Bangkok accuses Cambodia of politicizing the Preah Vihear Temple issue during the upcoming general election?

Envoy will seek to end rift over Preah Vihear

May 6, 2008
The Nation (Thailand)

Foreign Ministry Permanent Secretary Virasakdi Futrakul will today fly to Phnom Penh to settle the problems over Cambodia's attempt to have Preah Vihear registered as a Unesco World Heritage site.

Cambodia has proposed the Hindu-style shrine, Preah Vihear, that straddles the common border, to be listed as a World Heritage site.

However, the bid reached a deadlock last year after Thailand viewed that the demarcation along the border should be settled first.

Thai Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said Virasakdi will hold talks with the Cambodian side to discuss the issue before a Unesco committee meets from July 4 to 12 in Canada.

If the problem cannot be settled, it could be politicised as the general election in Cambodia approaches.

"Thailand has lent its full support for Preah Vihear to be a World Heritage site," Virasakdi said, but added the demarcation in the area should be solved first.

Unesco wants both countries to discuss Cambodia's proposal to register Preah Vihear as a heritage site.

The ownership of Preah Vihear has been a source of contention between Thailand and Cambodia and the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia.

Bangkok accepts Cambodia's sovereignty over Preah Vihear, BUT ...

Top officials to discuss Preah Vihear

World Heritage listing row still needs settling

Tuesday May 06, 2008
THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL
Bangkok Post

A top foreign affairs official will leave for Phnom Penh today for discussions on the controversial issue of Unesco World Heritage listing for the ancient Khmer temple of Preah Vihear. Foreign affairs permanent secretary Weerasak Futrakul will meet Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An in the Cambodian capital.

Bangkok accepts Cambodia's sovereignty over Preah Vihear, which sits right on the border with Si Sa Ket province but can be easily accessed only through Thailand.

But they need to settle the dispute over ownership of 4.6 square kilometres of land adjoining the temple ruins.

Thailand has proposed that a joint management plan be drawn up for the overlapping areas until the border demarcation is completed, and that they jointly propose Preah Vihear to Unesco for listing. Cambodia has so far thrown cold water on the Thai proposal and will continue its solo push for the temple's registration with the UN body at a meeting in Canada in July.

The Preah Vihear dispute erupted in 2001 when Cambodia asked Unesco to put the ancient ruins, called Khao Phra Viharn in Thai, on the World Heritage List. Unesco last year postponed a decision on the listing pending an agreement between the two sides.

According to Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama, Unesco special representative Francesco Caruso has cancelled a trip to Thailand and Cambodia during which he was to have separate talks with the two governments on the issue. The cancellation came after Cambodia suggested the two sides settle the issue between themselves.

The Preah Vihear dispute has at times strained relations between the two neighbours.

On April 10, the government handed an aide-memoire to Cambodian ambassador Ung Sean protesting the deployment of Cambodian troops near the temple. Phnom Penh countered by summoning Thai envoy Viraphand Vacharathit to deny the allegations.

Thailand, Cambodia to discuss Phra Vihear issue

(BangkokPost.com) - Weerasak Futrakul, permanent secretary to the Foreign Ministry has reportedly been appointed to hold talks with deputy prime minister Sok An of Cambodia on Tuesday to discuss the controversy over making the Phra Vihear temple a Unesco heritage site.

Both parties claim they want to find a solution to rights to a controversial piece of land spanning which surrounds the temple. The temple is Cambodia, but land around it is still in dispute.

The Thai government has offered its full support for Cambodia's proposal to register the temple as a Unesco World Heritage site but plans to propose that a contract be drawn up.

If both governments are unable to reach a deal on the issue Tuesday, they may consider delaying the talks to a later date.