Preah Vihear border spat

[GWR]

This page looks like quite an eye-opener into the seemingly endless sad saga of the Khao Phra Viharn issue:-
http://www.geocities.co.jp/Outdoors/6825/archive/khaophraviharn.html
Other Related Thread in 2Bangkok.com (http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=3338&postcount=1)

[jpatokal]

I thought the border dispute was basically solved quite some time ago? I've been to Preah Vihear (it's in Cambodia, so use the Khmer name :p) and also hiked up Moh I Daeng to the site of the new Thai border -- it even has an informative map & display so you can see where the border used to run and match the various ruins in no man's land to what they once were.

Obligatory pictures: http://jpatokal.iki.fi/photo/travel/Cambodia/PreahVihear/

[Yappofloyd]

Khun jpatokal,

Great pics of the ruins and area. The VIP shed is a hoot! Should be more of these in Thailand given the obsession with VIPs!

I particularly found the 'I have pride to be born Khmer' sign to be interesting. i guess not uncommon in significant areas of territorial dispute.

The Land Mine sign was a surprise as I had thought that most of this whole area had been demined already?

[jpatokal]

The Land Mine sign was a surprise as I had thought that most of this whole area had been demined already?
Only the immediate vicinity of the temples has been demined (courtesy of the HALO Trust), there were lots of those mine warning signs and red strings all around the site. I didn't see any on the Thai side of the border though.

[GWR]

Went there when it was briefly open in 1992. Khmer Govt soldiers (with AK47s) (without uniforms[initially thought they might be KR]) warned everyone not to step off the track or go beyond the immediate vicinity for fear of mines. Heard gunfire in neighboring villages. The Khmer Rouge regained it soon after and held on to it until Pol Pot's apparent demise.

[jpatokal]

Since this is now on the front page (whee!) I might as well link in the little travel guide I wrote after my visit:

http://wikitravel.org/en/Preah_Vihear

It's a bit tough to get to no matter how you look at it. The public transport options looked sufficiently dodgy that I ended up renting a car & driver from Ubon, which got me there and allowed me to visit the bizarre Wat Lan Khuad as well (thanks to a tip from my driver). From the Cambodia side I gather it's even more of a challenge, although ToA's Gordon managed it (http://www.talesofasia.com/cambodia-preahvihear.htm).

[GWR]

In my new official rank as 'Bus driver'^, I'm wondering what the graffiti on the VIP Room was, before it was blanked out by some civically minded KR. Perhaps something along the lines of 'Killjoy woz 'ere!'

[Yappofloyd]

^not sure that 'Killjoy' ever made it to country Cambodia but I'm sure these is some circa 70s UXOs from American bombers with it lying around somewhere in the country.

Only the immediate vicinity of the temples has been demined (courtesy of the HALO Trust), there were lots of those mine warning signs and red strings all around the site. I didn't see any on the Thai side of the border though.

Don't ask me why but I came across an old Post article on demining program at Khao Phra Viharn dated03/09/04 (http://archives.mybangkokpost.com/bkkarchives/frontstore/news_detail.html?aid=153104&textcat=General%20News&type=a&key=clearing%20of%20mines&year=2004&click_page=1&search_cat=text&from=text_search)

The full article goes on to say that the US$600K program will begin work shortly (late last year?) working mainly on the Thai side. The minefield on the thai side is nearly 3 kms2 in size. (Souce Bangkok Post, Achara Ashayagachat, 03/09/04)

[GWR]

It seems more than a bit nitpicking to oppose World Heritage Site status for a temple that was ruled by the World Court to be in Cambodia decades ago. With this status comes money for restoration and preservation. Without that status and funding it becomes a mouldering heap that eventually neither side will want. Whereas the Cambodian government may well have had a hand in stirring up the last set of anti-Thai riots, the responsibility to prevent further friction is undoubtedly something that both sides have to work at:

Thais on high alert of another anti-Thai riots in Cambodia

Thai authorities have gone on high alert for fear of another anti-Thai riot in Cambodia after the Bangkok government opposed Cambodia's efforts to get ancient Hindu shrine Preah Vihear Temple on the Unesco's World Heritage.

Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh held an urgent meeting of Thai nationals in Cambodia last week to go over an evacuation after it was informed of the government's position on the matter.

The Thai government objected the Cambodian's plan because are a number of unsettled matters between Thailand and Cambodia concerning Preah Vihear, particularly that the joint border has yet to be demarcated.

Unesco decided on Wednesday not to include the ancient shrine on its World Heritage list, thus, heightening a growing fear among Thai authorities of another chaos.

Thai Foreign Ministry feared that history would repeat itself. In 2003 an antiThai riot broke out, mainly in Phnom Penh, was hundreds of Cambodians went on a rampage, looting and attacking Thai business and embassy. The incident erupted after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen lend legitimacy to an unconfirmed report that a Thai celebrity has made a derogatory remarks against the Cambodian people.

The Cambodian government has over the recent years renewed their efforts to have Unesco classify the ancient Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site.

Cambodia wanted the temple ,which lies in the Northwest border of the country but perched on the Thai border, to be recognised as a World Heritage monument to help assure its continued preservation.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/06/28/headlines/headlines_30038024.php

Related threads:

http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=3338&postcount=1

Website on the Khao Phra Viharn border dispute:

http://www.geocities.co.jp/Outdoors/6825/archive/khaophraviharn.html

[GWR]

PREAH VIHEAR
'Temple issues not resolved'

Thailand backs Heritage listing but has concerns

Thai authorities support in principle the ancient Hindu shrine of Preah Vihear being listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site, but there are some unsettled issues regarding the shrine, Foreign Ministry spokesman Tharit Charungvat said yesterday.

Cambodia wants the temple, which lies on its north-west border with Thailand, to be recognised as a World Heritage monument to help assure its continued preservation.

Unesco's World Heritage Committee met recently and suspended a decision on Cambodia's request.

The decision came after Thailand argued that the Thai-Cambodian border has yet to be demarcated and a joint management plan for the area is still being discussed.

The Unesco panel asked both countries to resolve the unsettled issues first and suggested that Cambodia re-submit its request next year.

"We have no objection to Preah Vihear shrine being a World Heritage Site. We support in principle Phnom Penh's request. We hope that the unsettled issues can be solved and the request be put forward for approval again next year," Tharit said.

The Unesco decision to delay the Cambodian request has put Thai authorities on alert. They fear the issue may be exploited to stir anti-Thai sentiment among Cambodians and that recent history might repeat itself.

In 2003 anti-Thai riots erupted, mainly in Phnom Penh, after Cambodian media repeatedly published rumours that a Thai actress had made derogatory remarks against the Cambodian people. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen fuelled the situation by directly confirming the rumours. Hundreds of Cambodians went on a rampage, looting and attacking Thai-owned businesses and the Thai Embassy.

A senior intelligence source said the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh held an urgent meeting of Thai nationals in Cambodia last week to go over an evacuation plan after it was informed of the government's position on the Unesco matter.

However Tharit dismissed this, saying it was just a routine meeting between the embassy and Thai nationals living in Cambodia.

The Cambodian government has, over recent years, renewed its effort to have Unesco classify the ancient Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage Site.

Marisa Chimprabha
The Nation


http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/06/29/national/national_30038056.php

[FarangBha]

nothing like a little war to postpone an election

[GWR]

Thai army closes entrance to Phreah Vihear shrine
The Thai army has closed the entrance to the ancient Hindu shrine Phreah Vihear, close to Si Sa Ket province, after refusing to abide by a Cambodian order not to wear uniforms when they visit the venue.


The Cambodian side claimed that seeing the Thai military in uniform will not be good for tourism in Preah Vihear.

The order came a few days after Unesco's World Heritage committee delayed until next year a decision to put the shrine on the World Heritage list. Thailand has argued that the Thai Cambodian border has yet to be demarcated and a joint management plan for the area is still being discussed.

The Unesco panel asked both countries to resolve the unsettled issues first and suggested that Cambodia resubmit its request next year.

Preah Vihear is technically located in the northernmost tip of Cambodia but is only easily accessible from northeast Thailand

The ownership of Preah Vihear temple was disputed by Thailand and Cambodia and the International Court of Justice awarded it to Cambodia in 1962.

A senior army source said that the Thai army refused to abide by the Cambodian orders, leading to conflict and the closing of the entrance to Preah Vihear.

He said this was not the first time that the Cambodian side came up with this kind of order and not the first time that unsettled issues led to the suspension of services to the shrine.

"Every time that there is an unsettled issue between Thailand and Cambodia, it has resulted in a change of orders concerning Preah Vihear," he said.

by Marisa Chimprabha

The Nation

Link may expire:

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/07/06/regional/regional_30039666.php

[GWR]

Now the diplomatic corps has to try and clean up the mess:


Mutual ties not affected by Phreah Vihear dispute : Thai ambassador
Thailand's concerns about unsettled border issues, which resulted in Unesco's decision to delay Cambodia's request to list the Phreah Vihear shrine as World Heritage site, will not affect Thailand-Cambodia relations, said Thai Ambassador to Cambodia Viraphand Vacharathit.

Cambodia understood the Thai position that there were still certain unsettled issues including border demarcation, he said.

Unesco's World Heritage committee delayed until next year a decision to put the shrine on the World Heritage list. The decision came after Thailand argued that the ThaiCambodian border has yet to be demarcated and a joint management plan for the area is still being discussed.

The Thai envoy said Cambodia is well aware that its request was not rejected but only delayed until next year's meeting, While some local Cambodian media wanted to instigate publicity, the majority of the Khmer people including the government understood the matter.

The ambassador reiterated that the Unesco panel based its decision on the basis that it needed more information and related documents concerning Cambodia's request about Preah Vihear.

The panel asked Cambodia to resubmit its request in February next year.

...........


http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/07/06/regional/regional_30039666.php

[GWR]

Featured frontpage today:

http://www.2bangkok.com

International Court of Justice
CASE CONCERNING THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR
(MERITS)
Judgment of 15 June 1962 (pdf doc):

http://wms.cfcambodge.org/mambo/images/stories/CFC_Preah_Vihear_Arret_de_la_CIJ_de_La_Hague_15_ju in_1962A.pdf

Border reference maps 1, 2, 3 & 4 (Early 20th Century):

http://wms.cfcambodge.org/mambo/images/stories/CartePreahvihear.jpg
http://wms.cfcambodge.org/mambo/images/stories/CartePreahvihear2.jpg
http://wms.cfcambodge.org/mambo/images/stories/CartePreahvihear3.jpg
http://wms.cfcambodge.org/mambo/images/stories/CartePreahvihear4.jpg

Cambodia's Borders Committee:

http://www.cfcambodge.org/

[GWR]

India to care for border temple

BangkokPost.com from Agency reports

Cambodian has approached India to renovate and maintain the controversial 11th century Khao Phra Viharn temple at the Thai-Cambodian border.

It is expected that an announcement will be made during the visit to India of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen next month.

The temple, known as Preah Vihear in Khmer, reverted to Cambodian control 45 years ago when the World Court decided a lawsuit in Cambodia's favour.

But it sits atop a high cliff and cannot be easily accessed from inside Cambodia. Instead, worshippers, pilgrims and tourists usually enter from the Thailand side of the frontier.

A senior official in the external affairs ministry of India said Cambodia had approached India to take up the conservation of the Preah Vihear temple about six months ago. "The request had been routed through our ambassador," the Indian news agency IANS quoted the official, who it said could not be identified.

The Indian government has already asked the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to start work on a conservation plan for the temple.

The Preah Vihear temple built during the Khmer empire is perched on a cliff in Dangrek Mountains, just across the Thai border.

With its grand causeway climbing up the hill, the temple is supposed to be a stylised representation of Mount Meru, the habitat of gods according to Hindu mythology. Among the sculptures carved on the walls is a depiction of the Hindu mythological story of "churning of the ocean".

In 1962, the International Court of Justice ruled that the temple was firmly in Cambodia. But with the country plunged into civil war after 1970, the Khmer Rouge used the temple as a military campl, and it was the scene of some pitched battles.

Before the court case, Cambodia severed diplomatic ties with Thailand. Thailand sealed the border, and there were almost daily anti-Cambodia protests in Bangkok and the provinces, some with hundreds of thousands protesting what they called Cambodian seizure of Thai land.

When the Court gave the temple to Cambodia despite the pleading of official Thai advocate M.R. Seni Pramoj, dictator Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat threatened to blockade the temple and prevent Cambodia from taking control. His Majesty the King intervened, saying the court's order would be obeyed.

Thailand and Cambodia have had frequent spats over the temple since then.

The latest was last June, when Thailand asked Unesco to dismiss a request by Cambodia to grant the temple status as a world heritage site. Unesco sided with Thailand but also asked Cambodia to reapply in 2008 with a joint management plan with Thailand.

At that time, the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh warned Thai citizens in Cambodia to remain on alert for possible riots. There was no violence, however.

Even now, while a majority of the visitors come from Thailand to the temple, they are greeted by a large Cambodian flag atop the temple and a signboard, "I have pride to be born as a Khmer".


Link may expire:
http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/topstories.php?id=123742

[Yappofloyd]

CAMBODIA / WORLD HERITAGE STATUS Thailand downplays row over Preah Vihear WASSANA NANUAM & THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bkk Post 26/01/08
In a bid to downplay conflicts surrounding the Preah Vihear temple on the Thai-Cambodian border, Defence Minister Boonrawd Somtas said Thailand had decided not to protest against Cambodia's unilateral move to have the ancient temple ruins listed as a World Heritage site.

The minister said it was a misunderstanding on the part of defence spokesman Pichasanu Putchakarn and his statement was personal, not the resolution of the Defence Council. ''It is not a resolution of the Defence Council. It was just an internal meeting of agencies concerned to assess the situation. It was not intended to be announced and the information [given by the defence spokesman] was incorrect and included personal views,'' Gen Boonrawd said yesterday.

He was referring to a statement by Lt-Gen Pichasanu that Thailand was risking the loss of the disputed areas should Cambodia get the ancient temple listed as a World Heritage site without Thai participation, and that the government should protest and condemn the neighbouring country for the move. Gen Boonrawd also tried to tone down the defence spokesman's remark that Cambodia attached a ''false'' map to claim the disputed areas with its World Heritage application. That referred to the use of a ''different'' map to claim the disputed areas, the defence minister explained.

Lt-Gen Pichasanu said the Defence Council had not reached a resolution, but it had held a discussion to prepare to take the right position. Foreign Ministry spokesman Tharit Charungvat said Cambodia's Preah Vihear move had nothing to do with the feared loss of Thai territory. ''Whether Preah Vihear will be listed as a heritage site or not is a matter for the World Heritage Committee (WHC). It will not involve the loss of Thai territory,'' he said.

Thailand has discovered that the information or map that the Cambodian side has proposed to the WHC includes the areas in dispute. Thailand has protested as the border demarcation is not concluded and Thailand's rights to the areas in question have been recognised, he said. The spokesman said a Thai representative who joined an international committee's trip to Cambodia on Jan 11-12 had already complained about the territorial issue with the Cambodian authorities.

Meanwhile, Cambodian Defence Minister Tea Bahn said he already received an explanation from Lt-Gen Niphat Thonglek, the Thai border affairs director-general, that the matter was a misunderstanding. Gen Tea Bahn said although Cambodia was building a walkway to Preah Vihear on its soil, the construction would not affect Thai territory. ''There is a joint committee working on border demarcation. But its work is quite sluggish,'' he said.

[Yappofloyd]

PREAH VIHEAR / THAI-CAMBODIAN DISPUTE Temple area 'should be jointly managed' PIYAPORN WONGRUANG Bkk Post 13/02/08
The area around the ancient Preah Vihear temple on the Thai-Cambodian border, which has been proposed as a World Heritage site, should be managed jointly by the two countries to avoid stirring up conflicts between them, a seminar was told yesterday.

Associate Professor Surachart Bamrungsuk, a military strategy expert at Chulalongkorn University's political science faculty, said at the seminar that the site proposed by Cambodia also covers a disputed common border area. Therefore, until the dispute could be settled, the area should be jointly managed by the two neighbours so they could feel at ease with one another in dealing with the issue.

It is virtually impossible now to delay Cambodia's world heritage site application, and therefore working together would be the best way out, he said. Under the joint management concept, both Thailand and Cambodia would benefit, said Assoc Prof Surachart. The area could be developed into the region's new tourism magnet, he added.

It is unlikely that world heritage status for Preah Vihear would rule out Thailand's claim of sovereignty over the disputed area since it has nothing to do with border demarcation, he said. ''Demarcation problems in this region are a legacy of colonisation in the past, and obviously they are not easy to fix. However, we may find a way out of this if we just look beyond the border and look for an opportunity during a crisis,'' the academic said.

In 2001 Cambodia officially asked the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation to put Phreah Vihear on the World Heritage List, and has since developed its proposal without Thailand's participation. Thailand last year protested against Cambodia's proposal at a World Heritage Committee meeting in New Zealand.This resulted in a recommendation that the two neighbours work together on how to manage the site. Thailand is still waiting for Cambodia's response.

Preah Vihear is a cluster of ancient Khmer temples that sit atop a cliff in a border area claimed by both Thailand and Cambodia. The International Court of Justice in 1962 ruled that Cambodia has sovereignty over the temple ruins and parts of their surroundings.

[Yappofloyd]

Preah Vihear temple talks to be held soon Bkk Post 15/02/08

Thailand and Cambodia will hold talks on the issue of the Preah Vihear temple ruins later this month during the visit of Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok Ann to Bangkok.

Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said yesterday the issue remained ''negotiable'' and would be resolved through diplomatic channels when he met Mr Sok An in Bangkok. The date for the meeting has not been set. ''The Foreign Ministry looks after this issue closely and will maintain the sovereignty and borders of the nation. Preah Vihear is a negotiable process. I don't believe it will affect the relationship between Thailand and Cambodia,'' he said.

In 2001, Cambodia asked the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) to put the Khmer temple ruins, called Khao Phra Viharn in Thai, on the World Heritage List. But Thailand protested due to concern that the announcement could affect its rights over the unsettled border.

The World Heritage Committee said at its meeting in New Zealand last year that Cambodia should negotiate with Thailand on the issue because Thailand was a stakeholder as it shared the border with Cambodia.

[mdechgan]

Does anyone know the history of the dispute?

I think it was once a part of Thailand politically and geographically.
Even though culturally is was a part of Cambodia the French surveyors marked the map according to the river. However the river changed after a few years.

I think Thailand was pissed because Thailand paid for its maintenance over the years while Cambodia contributed very little to the temple. Even in the past the sole entrance was from the Thai side.

However the world court ruled that the French Surveyors were wrong and Thailand was at fault because Thailand didn't bother challenging or checking the map over the years.

[jpatokal]

Does anyone know the history of the dispute? I think it was once a part of Thailand politically and geographically. Even though culturally is was a part of Cambodia the French surveyors marked the map according to the river. However the river changed after a few years.
Wikipedia has a decent summary:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prasat_Preah_Vihear

However the world court ruled that the French Surveyors were wrong and Thailand was at fault because Thailand didn't bother challenging or checking the map over the years.
The ICJ actually ruled that the French surveyors were right (their map showed the temple to be in Cambodia) and that Thailand had let their claim lapse.

[Yappofloyd]

POLITICS AND PREAH VIHEAR
A shared cultural heritage is again at the centre of a tug of war Stories and photos by PIYAPORN WONGRUANG Bkk Post 19/02/08

As the 60-year-old musician draws the bow across his three-string fiddle, a sweet Cambodian wedding melody floats around the ancient temple of Preah Vihear, breaking the morning silence. Uncle Wan's musical stage is a small space in the sanctuary's gallery where every day he plays his tro, or traditional Cambodian fiddle. Visitors like his music and many give him money.

Born in Siem Reap, uncle Wan grew up amid the violence that tore his country apart 30 years ago. Like so many other young men he was drawn into the war between the communist Khmer Rouge and the royalist forces. He served as a soldier - and lost his left leg. His handicap made it difficult for him to work in the turmoil that followed the war, so he turned to music. Recently, uncle Wan moved to a new town near the sanctuary and every day he climbs to the ancient temple, where he earns enough money to support his family.

However, history shows that Preah Vihear, which sits on top of the steep cliff of the Dangrek range separating Thailand and Cambodia, has not always been an open-door for opportunity.

Due to the dispute over the blurred boundary between Thailand and Cambodia, the sanctuary has been alternately closed and opened to visitors. The last time it was closed was in 2002. It was reopened a year later. Such swings in border diplomacy have not only made life harder for people like uncle Wan, but also created an atmosphere of distrust between Thais and Cambodians in the area.

A Thai senior forestry ranger at Khao Phra Viharn national park, as the sanctuary is called in Thailand, said that when the two governments fall out, people even stop talking to each other - instead standing mutely, face to face, with only a steel bar erected between them. "People here hardly ever have problems with each other," the park ranger said. "But once we receive orders to close the border, we become as strangers, acting as if we have never met each other before."

Cambodia's recent efforts to nominate Phreah Vihear as a Word Heritage site has again put the people in the border area under pressure. Cambodia officially requested the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) to list the old temple as a World Heritage site in 2001. Since then, it has been going ahead with the proposal alone, without Thailand taking part.

Last year, at a meeting of the World Heritage Committee in New Zealand, Thailand protested against the proposal. This resulted in a recommendation that the two countries work out a way to manage the site together. Thai officials involved in the issue say Cambodia's proposal extends over unsettled boundary lines into areas also claimed by Thailand.

The International Council on Monuments and Sites (Icomos), which consults with Unesco on nominated sites, mentioned in its evaluation report that the frontier between Cambodia and Thailand passes alongside the northern boundary of the nominated property. It referred to information provided by another agency, that the precise location of the frontier is currently disputed by the two countries. A process to resolve both the boundaries of the temple site and of the frontier should continue, to ensure the sound long-term management of the property, it said.

For the site to be nominated, inclusions of some outer areas and a buffer zone are needed to help protect it from external influences, according to a senior Thai archeologist working on the recommended joint management plan. The inclusion of such areas requires recognition not only from Cambodia, but also from Thailand, the report noted. But the two countries would not be struggling to agree on sovereignty issues if a hundred years of colonisation had not laid such a heavy hand over the border area.

Assoc Prof Surachart Bamrungsuk, a military strategist at Chulalongkorn University, said mainland Southeast Asia had traditionally never had a perception of national borders. People in the region crossed natural barriers to associate socially and culturally before borderlines were drawn by colonising powers. A hundred years ago, to the west of Thailand, or Siam as it was then, Britain was demarcating the border with Burma, while France was busily doing the same with its colonies to the east.

As a result, the countries in this region were born as the states, following the modern definition. But they came with borders which had no regard for the social and cultural relationships of people in the areas, the professor said. A highly spiritual place like Preah Vihear was not exempted from demarcation, even though it was the centre of spiritual gatherings for people whose nationalities could hardly be identified.

Historian Dhida Saraya, who has been studying ancient cities in the region and is the author of Khao Phra Viharn,said the sanctuary was built over a thousand years ago by ancient Khmer Kings to worship Hindu gods. But more significantly, it symbolised attempts to blend old beliefs of different groups of people in the adjacent areas. People were united and the new cult of Devaraja, under which the king is regarded as god, was promoted. It then spread to other regions.

During the disputes over ownership of Preah Vihear in the mid 1900s, the discussion centred largely on where it was located - in Thailand or Cambodia? In 1959, Cambodia took the dispute to the International Court of Justice. In 1962, the court ruled the sanctuary was under Cambodia's sovereignty, leaving some room for arguments about the surrounding land, where the border between the two countries was not settled.

Ms Dhida said that in order to manage cultural property, the parties need to think of a "cultural boundary", especially in a situation where physical boundaries are unclear. With the recognition of a cultural boundary, the parties would be better able to to see through other obstacles and work together in preserving the cultural heritage.

She said the Unesco should pay more attention to this aspect to help avoid possible conflict between Thailand and Cambodia. "According to the evidence so far, people in this area do not associate or disassociate only by the determination of borderlines. "They have a shared cultural heritage and this should be regarded, especially when the area will be nominated as a World Heritage site," said Ms Dhida. "How can culture be identified by nationalities and borders?"

The Thai working group has put together a plan under which the two countries would jointly restore the area, the director of the Archaeology Office, Tharapong Srisuchart, said. They were awaiting Cambodia's response to the plan, he said. The next meeting of the World Heritage Committee is set for the middle of this year in Canada. Many people expect that Cambodia's proposal for World Heritage status for Preah Vihear will be accepted.

Few local people, if any, would welcome the disruption that could follow this as the two countries again dispute ownership of the land, along with the likely closure of the border. "People normally cross back and forth through the forest and the fields to visit their relatives here and there," said another Thai forest ranger. "We here don't acknowledge the borderline." Meanwhile, Uncle Wan still draws his bow across his fiddle strings every morning, and the sweet sound swells into the peace that pervades Preah Vihear, which, in happier times, was there for all people.

[Yappofloyd]

I wouldn't be surprised if sometime in the future if the new govt is having a hard time, Samak sends in the troops to occupy the area Thailand claims for some nice nationalist politicing.

TIES WITH CAMBODIA Samak asks army for full briefing on Preah Vihear - WASSANA NANUAM Bkk Post 27/02/08

Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej has asked the army to give him a full briefing on Preah Vihear, an issue expected to be raised during his visit to Cambodia next week. Preah Vihear is not on the agenda for Thailand, but an army source said it would likely be raised by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during his first meeting with Mr Samak.

The prime minister is scheduled to visit Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, on Monday and Tuesday after a two-day trip to Laos beginning on Friday. Mr Samak made his request during a 40-minute meeting with army chief Gen Anupong Paojinda and supreme commander Gen Boonsrang Niempradit at Government House on Monday, the source said.

Cambodia has asked the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) to declare the Preah Vihear Khmer temple ruins, called Khao Phra Viharn in Thai, a World Heritage site. Thailand opposes the idea because the border in the area has not been settled.

Unesco's stance is that the two neighbours must first settle their differences. Mr Samak told Gen Anupong and Gen Boonsrang on Monday his government was still firm on seeing the area demarcated first, the source said. Preah Vihear straddles the border with Cambodia in Kantharalak district of Si Sa Ket.

The two countries earlier planned to hold talks on the issue this month when Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok Ann was due to visit Bangkok. However, the trip has been put off. The Foreign Ministry has made it clear the issue could be settled and would not be allowed to damage Thailand's ties with Cambodia. Gen Anupong went to Cambodia yesterday to prepare for the prime minister's visit. He is due back today.

After Cambodia, Mr Samak is due to visit Burma on March 6-7. Mr Samak told the two generals that all cooperation schemes with neighbouring countries initiated by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra would continue. He wanted the army and the Foreign Ministry to coordinate on those projects.

[Yappofloyd]

BILATERAL TIES / DISPUTED BORDER AREA Preah Vihear to top the agenda of Samak's visit to Cambodia WASSANA NANUAM Bkk Post 29/02/08

Preah Vihear will top the agenda of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej's official visit to Cambodia, starting Monday. A military source said the prime minister would talk to his Cambodian counterpart about jointly proposing the Preah Vihear Khmer temple ruins, called Khao Phra Viharn in Thai, as a World Heritage site since the two countries have yet to settle the border demarcation in that area which is located in Kantharalak district of Si Sa Ket. Moreover, the Thai side believes the area that covers about 7.2 sq km should not be included in the area to be designated a World Heritage site.

Last year, Cambodia tried to register the site with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) alone. But the UN agency delayed its decision, urging the two countries to resolve the issue together. ''Due to the unsettled border, Cambodia cannot register the ruins alone. If Cambodia wants to apply for World Heritage status, the proposal should be jointly submitted with Thailand because the area is supervised by two countries.

''If Cambodia pushes on with its idea, it should not include the 7.2 sq km disputed area because it means Thailand might lose its sovereignty over the area in question,'' the source said. Mr Samak's trip will follow a two-day official visit to Laos which begins today. A meeting of the World Heritage committee will be convened from July 4 to 12 in Canada.

[Yappofloyd]

Cambodia tense for Samak, temple off agenda Mar 03, 2008
Phnom Penh (dpa) - Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej began an official visit to Cambodia on Monday aimed at strengthening bilateral ties but which has raised old animosities amongst some Cambodians regarding a disputed border temple. Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said Samak's visit was a tradition for new leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which both countries are members.

Hor Namhong said Samak and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen will address issues including the Thai-funded repairs of a number of Cambodian border roads, but there would be no signing ceremony. "But Hun Sen will not talk about the Preah Vihear Temple," he said. Cambodia has sought to register the ancient temple on the far northern border as a World Heritage site, but Thailand has objected.

Instead, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An would visit Thailand and hold specific talks with the Thai side about the temple in the near future, he said. Some local groups have been angered by Thailand's obstruction of Cambodia's request to have the disputed temple listed.

Also on Monday, the nationalistic Student Movement for Democracy issued a statement demanding Hun Sen refuse to speak with Samak on the issue, citing the 1962 ruling by the International Court of Justice in the Hague that Preah Vihear temple belongs to Cambodia. The movement's leader, Kein Sara, was briefly imprisoned in 2003 for his alleged role in the anti-Thai riots in Phnom Penh. Angry mobs had burned the Thai embassy and Thai businesses after a Thai actress was said to have claimed another cultural icon, the Angkor Wat temple complex, was Thai. Sara was quickly released.

Although allies, tensions between the neighbouring nations go back for centuries. In 2003, some Cambodian firefighters showed their tacit approval of the riots by reportedly taking water to put out the Thai embassy fires from the city's sewers instead of fire hydrants. These tensions have not been helped by Thailand's refusal to agree on sea borders as Cambodia looks to exploit potentially rich offshore oil reserves within two years, another issue expected to be on Samak's agenda.

[Yappofloyd]

Joint panel for disputed temple urged ANUCHA CHAROENPO Bkk Post 31/03/08

VIENTIANE : A joint committee could be set up to manage the area surrounding Preah Vihear temple on the Thai-Cambodian border after the prime ministers of both countries reaffirmed their commitment to solving disagreements regarding contested claims to the temple ruins.

Cambodian is set to propose Preah Vihear as a Unesco World Heritage Site. Speaking after bilateral talks with Cambodian Premier Hun Sen on the sidelines of the Third Greater Mekong Subregion summit yesterday, Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said a joint panel would be set up to try and work out issues surrounding the ancient site.

To speed up the efforts, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An will visit Thailand soon, Mr Samak said. ''We (Thailand and Cambodia) want an easy way out because we have had a good relationship. Why do we have to make the matter more complicated?'' he asked.

Mr Samak stressed that Thailand would not block Cambodia's attempt to list Preah Vihear as a World Heritage Site. The area around the temple compound remains on an overlapping zone between the two countries. The dispute over the temple was discussed by the two countries when Mr Samak paid an official visit to Cambodia.

After his visit, Bangkok agreed not to contest Cambodia's bid to propose the Preah Vihear temple _ but not the surrounding land _ as a World Heritage Site, as some of the surrounding area has not been demarcated yet. Preah Vihear is on the Cambodian side but the main access to the temple is from the Thai side of the border.

[GWR]

http://ki-media.blogspot.com/

Khmer Lands Lost to Thailand Near Preah Vihear Temple
Friday, April 25, 2008
Originally posted by Khmerization
On the web at http://khmerization.blogspot.com

http://bp0.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKygjTKg7I/AAAAAAAAERE/d1KzF1m-K6A/s400/preah_vihear_map_USA_1-250,000+02.jpg
1954 US Army Map
Click to zoom in:
http://bp0.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKygjTKg7I/AAAAAAAAERE/d1KzF1m-K6A/s1600-h/preah_vihear_map_USA_1-250,000+02.jpg

http://bp3.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKvKTTKg6I/AAAAAAAAEQ8/wFIvmM9VEaM/s400/preah_vihear_khmer_land_lost_Google_map_2008.jpg
Google Aerial Map
Click to zoom in:
http://bp3.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKvKTTKg6I/AAAAAAAAEQ8/wFIvmM9VEaM/s1600-h/preah_vihear_khmer_land_lost_Google_map_2008.jpg


Dear Compatriots,

These are the maps showing the areas around the Preah Vihear Temple. I received these maps from Mr. Thhai Makarar. This is a personal view of Mr. Thhai Makarar, but Khmerization found his personal view to be very relevant and consistent with the established views that the areas around Preah Vihear site had been encroached significantly by Thailand.

The map on the bottom is a Google aerial map of Cambodia in 2008 showing the borderlines as drawn by the U.S Army in 1954 superposed on top of the borderlines indicated by Google in 2008 between Cambodia and Thailand. The 1954 U.S Map clearly shows that Cambodia's borderlines were deep inside Thailand but in 2008 the borderlines were pushed deep inside Cambodia. This means that Thailand had encroached significantly around the Preah Vihear site deep inside Cambodia's territories. The top map is the U.S Army map, drawn in 1954. Please read the maps and judge for yourself.

I wish to thank Thhai Makarar for these maps. Mr. Thhai, if you have anything you want me to publish in my blog please don't hesitate to send them to me. I will be happy to publish them all here.

[Yappofloyd]

Wat's happening? - Bangkok Post 29/04/08
Cambodia and Thailand were in total agreement about a famous border temple on Monday: Both claimed they were puzzled why Unesco called off a meeting with their foreign ministers over Wat Preah Vihear.

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation late on Sunday cancelled a meeting with Thailand and Cambodia over efforts to put the Preah Vihear temple on the Unesco World Heritage list. In Bangkok, officials said they had no idea why Unesco called off the meeting, which was to have taken place on Friday and Saturday in Paris. Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama was prepared for the trip, when Unesco notified the ministry of the cancellation.

But in Phnom Penh, there was even more confusion. "We received no invitation from the Unesco about talks, so we do not understand why they said talks are cancelled," said Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Cambodian cabinet, or Council of Ministers. The Cambodians said there was no question about jurisdiction over the temple, and the only topic up for discussion is border jurisdiction.

The campaign to make Preah Vihear a Unesco site has turned into something of a nightmare. Cambodia and Thailand must come to some agreement over putting the temple, known as Khao Phra Viharn in Thailand, on the world heritage list. The temple is at the top of a sheer cliff which the World Court ruled in 1962 is in Cambodia. However, the only easy access to the temple is through Thailand. If that weren't enough, the border in the region, except for the actual temple grounds, is unclear because of border disputes.

Cambodia said on Monday that no discussions mediated by the UN body had been mooted in past months and the issue was under control without the need of intervention by a third party. But Thai officials said they had been informed that Unesco will now send its representative, Francesco Caruso, for separate talks with the Thai and Cambodian governments. Mr Caruso has been appointed by Unesco as a special coordinator between Thailand and Cambodia on the issue and is due in Bangkok next month. (BangkokPost.com, dpa)

[Yappofloyd]

This article from last week is worth posting to remind us of the potential flashpoint that Preah Vihear could become given the history between both countries.

THAI-CAMBODIAN TIES Still wary the empire might strike ACHARA ASHAYAGACHAT Bkk Post 24/04/08
Five years have elapsed since the burning of the Thai embassy in Cambodia in 2003, but the animosity still lingers on the ground between Thailand and Cambodia, especially in one of the nation's poorest provinces, Siem Reap. The ongoing dispute over Preah Vihear temple has only added rancour to the sentiment. At the mention of the word ''Syam Kuk'' _ a well-known bass relief at Angkor Wat believed to depict Thai fighters marching in the Khmer army either as its alliance or subjects _ a Cambodian tour guide immediately gave a testy response: ''Are you from Thailand? Thailand was our last enemy and they remain the only present enemy until now.''

This small incident shows that despite tireless efforts by both governments to heal the wounds, things might not necessarily be improving in the minds of the people. Siem Reap has just hit the record of receiving over two million tourists, mainly from China and South Korea. The history of the Khmer empire is being kept vivid for the Cambodians who are cashing in on their heritage.

Not all Cambodian guides hold a grudge over the Thai-Cambodian historical conflict, however. Tarth Nu, regarded as Khru (master) by other tour guides, carefully explained the history of the Khmer and the Khmer heritage without naming specific invading nations that drove the Khmer from their ancient capitals of Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, to the present Phnom Penh.

Tarin Prom, a 34-year-old taxi driver in Phnom Penh, claimed that half of the Cambodians remained angry with Thai people and continued to hate them after the infamous torching of the Thai embassy. But he himself did not want any further trouble. ''I want peace and I don't want neighbours to quarrel any more. With the riots, not only did Thais stop coming here, other foreigners from the region are also fearful of this easily-provoked nation and are scared to return.''

Time has passed and the physical debris has been cleaned up. Hotels, restaurants and guesthouses that used to bear Thai names such as Chao Phraya, Thai or Siam, have gradually been changed to Khmer words such as Jayavaraman, or Angkor. The Thai embassy has been beautifully rebuilt and is now secured with two high-tech gates. The private Thai companies have been fully compensated, mostly in kind and through tax breaks.

Yet, deep inside, the hurt is still there in the hearts of both Thais and Cambodians. Thibodi Buakamsri, a history lecturer at Kasetsart University, said among other efforts that could heal the ill feeling, a rewriting of the history textbooks might help, as many of them were filled with prejudice towards neighbouring countries.

Intellectuals from both sides believe they should set things right for the future by making the contents of textbooks used in both countries' formal curriculum ''decent and with a proper attitude'' towards neighbours. It may sound simple but any revision would be an arduous task as it must change the core concept of each country's national history. ''We might need to pay more attention and resources in shaping other approaches to viewing our neighbours, aside from the historical perspective. This should not be the burden of Thai people alone. Both sides should do something,'' the academic said.

[Yappofloyd]

Sems to be a lot of diplomacy taking place on this in the last couple of months and reading between the lines one gets the sense things are heating up a little.

Top officials to discuss Preah Vihear - World Heritage listing row still needs settling THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bangkok Post 06/05/08

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.

[Yappofloyd]

PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE ROW

Horses for courses?

Top official abruptly moved - THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bkk Post 07/05/08
Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama yesterday ordered the abrupt transfer of a senior ministry official handling the Preah Vihear temple dispute with Cambodia to an inactive post. Treaties and Legal Affairs Department director-general Virachai Plasai has been made an ambassador attached to the ministry, an inactive position.

He was on his way to Phnom Penh with foreign affairs permanent secretary Virasakdi Futrakul yesterday for talks with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An on the controversial issue of Unesco World Heritage listing for Preah Vihear.

Krit Kraichitti, currently head of the International Economic Affairs Department, will replace Mr Virachai. The cabinet yesterday approved the special reshuffle order. Tanatip U-patising, who is the ambassador attached to the ministry, will replace Mr Krit. It is believed the transfer was linked to Mr Virachai's handling of the Preah Vihear issue.

Mr Noppadon explained that the transfer was meant to improve efficiency and working coordination. ''I try to put the right person in the right job. There was no other reason for the transfer,'' said Mr Noppadon. He said Mr Krit, who formerly headed the Treaties and Legal Affairs Department, knows the problem (Preah Vihear) very well. ''Each horse has a lot of experience but I want the horse that can run on the right track,'' said Mr Noppadon.

[Yappofloyd]

Definately some shennigans going on with this move, two articles in todays Bkk Post. Was he not towing the party line or is it payback as the Dems are suggesting? Highlights the ongoing sensitivities surrounding Preah Vihear.

Virachai transfer peculiar - THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bkk Post 09/05/08
The recent removal of a senior officer from the Foreign Ministry might not be so glaring if the person removed was not widely-respected Virachai Plasai, chief of the Treaties and Legal Affairs Department and a chief negotiator in the dispute involving Preah Vihear temple, which Cambodia wants to register as a World Heritage site. Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said the ministry was handling many issues, and he wanted to put the right the man in the right job to ensure good ''coordination with the minister''.

That explanation has raised questions because Mr Virachai is highly respected in the ministry for his academic background and French language proficiency. In the government's talks with Cambodia over the temple, those skills have proven essential, as most of the documents are in French. He also earned his degrees, from bachelor's to a doctorate in law from France.

Ministry officials were shocked to learn about the transfer. Many said they were baffled by the minister's remark that he wanted to put the right man in the right job, because they already had him _ Mr Virachai. ''Although Mr Virachai is strict with staff in preparing documents for any negotiations, he has taught his staff a good deal,'' said one official who asked not to be named.

In an unprecedented personal letter, permanent secretary Virasakdi Futrakul wrote to staff at the Treaties and Legal Affairs Department on Wednesday, one day after Mr Virachai's lightning transfer. The letter was copied and distributed around the ministry. The permanent secretary said he was proud to have worked with Mr Virachai, especially in the negotiations over borderlines with Laos and Cambodia. Mr Virachai had performed well in the talks.

The Thai delegation comprising staff from the ministry and other agencies were proud that Thailand had such a good ambassador, who worked hard to protect Thai sovereignty and the national interest. ''I believe in his discretion and integrity. I'm confident that Mr Virachai will also succeed in his new job [as a legal adviser to the permanent secretary and over the ministry's human resources],'' said Mr Virasakdi. With all that praise, the formal reason for transferring Mr Virachai to become ambassador attached to the ministry looks odd.

Ministry sources say Mr Virachai's lightning transfer was probably due to his refusal to share a classified document from the CTX bomb-detector case with certain politicians, who wanted to see the document to help former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in the alleged corruption scandal. A source from the army believed the transfer was related instead to Mr Virachai's resistance to political pressure applied in the Preah Vihear negotiations.

According to the source, Mr Virachai was pressured to compromise Thailand's interests in the Preah Vihear temple dispute in exchange for a deal where Thailand would take a larger area in the Thai-Cambodian Joint Development Area _ a deal which would benefit certain politicians. But he refused to yield. If these rumours are true, these politicians have betrayed the people, the nation, and gone against the oath they took in front of the King. The explanation for Mr Virachai's sudden transfer looks highly suspect _ so what is going on?

Personal letter praises department chief - MANOP THIP-OSOD & THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bkk Post 09/05/08
Foreign affairs permanent secretary Virasakdi Futrakul has circulated a letter in the Treaties and Legal Affairs Department praising its chief Virachai Plasai, who has been transferred to an inactive post. In the hand-written letter to officials in the treaties department, Mr Virasakdi praised Mr Virachai's conviction to principles, his integrity and his outstanding performance. He said it had been an honour to work with Mr Virachai, especially in the border negotiations with Laos and Cambodia.

Mr Virachai has been shifted to the inactive post of an ambassador attached to the ministry. Some reports say the Foreign Affairs Ministry was unhappy with Mr Virachai's role in the dispute with Phnom Penh over the ancient Preah Vihear temple. Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama denied the transfer was politically motivated and said he would take full responsibility for the decision to move Mr Virachai.

Speaking from Japan yesterday, Mr Noppadon declined to comment on the reasons behind the transfer. The minister, however, said he would like to see what the Preah Vihear negotiators had done, which may result in Thailand being committed to too many obligations. Mr Virasakdi described Mr Virachai as a diplomat of exceptional calibre who had played a vital role in protecting national interests. ''All officials in the Treaties and Legal Affairs Department should see Mr Virachai as a role model who has served the country to the best of his ability,'' the permanent secretary said.

The Democrat party, meanwhile, has dismissed the transfer as politically motivated. Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said Mr Virachai was moved because he refused Mr Noppadon's demand that he be shown classified documents related to the CTX bomb scanner case. Mr Virachai supervised the translation of some CTX documents at the request of the Assets Scrutiny Committee, which has been investigating alleged corruption in the Thaksin Shinawatra government. He would investigate whether Mr Noppadol had abused his power by transferring him.

[GWR]

See also today's previous post, that deals with the political wranglings behind this issue on the Thai side of the border.

Friday, May 09, 2008
India plans to invest in airport and cable car for Preah Vihear Temple [-An end to the dependence on Thailand's whims?]

Friday, May 9, 2008
The Mekong Times
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Hang Sot, director of the Preah Vihear National Authority (PVNA), indicated on Thursday that an Indian company wants to invest in an airport and an electric cable car system in the Preah Vihear Temple region which is a major tourist zone in the north of the country, along the Thai border.

In an interview, Professor Hang Sot indicated that India’s Skill Company, which has previously successfully invested in cable car in Vietnam, and it has completed a project feasibility study to find the location for the construction last month. Hang Sot said that the company plans to build an airport on a 2-km-by-5-km field, located 32 km from the temple, the road system for the cable car will be 2,400-meter long, located near the ancient stair steps, and the road will be enlarged from 8 to 10-meter wide.

Hang Sot said: “We don’t know as yet when the project will start or how much it will cost, but we hope that it will see the daylight if the results from the discussion between the company representatives and vice-prime minister Sok An are positive.

According to an anonymous official close to this investment plan, the Skill Company plans to spend $600 million to develop the temple area. Regarding this investment, Ho Vandy, director of the Cambodia Association of Travel Agents, welcomed the project. “We support this development plan, but we must know how this development will affect our temple. We welcome it if this plan really exists,” Ho Vandy said.

Currently, there is no strong development to attract tourists to come and visit this temple located near the Thai border, due to a lack of proper infrastructure in this region. Regarding this latter issue, Hang Sot said: “Right now, we receive only 300 to 400 visitors per day who come to visit Preah Vihear Temple, and the majority of them come from Thailand. However, in the future, i.e. after the construction of the infrastructure, we hope that this region will attract a large number of tourists, and that the majority of them will come from inside Cambodia.”

Hang Sot added: “I trust that the number of tourists will increase by six folds in Preah Vihear, at the end of the development plan, in particular after the construction of road infrastructure.”

Posted by Socheata
http://ki-media.blogspot.com/2008/05/india-plans-to-invest-in-airport-and.html

[Yappofloyd]

This gets more inetresting as the weeks roll by. "...will not let this country give up a square inch.." but we are more than happy to flogged and exploit poorly managed sites for tourism.

PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE Noppadon denies compromise Bkk Post 12/05/08
Thailand will not compromise with Cambodia in negotiations over land around Preah Vihear temple, which Phnom Penh wants to register as a Unesco World Heritage Site, Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said yesterday. ''I [as foreign minister] will not let this country give up a square inch of territory to Cambodia,'' Mr Noppadon said.

The ancient Khmer temple, which is on the border in Si Sa Ket province, was ruled by the International Court of Justice to belong to Cambodia in 1962. The area around the temple remains in dispute, with the two countries' claims overlapping.

To register the temple, known as Khao Phra Viharn in Thai, as a World Heritage Site might require Thailand giving up some disputed land to Cambodia. Mr Noppadon's strong statement came amid rumours Thailand might compromise in exchange for benefits for some politicians, including petroleum concessions in other disputed areas.

The reports follow the minister's recent sudden transfer of Virachai Plasai, director-general of the Treaties and Legal Affairs Department and head of the negotiation team, to an inactive post. Mr Virachai is seen by senior officials at the ministry as the most capable person for the job. Mr Noppadon yesterday strongly denied the speculation. He said the issue of Preah Vihear had nothing to do with a petroleum agreement.

The World Heritage issue was sensitive for both countries, he said, and he sympathised with Cambodia, which was due for a general election in July _ the same time the World Heritage Committee is to reconsider Phnom Penh's unilateral request for listing Preah Vihear. The minister said Thailand and Cambodia would reach an agreement on the exploitation of natural resources in disputed areas. Negotiations were underway and should be finalised soon.

''Thailand and Cambodia have 26,000 square kilometres of disputed areas and this requires a joint agreement because there are oil and natural gas deposits worth about five trillion baht in the areas,'' he said. ''The dispute deserves joint management and government-to-government actions. ''(Negotiations) have made good progress. The issue will be discussed with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An as soon as possible.

[Yappofloyd]

Preah Vihear issue unsettled THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bkk Post 14/05/08

Thailand may ask Unesco to again postpone its decision on the registration of the ancient ruins at Preah Vihear as a World Heritage site this year if it is unable to convince Cambodia to settle the land dispute through joint management, Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said yesterday.

Cambodia had ignored the joint management proposal for the overlapping area around the ancient ruins, which covers 4.6 square kilometres, and had lobbied hard for the registration of Preah Vihear, which will be considered at a Unesco meeting in Quebec in July.

However, Mr Noppadon told a radio programme yesterday morning that he hoped Cambodia would consider the Thai proposal or Bangkok will ask for a postponement. Last year Unesco delayed making a decision, pending agreement between the two sides.

Mr Noppadon said the Preah Vihear issue was sensitive as the registration is to take place at the same time as the general election in Cambodia. The minister said it was necessary for both countries to negotiate through diplomatic channels, and added that he planned to raise the issue with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen tomorrow when he meets him in Hong Kong.

Cambodian Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh criticised the move by Thailand to link the Preah Vihear issue to the overlapping areas for offshore oil exploration. ''If we solve the Preah Vihear case, then we also solve the overlapping zone offshore. They're completely different things, the minister told the Cambodia Daily newspaper.

[Yappofloyd]

VISIT NEAR PREAH VIHEAR King Sihamoni to give alms (DPA and BANGKOK POST, 14/05/08)

Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni will give alms to the poor at a site close to the controversial Preah Vihear temple on the Thai border during his three-day birthday celebrations, officials said yesterday. His trip comes amid the dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over the latter's proposed registration of the ancient temple as a Unesco World Heritage site. Thailand fears it will have to give up 4.6 sq km around the temple if it is listed on behalf of Cambodia only.

The royal birthday celebration for the king, who ascended to the throne in 2004 after the abdication of his father, Norodom Sihanouk, began yesterday and will continue until tomorrow. The king traditionally conducts Buddhist rites at his palace in the capital, but had chosen to fly by helicopter to an area close to Preah Vihear temple, perched on the border, officials said.

Cambodia is also mulling the idea of introducing a national holiday on June 15 to mark the 1962 anniversary of the International Court in The Hague deciding that the temple, which is sacred to both Cambodians and Thais, lies within Cambodian territory. Border demarcations, both around Preah Vihear and in disputed coastal waters, remain a sensitive issue for both nations.

Thai Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said on a radio programme yesterday that the Thai side has included the coastal border in negotiations about Preah Vihear with Cambodia. The dispute over the temple could be ended only if both countries reached agreement on the overlapping coastal territory first, he said.

[GWR]

See also today's previous post, that deals with the political wranglings behind this issue on the Thai side of the border.
http://ki-media.blogspot.com/2008/05/india-plans-to-invest-in-airport-and.html


Saturday, 17 May 2008
Cable cars, airport to open up Preah Vihear
Written by Kay Kimsong
Friday, 16 May 2008

An Indian company has unveiled a multimillion-dollar proposal to build an airport serving Preah Vihear temple, a senior government official said on May 14.

Hang Soth, the director of the Preah Vihear National Authority, said the proposal by Mumbai-based Skil Infrastructure Ltd included building a cable car to the top of the escarpment graced by the ancient 11th century Hindu monument.

Soth said a five-member company team had arranged further talks with the government after visiting the temple, and the proposed airport site 32 kilometers away, on April 30. The airport needs to be some distance from the temple to minimize the risk of damage caused by vibration.

Soth said the company planned to hold detailed talks on its proposal with Deputy Prime Minister Sok An and the Council for the Development of Cambodia.

The government was yet to make a decision, said Soth, who added: "I really hope they can do it."

Soth said the proposal had the potential to make Preah Vihear as popular a tourist attraction as Siem Reap, the gateway to Angkor Wat.

Cambodian officials hope the temple will be listed this year as a World Heritage Site, further raising its profile.

But efforts to secure this designation have been bogged down in a dispute with Thailand over ownership of the surrounding land.

Soth said the company had considerable experience in cable car projects, having built six in Vietnam. "So they could do it here," he said.

Preah Vihear province deputy governor Long Sovann said he welcomed any project that would help to increase the number of tourists visiting the temple.

He said challenging road conditions limited the number of tourists visiting the temple to between 60 and 100 a day during the rainy season and up to 200 a day during the high season.

Minister of Tourism Thong Khon said a study would have to be undertaken to assess the suitability of the proposal by Skil Infrastructure, which also wanted to invest in Kampong Chhnang Airport.

Khon said 110,000 tourists visited the heritage site last year, and the figure was expected to rise once road access to the area was improved.

Prime Minister Hun Sen last month inaugurated a project to build a 118-kilometer road linking Preah Vihear's provincial capital T'beng Meanchey with the temple.

Work on the road project is due to start late this year and be completed within 45 months.

It will bring to three the number of roads providing access to the temple, with two in Cambodia, from Siem Reap and Kampong Thom, and the other in Thailand.

Skil Infrastructure's website says it specializes in building transport infrastructure and special economic zones.
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1840&Itemid=52

[Yappofloyd]

Historical temple site, cable cars, oil & gas and potential casino deals....what a mix!

Thaksin 'wants to open Koh Kong casino' - Cambodia confident of end to Preah Vihear row JAKKRIT WAEWKRAIHONG & THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bkk Post 15/05/08

Thaksin Shinawatra is interested in developing another casino and entertainment complex in the Cambodian province of Koh Kong, Cambodian Defence Minister Teah Banh said yesterday. Gen Teah Banh, who also is a deputy prime minister with close links to Thai generals, also expressed confidence about a peaceful solution to the dispute over the push by Phnom Penh to register Preah Vihear as a World Heritage Site.

The Cambodian minister said in Koh Kong, opposite Trat, that talks about Mr Thaksin's plan were still unofficial. ''Prime Minister Hun Sen trusted and wanted Mr Thaksin to advise on developing Koh Kong as a special economic zone,'' the general said. Koh Kong now has a casino complex operated by Koh Kong International, a firm owned by Pat Supapa, a senator representing the province and former governor.

The general maintained that the deadlock with Thailand over the Preah Vihear issue could be resolved and would not explode and compromise bilateral ties. Gen Teah Banh was speaking as he joined Hun Sen and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An in opening Road 48 and four new bridges. The road was built with one billion baht in financial assistance from Thailand. The Thai side was led by Deputy Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat and Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama.

The road facilitates the transport of goods from Cambodia to Laem Chabang port in Chon Buri through Trat. Mr Noppadon held talks with Mr Sok An at the temple ruins on the border of Si Sa Ket and Preah Vihear province. Mr Noppadon hoped that the Cambodian government would agree to develop a joint management plan with Thailand on Preah Vihear with a solution reached within two weeks.

The obstacle to Cambodia's attempt to register Preah Vihear as a World Heritage Site is the overlapping area around the temple, which has not been demarcated. Mr Noppadon said that the talks on Preah Vihear are separate from negotiations to resolve the overlapping maritime boundary covering 26,000 sq km in the Gulf of Thailand, and there would be no trade-off.

The two countries have submitted different proposals on how to share the benefits from the overlapping maritime area believed to be rich in oil and natural gas. Thailand and Cambodia signed a memorandum of understanding in 2001 to start negotiations over the overlapping area. But talks were stalled after the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh was burned down by rioters in 2003.

[Yappofloyd]

Taksin wanted to swap longans for locos so a casino concession for a bit of disputed land makes sense esp. given the way deals get done in Cambodia.

PREAH VIHEAR Koh Kong deal 'not linked' WASSANA NANUAM Bkk Post 16/05/08

Thaksin Shinawatra's planned development on Cambodia's Koh Kong is not linked to negotiations over the disputed area around Preah Vihear, former deputy army chief Gen Vichit Yathip said. Gen Vichit conceded he arranged a recent game of golf between Mr Thaksin and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and said the two men discussed building a casino and entertainment complex on the Cambodian island. It would be a joint investment between Mr Thaksin and businessmen in the Middle East. A prospective investor was Harrods owner, Mohamed al-Fayed.

He denied reports the planned development was a trade-off for a compromise on disputed land around Preah Vihear temple. Speculation of a trade-off intensified after Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama, formerly Mr Thaksin's lawyer, suddenly transferred Virachai Plasai, chief of the Treaties and Legal Affairs Department and a negotiator on the Preah Vihear issue, to an inactive post.

[Yappofloyd]

Noppadon rejects claims of concession on temple The Nation Published on May 16, 2008

The opposition yesterday grilled Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama over whether the government had made a deal with Phnom Penh on overlapping territories in order to resolve the Preah Vihear temple dispute.

Democrat Sukhumbhand Paribatra quoted Cambodian Commerce Minister Cham Prasidh as saying in the Cambodia Daily that Thailand had linked negotiations on territorial waters with the disputed temple."What the Cambodian minister said contradicts Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, who said there is no linkage between the two issues, so why does the ministry not protest to the Cambodians over the allegation?" he said.
Sukhumbhand did not indicate how the two issues were linked.

News commentators have accused the government of trading off land below the temple for an oil and gas concession for former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra."There is a huge interest in the overlapping area. The Foreign Ministry should handle the case with care, and not allow any private investors to get involved," said Sukhumbhand, a former deputy foreign minister. Noppadon said nobody in his government could exchange the Preah Vihear land for an oil and gas concession in the overlapping maritime area.

Preah Vihear came before the International Court of Justice in 1962. It ruled the temple belonged to Cambodia. The dispute was rekindled last year when Phnom Penh sought listing for the Hindu temple as a world heritage. Thailand opposed the proposal as Cambodia had annexed the surrounding land over which Thailand claims sovereignty."Negotiations are still going on and the two sides should be able to reach common ground within two weeks," Noppadon said.

Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister Sok An, who is in charge of the matter, will dispatch experts to wrap up the issue with Thai officials next week. Preah Vihear and the maritime boundary are completely separate issues and could not be linked, Noppadon said.

[Yappofloyd]

New Khmer map on disputed temple-Noppadon says it will help break deadlock THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL Bkk Post 08/06/08

The long-running dispute over Preah Vihear temple between Thailand and Cambodia is likely to be settled based on a new border map developed by Phnom Penh, according to Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama. The map, received on Thursday, a day before the two neighbouring countries' agreed deadline, was initially seen to indicate that only the temple, without its surrounding areas, was to be registered as a World Heritage Site, the minister said.

Bangkok and Phnom Penh agreed in Paris late last month, during a Unesco-brokered meeting, to develop a new map and Cambodia would send it to Thailand by June 6. The new map has helped break the deadlock over the disputed land at the ancient temple site, locally known as Khao Phra Viharn, and Cambodia would now propose the temple as a World Heritage Site early next month in Canada, said Mr Noppadon.

Mr Noppadon assured that Thailand will not lose an inch of its territory under the new map developed by the Cambodian side. Under the redrawn map, Cambodia has proposed that the Preah Vihear temple, which is on its side, and only 30 metres of the adjacent areas of the temple be put up for listing.

Cambodia's previous proposal to Unesco _ the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation _ also included disputed land on the 4.6-square-kilometre border between Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district and Preah Vihear province as areas to be listed under the World Heritage Site. ''To make sure that there is no area that overlaps Thai territory, I have asked the Royal Thai Survey Department to inspect the area again with the use of the highly accurate GPS system. It would take just three days to do it,'' said Mr Noppadon in a phone interview from Germany.

He said he discussed the map by phone with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Sok An and instructed senior officers of the East Asian Treaties and Legal Affairs departments as well as the military's Royal Thai Survey Department to go to Siem Reap to receive the map from Cambodia on Thursday. After being properly checked, the map will be forwarded to the National Security Council, which is expected to hold a meeting on Monday, and then tabled before the cabinet for endorsement on Tuesday.

Mr Noppadon said he would try to give the Phnom Penh government a reply on the matter before June 15, when the Cambodian government is required to table the map before the World Heritage Site Committee, comprising members from 21 countries, in Canada. Mr Noppadon also plans to attend the July 2 meeting in Quebec. ''We have reached a stage where both sides can break the deadlock without losing any territory, and this case will set a good precedent for other negotiations between the two countries in the future,'' he said.

The new map will only be made public after its submission by Cambodia to the World Heritage Site Committee, he said. However, the two countries have still to strike a deal on how they would jointly run the disputed areas, said Mr Noppadon.

[Yappofloyd]

Wat a controversy! - By Post Reporters Bkk Post 10/06/08
The Democrat party has urged the government not to rush to support Cambodia's attempt to register Preah Vihear temple as a new World Heritage Site.Democrat deputy leader Alongkorn Ponlaboot said on Sunday that the government should think carefully before backing the Cambodian effort.

He was speaking after Phnom Penh redrew the boundaries of the ancient temple site to convince the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) that it now deserved to be put on the World Heritage list. The old map, which was opposed by Thailand, included overlapping areas.

Mr Alongkorn said that by supporting Cambodia on the issue, Thailand would automatically lose its right to reclaim sovereignty over Preah Vihear in the future. On June 15, 1962, the International Court of Justice ruled the ancient temple belonged to Cambodia. Mr Alongkorn said the ruling was unfair and not based on law.

The Treaty of Versailles stipulated later that the demarcation of the disputed areas was questionable, and that was why Thailand wrote to the United Nations secretary-general on July 3, 1962, saying it reserves the right to reclaim the ancient temple in the future, he said. "The present government has no right to either sell or reclaim Thai sovereignty in this case. Next week, I hope, the National Security Council (NSC) and cabinet will review the issue. Otherwise, it would be a shame and tantamount to betraying the nation and selling Thai sovereignty to another country," Mr Alongkorn said.

He suspects vested interests are behind the move to support Cambodia on the listing. Mr Alongkorn suggested the government oppose the listing and ask Unesco's World Heritage Committee to drop the issue from the agenda of its July 2-10 meeting in Quebec. The new Cambodian map will be discussed at the NSC's weekly meeting today. If the NSC approves the map, cabinet is likely to endorse the map tomorrow.

[Yappofloyd]

PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE Two countries close to agreeing on map
THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL & WASSANA NANUAM Bkk Post 11/06/08

Thailand and Cambodia will meet again to revise the map of Preah Vihear temple to be used in the listing of the ancient ruins as a World Heritage site. Foreign Ministry spokesman Tharit Charungwat said further talks between Thai and Cambodian officials are needed because the Cambodian map of the area covering the Hindu temple is slightly different from the border map used by Thailand. Mr Tharit said the Royal Thai Survey Department will visit the site, on the border between Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district and Preah Vihear province of Cambodia, to verify the map before the ministry schedules a meeting with Phnom Penh.

He gave an assurance Thailand would not lose any land as a result of Cambodia's listing of the Preah Vihear temple as a Unesco World Heritage site. The map will be a key document when Cambodia presents its case to experts of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) at talks next month in Quebec. The Cambodian plan needs Thailand's support.

Security sources said on Monday Thailand wants to ensure the area identified on the map as Preah Vihear temple, known as Khao Phra Viharn in Thailand, does not include land which has not yet been demarcated by the two countries. Supreme Commander Gen Boonsrang Niempradit was confident of settling the issue amicably and believed Cambodia had no intention of including unmarked border areas in the temple map.

Mr Tharit said Thailand cannot petition to have the temple returned to its sovereignty as the World Court decided in 1962 to give it to Cambodia following a court battle between Bangkok and Phnom Penh. ''If we wanted to reclaim it, we should have made the claim within 10 years from the World Court 's verdict,'' he said. ''But 46 years have already passed''.

[Yappofloyd]

No suprises here in the response from the Armed Forces - "We cannot lose a single square inch".
PREAH VIHEAR TEMPLE ROW - Army says new map wrong WASSANA NANUAM 12/06/08
The army has found Cambodia's new map of the Preah Vihear temple encroaches on Thai territory at two critical areas, an army source said yesterday.

In the map to be used in the listing of the ancient ruins as a World Heritage site, the border line at Bandai Naga (Naga-sided stairways), the entrance to the Hindu temple on the Thai side in Si Sa Ket province, apparently encroaches upon Thai territory about 10 metres.

The border line at the Bandai Hak (collapsed stairways) mountain pass is up to two metres into Thailand. ''The Foreign Ministry, the Fine Arts Department and the army's border affairs department are urgently negotiating with Cambodia. We cannot lose a single square inch,'' the source said. This is not the first attempt by Cambodia to try to claim Thai areas of the ancient ruins, said the source.

The map will be a key document when Cambodia presents its case to experts of Unesco at talks next month in Quebec. The Cambodian plan needs Thailand's support. The map was redrawn and handed to Thailand last Thursday following an agreement between the two countries to do so during a Unesco-brokered meeting in Paris late last month.

[GWR]

Is that the two meters that the bored sentries on both sides use as a garbage heap for their beer cans, whiskey bottles and Lipo bottles?

[Yappofloyd]

Is that the two meters that the bored sentries on both sides use as a garbage heap for their beer cans, whiskey bottles and Lipo bottles? Well underworked armies do have to defend their playgrounds...

Army told to be quiet over temple row - Noppadon doesn't want ties with Cambodia hurt; THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL & WASSANA NANUAM Bkk Post 14/06/08
Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama has asked the supreme commander to order military officers who have no authority to refrain from giving interviews about the disputed Preah Vihear temple. The move came after an army source complained to the media on Thursday that a new Cambodian map of the Preah Vihear temple was found to encroach on Thai territory by up to 10 metres in two critical areas.

Mr Noppadon said he had asked the ministry's permanent secretary Virasakdi Futrakul to talk with Supreme Commander Gen Boonsrang Niempradit and insist his subordinates not give interviews about sensitive state issues. ''Just think about who will benefit from this. Don't hide by identifying yourself as 'a source'. I don't want ill-intentioned people to derail this smooth-running train,'' said Mr Noppadon.

He warned those who have no authority to give interviews to refrain from saying anything that could affect Thailand's relations with Cambodia. ''I have the authority to speak about this issue, so let me speak alone. If anybody dares to give interviews, please use your real name. I will let the defence minister warn him,'' said Mr Noppadon.

He also advised people not to arouse nationalistic sentiment and not to let politics damage national benefits. He was referring to the protest by residents of Si Sa Ket province over the listing of the Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site and about Cambodians building houses and shops beyond Cambodia's border with Thailand. Mr Noppadon said the issues will be resolved step by step. He noted that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and his deputy Sok An were cooperating with Thailand on the temple issue. The Foreign Ministry will submit the new map to the National Security Council (NSC) and the cabinet to endorse next week, said the minister.

He said all problems about the new map have been resolved now that Thai agencies have verified the map against the actual site. ''I have already discussed this issue with the Cambodian side and I will not do anything on which I can be attacked later,'' said Mr Noppadon. Cambodia handed the new map to Thailand on June 5 for consideration after both countries agreed in Paris late last month at a Unesco-brokered meeting to draw up the new map. The Phnom Penh government plans to submit the map to the Unesco committee later this month to propose the temple ruins as a World Heritage Site.

The Unesco committee will meet early next month in Quebec, Canada. Foreign Ministry spokesman Tarit Charungwat said everything had been done openly. ''The government has acted with full transparency, using the principle of national sovereignty as the guiding force,'' he said. ''When the work has been done in accordance with the proper process, we can explain it accurately,'' he said.

Gen Boonsrang yesterday admitted that Mr Noppadon had called him to request the military not grant any interviews about Preah Vihear. ''He told me the military should not give any interviews related to the Preah Vihear temple as the issue is now being handled by the Foreign Ministry. ''If an interview is given, it may cause some trouble. The Foreign Ministry will hold talks with Cambodia over the issue,'' said Gen Boonsrang. He has already instructed his subordinates to hold their tongues. Gen Boonsrang said the Foreign Ministry, which is the key negotiator, must take the ultimate responsibility.

[Yappofloyd]

One of the obvious consequences of raising the nationalistic based rhectoric. I suspect that there may be some 'biffo' on the way given the disposition of some to create violence by exploiting illusionary nationlistic anxieties.

PREAH VIHEAR: Locals want vendors off temple steps - SANOH WORARAK Bkk Post 16/06/08 SI SA KET : Local people are demanding the eviction of Cambodian souvenir vendors from the stairway leading to the ancient ruins of Preah Vihear temple.

Sanong Huaychan, chief of Kantharalak district which borders the temple, said the Cambodian vendors' stalls are on both sides of the stairway leading up to the ruins. Although the temple is on Cambodian territory, the steps begin in Thailand. Local people will press the authorities to drive the vendors out, he said. The eviction issue was raised at a meeting in Si Sa Ket yesterday attended by local officials, historians and senior monks. The forum was entitled ''Preah Vihear becoming a World Heritage Site: What's in it for Si Sa Ket?''

The meeting was told that Thais built the souvenir kiosks, but they were taken over by Cambodians after Preah Vihear was given to Cambodia by a World Court ruling in 1962. Some of the forum participants insisted a local movement was needed to safeguard ''national treasures''. Speakers rebuked Foreign Affairs Minister Noppadon Pattama for saying that some people were going overboard with their nationalistic bravado.

The minister said he did not want ill-intentioned people derailing ''this smooth-running train'', a reference to the ongoing Thai-Cambodian negotiations over the demarcation of Preah Vihear. In the map to be used for the listing of the ancient ruins as a World Heritage Site, the border line at Bandai Naga (Naga-lined stairways), the entrance to the Hindu temple in Si Sa Ket province, apparently encroaches upon Thai territory by about 10 metres.

Speakers at the forum heatedly discounted Mr Noppadon's statement that the Cambodian vendors have been selling souvenirs at their present site from the beginning. The National Security Council (NSC) will meet today to examine Cambodia's map of Preah Vihear, which Phnom Penh hopes to use for the World Heritage application. The NSC will decide if the map should be rejected.

[Wisarut]

Now, Professors form Thai Studies Institute, Thammasart U. have pointed out that PPP governemtn are willign to give away the disputed land aroudn Khao Phrawihardn as the exchange for Oil concession ... while Ai Nopphadol is lying the priblic to protect hsi boss's interests.

http://www.manager.co.th/QOL/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071551

[Yappofloyd]

I'm ot sure why the PAD wants to get involved in this issue givne the more important issues they are campaigning on...seemingly a bit populist.

WORLD HERITAGE LISTING NSC accepts Preah Vihear map POST REPORTERS and dpa Bkk Post 17/06/08
The National Security Council (NSC) yesterday endorsed the new map of Preah Vihear temple, paving the way for a final decision from the cabinet today. The security agency agreed the disputed and undemarcated 4.6-square-kilometre area was not included on the map, Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said. Experts from the Royal Thai Survey Department earlier went to the temple area to verify the map Cambodia is using to support its application that the ruins be registered as a World Heritage site.

Preah Vihear temple is in Cambodia, on the border adjoining Kantharalak district in Si Sa Ket province. If the Thai cabinet finds the map acceptable, Cambodia will forward all the documents, including the map and the joint statement, to the 21-nation World Heritage Committee, which will meet in Quebec from July 2 to decide which of the new proposed sites should be included on the World Heritage List. Unesco says Thailand's backing is necessary if Preah Vihear is to be listed.

A government source said the NSC meeting was concerned the issue would be politicised, which could lead to conflict between the two countries ahead of the July 27 general election in Cambodia. Mr Noppadon had earlier demanded soldiers and other officials in charge of considering the new map to stop commenting on the sensitive issue. But academics remained sceptical about negotiations between the Thai and Cambodian governments.

Senator M.R. Priyanandana Rangsit suggested at a seminar on the issue that the Thai government should protest against Cambodia's attempt to register the Preah Vihear temple, or at least defer any decision on it, for fear that it would absorb the overlapping territory in the future. M.L. Walwipha Charoonroj, of the Thai Khadi Research Institute, suspects the rush and collaboration of politicians from both sides might have something to do with personal gain. Foreign affairs permanent secretary Virasakdi Futrakul said the Foreign Ministry has been assured by experts of various agencies that Thailand would not lose any territory to Cambodia under the new map.

Cabinet assent for map of Preah Vihear - Way now clear for World Heritage listing POST REPORTERS Bkk Post 18/06/08
The cabinet yesterday approved the new map of Prasart Preah Vihear, clearing the way for Cambodia to propose the temple to Unesco as a World Heritage site.

Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said the main point of concern to the cabinet was whether the map would affect the disputed area of 4.6 square kilometres on the border near the site. The minister said that land, which has not been demarcated, was excluded from the new map and Thailand did not lose any sovereignty. ''The Foreign Ministry should get flowers instead of bricks for handling the issue,'' he said.

Mr Noppadon, who has come under severe criticism for his handling of the issue, said the map will be made public within days. Earlier, the minister said the map would be made public only after Unesco approved the temple as a World Heritage site.

Members of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) yesterday rallied at the ministry and announced they would return today to demand Mr Noppadon clarify the Preah Vihear temple's borders, saying the public still held suspicions of conflicts of interests. Mr Noppadon denied any hidden agenda in dealing with the issue. Phnom Penh will propose Preah Vihear, called Khao Phra Viharn in Thai, to the meeting of Unesco's World Heritage Committee which begins in Quebec on July 2.

It needs backing from Thailand, which will be reflected in their joint statement. The disputed border area will be left for the two countries to settle, Mr Noppadon said. Navy chief Adm Sathirapan Keyanont said the new map, drawn by Cambodia, was acceptable as it reached only 20-30 metres from the Preah Vihear temple and did not encroach on the disputed area.

Cabinet approval came after the National Security Council endorsed the revised map on Monday. The army has called for the ministry to hold talks with Cambodia about clearing away shops and houses of Cambodians that have been in the disputed area for eight years, an army source said. ''The Foreign Ministry should tell Cambodia to remove all those structures before the World Heritage listing,'' said the source.

The Senate committee on foreign affairs is about to officially ask the ministry and Unesco to delay World Heritage consideration of the ancient temple. Senator M.R. Preeyanantana Rangsit said that under Article 190 of the constitution the government must seek approval from parliament before supporting any agreement that could affect Thai territory.

[Wisarut]

I'm ot sure why the PAD wants to get involved in this issue givne the more important issues they are campaigning on...seemingly a bit populist.

WORLD HERITAGE LISTING NSC accepts Preah Vihear map POST REPORTERS and dpa Bkk Post 17/06/08
The National Security Council (NSC) yesterday endorsed the new map of Preah Vihear temple, paving the way for a final decision from the cabinet today. The security agency agreed the disputed and undemarcated 4.6-square-kilometre area was not included on the map, Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said. Experts from the Royal Thai Survey Department earlier went to the temple area to verify the map Cambodia is using to support its application that the ruins be registered as a World Heritage site.

Preah Vihear temple is in Cambodia, on the border adjoining Kantharalak district in Si Sa Ket province. If the Thai cabinet finds the map acceptable, Cambodia will forward all the documents, including the map and the joint statement, to the 21-nation World Heritage Committee, which will meet in Quebec from July 2 to decide which of the new proposed sites should be included on the World Heritage List. Unesco says Thailand's backing is necessary if Preah Vihear is to be listed.

A government source said the NSC meeting was concerned the issue would be politicised, which could lead to conflict between the two countries ahead of the July 27 general election in Cambodia. Mr Noppadon had earlier demanded soldiers and other officials in charge of considering the new map to stop commenting on the sensitive issue. But academics remained sceptical about negotiations between the Thai and Cambodian governments.

Senator M.R. Priyanandana Rangsit suggested at a seminar on the issue that the Thai government should protest against Cambodia's attempt to register the Preah Vihear temple, or at least defer any decision on it, for fear that it would absorb the overlapping territory in the future. M.L. Walwipha Charoonroj, of the Thai Khadi Research Institute, suspects the rush and collaboration of politicians from both sides might have something to do with personal gain. Foreign affairs permanent secretary Virasakdi Futrakul said the Foreign Ministry has been assured by experts of various agencies that Thailand would not lose any territory to Cambodia under the new map.

Cabinet assent for map of Preah Vihear - Way now clear for World Heritage listing POST REPORTERS Bkk Post 18/06/08
The cabinet yesterday approved the new map of Prasart Preah Vihear, clearing the way for Cambodia to propose the temple to Unesco as a World Heritage site.

Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama said the main point of concern to the cabinet was whether the map would affect the disputed area of 4.6 square kilometres on the border near the site. The minister said that land, which has not been demarcated, was excluded from the new map and Thailand did not lose any sovereignty. ''The Foreign Ministry should get flowers instead of bricks for handling the issue,'' he said.

Mr Noppadon, who has come under severe criticism for his handling of the issue, said the map will be made public within days. Earlier, the minister said the map would be made public only after Unesco approved the temple as a World Heritage site.

Members of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) yesterday rallied at the ministry and announced they would return today to demand Mr Noppadon clarify the Preah Vihear temple's borders, saying the public still held suspicions of conflicts of interests. Mr Noppadon denied any hidden agenda in dealing with the issue. Phnom Penh will propose Preah Vihear, called Khao Phra Viharn in Thai, to the meeting of Unesco's World Heritage Committee which begins in Quebec on July 2.

It needs backing from Thailand, which will be reflected in their joint statement. The disputed border area will be left for the two countries to settle, Mr Noppadon said. Navy chief Adm Sathirapan Keyanont said the new map, drawn by Cambodia, was acceptable as it reached only 20-30 metres from the Preah Vihear temple and did not encroach on the disputed area.

Cabinet approval came after the National Security Council endorsed the revised map on Monday. The army has called for the ministry to hold talks with Cambodia about clearing away shops and houses of Cambodians that have been in the disputed area for eight years, an army source said. ''The Foreign Ministry should tell Cambodia to remove all those structures before the World Heritage listing,'' said the source.

The Senate committee on foreign affairs is about to officially ask the ministry and Unesco to delay World Heritage consideration of the ancient temple. Senator M.R. Preeyanantana Rangsit said that under Article 190 of the constitution the government must seek approval from parliament before supporting any agreement that could affect Thai territory.


The problem is NOT Khao Phrawiharn itself, the proble, is on the disputed area along Thai - cambodia broder esp at Khao Phrawiharn since Cambodian have illegally made a settlemment on the disputed areas alogn the borders ..
and the Encraochment also nearly grab Sri Phen road Aranyaprathet - Ta Phraya district of Sra kaew as well ...

This boundary dispute is just like pus that has not been under propered tratment ... but it is have been speed up to full blow rot ...

[GWR]

Map that Foreign Minister Noppadol Pattama used in his media briefing yesterday. Also Frontpage today:

http://www.2bangkok.com

http://www.2bangkok.com/08/map01.jpg
[Photo: Komchadluek]

http://nationmultimedia.com/2008/06/19/p1news/images/30075932-01.jpg
[Photo: The Nation - Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama, above, shows the Preah Vihear Temple map Cambodia will submit to Unesco in its World Heritage application.]

Noppadon: No lost sovereignty on new temple map

(BangkokPost.com) - Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama held a press conference Wednesday, saying that the government's approval of the new map of Preah Vihear that allows Cambodia to propose the temple to Unesco as a World Heritage site does not include the disputed area near the site.

Mr Noppadon insisted that the 4.6 square kilometres of land, which has not been demarcated, was excluded from the new map and that Thailand did not lose any sovereignty.

The new map was drawn by Cambodia.

Cambodia needs backing from Thailand in order to propose the temple to the meeting of Unesco's World Heritage Committee which begins in Quebec on July 2.

He insisted that the government is not benefited from the approval, nor does ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra. He, however, admitted that Mr Thaksin has a good relationship with Cambodian prime minister.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=128315

Not one square centimetre

BangkokPost.com, Agencies
Several thousand protesters from the People's Alliance for Democracy gathered at the foreign ministry on Wednesday to accuse minister Noppadon Pattama and his old boss Thaksin Shinawatra with yielding land around the Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia.

An estimated 5,000 PAD protesters gathered in front of the ministry. They accused Mr Noppadon of trading the temple land for business concessions, and carried signs blaming Mr Thaksin.

The Preah Vihear temple, dating back to the 11th century, has been the subject of a boundary dispute since the 1950s. The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the cliffside temple was within Cambodian territory.

Accusing the government of corruption and abuse of power, demonstrators have been holding sometimes violent protests since May 25 to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej and his coalition government.

The protesters say Mr Samak is merely acting as a proxy for Mr Thaksin.

The political discord heightened Wednesday after opposition Democrat Party lawmakers lodged a no-confidence motion against Mr Samak and seven other Cabinet members over alleged conflict of interest and mismanagement.

The Preah Vihear temple issue resurfaced as Cambodia was preparing to apply to Unesco for the temple to be listed as a World Heritage Site, a process that requires the inclusion of a map.

PAD core founder Sondhi Limthongkul alleged that Mr Noppadon gave up some territory near the temple in exchange for his "boss" - Mr Thaksin - getting concessions to develop a casino complex on Cambodia's Koh Kong island.

Mr Noppadon served as Mr Thaksin's lawyer and continues to have close ties with him.

Waving Thai flags, the protesters held up placards reading, "Thailand is not for sale", and "Bandit government sold Thai soil to Cambodia." Mr Noppadon denied the allegations.

"The minister of foreign affairs deserves flowers instead of brickbats," Mr Noppadon said, adding that "not a single square centimetre" of Thai soil was lost during recent negotiations with Cambodia.

He said Cambodia had drawn up two maps, one of the temple and the other of the adjacent area.

Mr Noppadon said the Cambodians will present only the temple map in their upcoming request to Unesco. The second map, which includes the disputed boundary, will not be an issue and thus Thailand has not yielded any territory, he said.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/topstories.php?id=128314

Compare with maps in a post on April 26 from http://ki-media.blogspot.com/

http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=20816&postcount=26

Khmer Lands Lost to Thailand Near Preah Vihear Temple
Friday, April 25, 2008
Originally posted by Khmerization
On the web at http://khmerization.blogspot.com

http://bp0.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKygjTKg7I/AAAAAAAAERE/d1KzF1m-K6A/s400/preah_vihear_map_USA_1-250,000+02.jpg
1954 US Army Map
Click to zoom in:
http://bp0.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKygjTKg7I/AAAAAAAAERE/d1KzF1m-K6A/s1600-h/preah_vihear_map_USA_1-250,000+02.jpg

http://bp3.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKvKTTKg6I/AAAAAAAAEQ8/wFIvmM9VEaM/s400/preah_vihear_khmer_land_lost_Google_map_2008.jpg
Google Aerial Map
Click to zoom in:
http://bp3.blogger.com/_76xUgRgjZYM/SBKvKTTKg6I/AAAAAAAAEQ8/wFIvmM9VEaM/s1600-h/preah_vihear_khmer_land_lost_Google_map_2008.jpg
Dear Compatriots,
These are the maps showing the areas around the Preah Vihear Temple. I received these maps from Mr. Thhai Makarar. This is a personal view of Mr. Thhai Makarar, but Khmerization found his personal view to be very relevant and consistent with the established views that the areas around Preah Vihear site had been encroached significantly by Thailand.

The map on the bottom is a Google aerial map of Cambodia in 2008 showing the borderlines as drawn by the U.S Army in 1954 superposed on top of the borderlines indicated by Google in 2008 between Cambodia and Thailand. The 1954 U.S Map clearly shows that Cambodia's borderlines were deep inside Thailand but in 2008 the borderlines were pushed deep inside Cambodia. This means that Thailand had encroached significantly around the Preah Vihear site deep inside Cambodia's territories. The top map is the U.S Army map, drawn in 1954. Please read the maps and judge for yourself.

I wish to thank Thhai Makarar for these maps. Mr. Thhai, if you have anything you want me to publish in my blog please don't hesitate to send them to me. I will be happy to publish them all here.

See also this larger scale map. I believe FM Noppadol pattama also used this map in his spiel:

http://www.matichon.co.th/htmleditcode/upload/pages/images4/Temble-01.jpg

http://www.matichon.co.th/news_detail.php?id=36676

Here's also a Zoom of that map:
http://www.matichon.co.th/picture_news.php?pic=18-06-08-20-56-18

[Wisarut]

Now, the local people fop Sisaket felt OUTRAGED on Ai Nopphadol who are willign to please his boss by giving away the disputed land to Cambodia
... They are starting the protest as the response ... and the attempt to ask for reconcilation between PAD and PP is out of question since it has already reqch the point where the very existing of Thailand is at stake.

http://www.manager.co.th/Local/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071830

Look! How AI Nopphadfol givign away the land of Thailand to Cambodia!
http://www.manager.co.th/IndoChina/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071917

Now Sonthi Limthongkul is askign Thai citizens of all ethnics to unite into ONE to bexoem Serithai to fight AGAISNT PPP who are sellign out coutnry to please theri bosses.

http://www.manager.co.th/Politics/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071866

[GWR]

Map that Foreign Minister Noppadol Pattama used in his media briefing yesterday. Also Frontpage today:
http://www.2bangkok.com
http://www.2bangkok.com/08/map01.jpg
[Photo: Komchadluek]
http://nationmultimedia.com/2008/06/19/p1news/images/30075932-01.jpg
[Photo: The Nation - Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama, above, shows the Preah Vihear Temple map Cambodia will submit to Unesco in its World Heritage application.]
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=128315
http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/topstories.php?id=128314
Compare with maps in a post on April 26 from http://ki-media.blogspot.com/
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=20816&postcount=26
See also this larger scale map. I believe FM Noppadol Pattama also used this map in his spiel:
http://www.matichon.co.th/htmleditcode/upload/pages/images4/Temble-01.jpg
http://www.matichon.co.th/news_detail.php?id=36676
Here's also a Zoom of that map:
http://www.matichon.co.th/picture_news.php?pic=18-06-08-20-56-18


Preah Vihear Map and border shown by Thailand FM

http://bp3.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFnNbhrimzI/AAAAAAAAF1Q/iZgCQhx5M8M/s400/Preah+Vihear+Map+by+Thailand.jpg
[Map: Thailand Foreign Ministry]
Zoom:
http://bp3.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFnNbhrimzI/AAAAAAAAF1Q/iZgCQhx5M8M/s1600-h/Preah+Vihear+Map+by+Thailand.jpg

Dear KI-Media reader,

If you are versed in Thai, please help translate the legend at the bottom right of the map, and post the translation as a comment. We would really appreciate it very much!

Thank you,

KI-Media Team
Non-specific link:
http://ki-media.blogspot.com/

Proof that FM Noppadol also used the larger-scale map at yesterday's media briefing:

http://bp0.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFnMoN3VREI/AAAAAAAAF1I/U1MhMh1CtYs/s400/Noppadon+Pattam+-+Preah+Vihear+map+%28Thai+FM%29.jpg
[Photo: Thailand Foreign Ministry - Noppadon Pattama, Thai FM, showing the map of Preah Vihear.]

[GWR]

See last 6 posts over the last two days for numerous other map images

Annotated maps of Preah Vihear provided by Mr. Bora Touch, Esq.

(...), I wish to clarify a bit more on the Preah Vihear temple maps I posted earlier, esp. for those who do not read Thai (the handwriting on the two maps). There are 4 maps I re-attach here. The writings in blue are my additions to help explain different boundary lines and disputed area (in green) claimed by Thailand.:

http://bp0.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFihhgZ0lwI/AAAAAAAAFzE/2Ee6OEo0Wi8/s400/Preah+Vihear+A+Disputed+area.jpg
[All Images: KI Media]
Map I marked "A" is a official Thai map of 1:10,000 scale;

http://bp3.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFihhjd_-SI/AAAAAAAAFzM/uBbSsn3CDsI/s400/Preah+Vihear+Disputed+B.jpg
Map I marked "B" is French-Siamese Commission map made in 1907 (scale 1:200,000) which has handwritings in Thai.
Zoom:
http://bp3.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFihhjd_-SI/AAAAAAAAFzM/uBbSsn3CDsI/s1600-h/Preah+Vihear+Disputed+B.jpg

http://bp3.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFihh-4uRHI/AAAAAAAAFzU/gOzqrDSLYrs/s400/Preah+Vihear+Map+3.jpg
Map marked "3" is my extract from the Aide Memoire of the Royal Government 1962 (scale 1:6,000);
Zoom:
http://bp3.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFihh-4uRHI/AAAAAAAAFzU/gOzqrDSLYrs/s1600-h/Preah+Vihear+Map+3.jpg

http://bp1.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFihh9XQRsI/AAAAAAAAFzc/pse09OwLAWA/s400/Preah+Vihear+Map+1907+4A1.jpg
Map marked "4" is the French-Siamese Commission 1907 (scale: 1:200,000), my extract from the International Court of Justice Report 1962.
Zoom:
http://bp1.blogger.com/_8up7h6T0Kzc/SFihh9XQRsI/AAAAAAAAFzc/pse09OwLAWA/s1600-h/Preah+Vihear+Map+1907+4A1.jpg

Map "A" and "B" are Thai internal working documents.

As you will see, the Thai understanding of where the boundary line lies is different totally from the one drawn by the French-Siamese Commission in 1907 and confirmed by the International Court of Justice in 1962. Clearly, the Thai claim in 1962 and now bases on no legal justification. The Thai and Khmer public must know this.

As far as the current Thai claim and Thailand's official Statement of 25 March 2008 are concerned, the statement made by H.E. Var Kim Hong of the Royal Government of Cambodia in 2005, that Thailand recognises the boundary line drawn by the French-Siamese Commission 1904, 1907, may have been too optimistic, if not misleading.

Regards,
Bora Touch
Non-specific link:
http://ki-media.blogspot.com/

[Wisarut]

Darma yatra by Local people of Sisaket to get the disputed area back ... Otherwise, Cambodian Goverenment will calm all the SOuthern Isan, Khorat and Eaastern Seapod - or even BKK as the Cambodian Land! :eek:
http://www.manager.co.th/Local/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000072053

Now, We have learnt that Ai Nopphadol is a bastard of Sisaket who are willign to teade the land of his own ascestor to please his boss. :eek:
http://www.manager.co.th/Local/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071830

Kasit - Pongphol suspect the plan for speed endorsement of disputed land to Cambodia
http://www.manager.co.th/Politics/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071890

Somkiat Phongphaiboon said Nopphadol is tradign Thai Sovereign to please his boss ... and now those Internet Merecenaries are attackign those Pateriotic Thai netters ... with approval from thsoe intellectuals left wings as well as PPP men ... at Ratchadoamnoen room of Patip dot com
http://www.oknation.net/blog/akom/2008/06/18/entry-1
http://www.manager.co.th/Politics/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071891

Prtacha Koonmmee Condemning Ai Nopphadol

http://www.manager.co.th/Politics/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000072007

Momluang Wanwipha pointe out that Thai governemtn are willgi nto trade the land and sea for oil concession of his boss and PTT shareholders
http://www.thaipost.net/index.asp?bk=thaipost&iDate=19/Jun/2551&news_id=160077&cat_id=501
http://www.oknation.net/blog/rivermoon/2008/06/18/entry-3
http://www.manager.co.th/QOL/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071721

Moh Choochai pointout out that the land trading is Violating Thai Constitution which requires the publci hearings and explanation before askign votes from both Houses
http://www.manager.co.th/QOL/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000071740

Big Pok is tryiugn to make a compromise on the land dispute despite of grrownign publci Outrage
http://www.bangkokbiznews.com/2008/06/19/news_268469.php
http://special.bangkokbiznews.com/detail.php?id=2244&username=thot1
http://www.oknation.net/blog/talkwithMetha/2008/06/18/entry-1

AI Nopphadol Sigining the deal on World Heritage of Khao Phrawiharn withotu consent from National Assembly
http://www.matichon.co.th/matichon/matichon_detail.php?s_tag=01p0105190651&day=2008-06-19&sectionid=0101

Ai Nopphadol attacking intellectuals at Thai Studies Institutte as "Jack Axx"
http://thaiinsider.info/portal/content/view/9074/12/

[Wisarut]

Now, even the taxi drivers who used to be alliance of PPP and UDD said

We used to Admired Ai Maew through the money paid by Ai Newin ... However ... after we have seen Ai Nopphadonl (AKA Mr unstable eyeballs) givign away the land to Cambodia for Oil Concession, we would no longer accept Ai maew's Money .... How shameful we are if we still get paid by the one who are willign to sell out Thailand to Foreigners for theri own selfish interests! We have to correct this NOW!

If necessary, Chopping the head of PPP men alogn with Ai maew and Cronies and Ai Samak , Ai Chaloem and pouring the blood from severed heads to wash Hais majesty's feet! After that, put thte severd bodies into rafts and floating them away from the land of Siam because their bodies are unworthy to get cremated on our Motherland!


Now, AI Maew and PPP men are hiring and arming thsoe rescue volunteers to work as thugs to destory PAD. ... 1000 ABht/head.

Furthemore, many people said Army better wear Female clothes sicne they Refuse to Protect the Interest of Thaipeople by allowing Ai maew and Co to Sellout the disputed area to Foreigners
http://www.manager.co.th/Daily/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000072213
http://www.manager.co.th/Politics/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000072150

Now, professors and graduate students of NIDA are protesting against the governemnt plan to give away the land to Cambodia
http://www.manager.co.th/QOL/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000072249

Now, AI Nopphadol is beocme a layer for Cambodian government desptie of the fact that he is Thai minister -> a sure sign of Traitor.
http://www.manager.co.th/Politics/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000072132

[GWR]

Thursday, June 19, 2008
"It looks like Thailand decided to help Mr Hun Sen in the elections": Kraisak Choonhavan, a member of the [Thai] Democrat opposition party

Thailand heads for another political showdown

Jun 19, 2008
DPA

Bangkok - On Friday the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) will march on Government House to force the resignation of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej and his cabinet, who have been running the country for less than six months.

There promises to be thousands of peaceful protestors, long speeches, tents set up opposite Government House to protect people from the monsoo