper of attempting to “destroy the nation”.

At the very least I’ve never been called a spin doctor for the Cambodian government. But on the issue of the current border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand surrounding Wat Preah Vihear I’m as angry as all Cambodians are at what we perceive as a Thai-initiated conflict of grossly unjust proportions.

We are not alone. Since this issue flared up two years ago, I have not met one Asian or Western diplomat, one foreign aid worker or one expatriate businessman in Phnom Penh who disagrees. Even a few Thai friends have sheepishly expressed support for the Cambodian side on this spat.

The nagging question that perplexes us all is why Thailand is trying to export its domestic political problems and dump them on poor Cambodia? The sentiment here is that if the Red Shirts and the Yellow Shirts want to fight it out, do so somewhere in Thailand, but don’t use Cambodia as a scapegoat.

Cambodia must use its own maps too

Written by Norbert Klein

Tuesday, 25 November 2008 Phnom Penh Post Read the full joint communique here.

Dear Editor, The most recent map of the Preah Vihear temple area, from the Joint Communique of June 18, 2008, which is publicly available at: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/pdf/jointcommunique.pdf In a Letter to the Editor, printed in The Phnom Penh Post on Friday, November 14, 2008, Chan Veasna, of Cabramatta, NSW, Australia, requested that "Thailand must use Cambodian maps". But the letter references only maps of 1904 and 1907, and denounces that maps used by the Thai side "have no legal basis under international laws". Surprisingly, there is no reference at all to the newest map, produced under the signature of Var Kim Hong, senior minister in charge of border affairs of the Cambodian Council of Ministers and attached to the Joint Communique of June 18, 2008, which was signed by Deputy Prime Minister Sok An and countersigned by Francoise Riviere, assistant director general for culture of Unesco and the then-Thai minister of foreign affairs. During the meeting both sides agreed as follows: "The Kingdom of Thailand supports the inscription ... of the Temple of Preah Vihear on the World Heritage List proposed by the Kingdom of Cambodia, the perimeter of which is identified as N. 1 in the map prepared by the Cambodian authorities and herewith attached... "...the Kingdom of Cambodia accepts that the Temple of Preah Vihear be nominated for inscription on the World Heritage List without at this stage a buffer zone on the northern and western areas of the temple. "The map mentioned in paragraph 1 above shall supersede the [other] maps." The Cambodian nomination file referenced the 1904 and 1907 maps, so the Cambodian side clearly has agreed that these have been superseded and replaced by the map of June 18, 2008. If Thais should use "Cambodian maps", so should Cambodians - that is: the newest, official map of June 18, 2008, submitted to Unesco under the signature of the Cambodian deputy prime minister. Norbert Klein Phnom Penh