Aerial view of Preah Vihear temple.By Supalak Ganhanakhundee
The Nation (Thailand)
Publication Date : 30th April, 2011
Cambodia has asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to clarify its 1962 ruling over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear as its military clashes with Thailand continued after a truce.
"The submission of this request has been prompted by Thailand's repeated armed aggression to exert its claims to Cambodian territory, on the basis of its own unilateral map that has no legal basis," said a Cambodian foreign ministry statement issued yesterday (April 29).
The ICJ ruled in 1962 that "the temple of Preah Vihear is situated in territory under sovereignty of Cambodia", but Bangkok argues that the court ruled only that the sandstone ruin belongs to Cambodia while the areas surrounding the Hindu temple belong to Thailand.
The court based its judgement on a French-made 1:200,000-scale map that indicated the boundary line between Siam, as Thailand was then known, and French Indochina.
Thailand argued that the boundary line should follow the watershed of the Phnom Dangrek Mountains in accordance with the 1904 and 1907 Franco-Siamese treaties. The disputed territory is a 4.6-square-kilometre area surrounding Preah Vihear.
Phnom Penh exercised its rights in accordance with Article 60 of the ICJ Statute, which says: "The judgement is final and without appeal. In the event of dispute as to the meaning or scope of the judgement, the Court shall construe it upon the request of any party."
There have been many armed skirmishes in the border area since Cambodia managed to get Preah Vihear listed as a World Heritage Site in 2008, against Thailand's wishes. Bangkok feared Cambodia would turn the disputed areas adjacent to the temple into a buffer zone for management of the property.
Phnom Penh considers the request for ICJ clarification a preventive measure to avoid further armed conflict between the two countries, to stop loss of lives and to preserve the Hindu temple from serious damage.
THai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said his government had anticipated that Cambodia would request an ICJ clarification and that Thailand had organised a legal team to fight in court.
"We don't have a disadvantage in fighting in the world court. We are well prepared in terms of legal aspects and facts," Abhisit said.
The border conflict between the two countries has extended to other areas including near Ta Muan Thom and Ta Kwai temples in Surin province, about 150 kilometres west of Preah Vihear, since last week. The fighting has continued despite military commanders in the area reaching a ceasefire deal on Thursday.
The fresh clash after the truce killed a Thai military ranger and injured five others. Both sides blamed each other for firing first.
Thai Army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha said the clash took place because Cambodian soldiers threw grenades at the Thai side and Thai troops fired small arms to retaliate.
However, Prayuth said he remained hopeful of achieving peace with Cambodia, saying the latest clash might be caused simply by undisciplined soldiers who did not obey their commanders' instructions to cease fire.
A Cambodian commander accused Thai soldiers of firing first. "They began firing artillery shells at our troops at Ta Krabei (Ta Kwai) temple at 4:50am," Suos Sothea, deputy commander of the artillery unit, told Xinhua news agency by telephone from the battlefield yesterday.
"Thai troops may not respect their superiors because on Thursday, their military commander met with our commander and reached a ceasefire, but this morning they still shell us.
"However, we did not fight back, as we are complying with the ceasefire," he said.
Cambodia has asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to clarify its 1962 ruling over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear as its military clashes with Thailand continued after a truce.
"The submission of this request has been prompted by Thailand's repeated armed aggression to exert its claims to Cambodian territory, on the basis of its own unilateral map that has no legal basis," said a Cambodian foreign ministry statement issued yesterday (April 29).
The ICJ ruled in 1962 that "the temple of Preah Vihear is situated in territory under sovereignty of Cambodia", but Bangkok argues that the court ruled only that the sandstone ruin belongs to Cambodia while the areas surrounding the Hindu temple belong to Thailand.
The court based its judgement on a French-made 1:200,000-scale map that indicated the boundary line between Siam, as Thailand was then known, and French Indochina.
Thailand argued that the boundary line should follow the watershed of the Phnom Dangrek Mountains in accordance with the 1904 and 1907 Franco-Siamese treaties. The disputed territory is a 4.6-square-kilometre area surrounding Preah Vihear.
Phnom Penh exercised its rights in accordance with Article 60 of the ICJ Statute, which says: "The judgement is final and without appeal. In the event of dispute as to the meaning or scope of the judgement, the Court shall construe it upon the request of any party."
There have been many armed skirmishes in the border area since Cambodia managed to get Preah Vihear listed as a World Heritage Site in 2008, against Thailand's wishes. Bangkok feared Cambodia would turn the disputed areas adjacent to the temple into a buffer zone for management of the property.
Phnom Penh considers the request for ICJ clarification a preventive measure to avoid further armed conflict between the two countries, to stop loss of lives and to preserve the Hindu temple from serious damage.
THai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said his government had anticipated that Cambodia would request an ICJ clarification and that Thailand had organised a legal team to fight in court.
"We don't have a disadvantage in fighting in the world court. We are well prepared in terms of legal aspects and facts," Abhisit said.
The border conflict between the two countries has extended to other areas including near Ta Muan Thom and Ta Kwai temples in Surin province, about 150 kilometres west of Preah Vihear, since last week. The fighting has continued despite military commanders in the area reaching a ceasefire deal on Thursday.
The fresh clash after the truce killed a Thai military ranger and injured five others. Both sides blamed each other for firing first.
Thai Army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha said the clash took place because Cambodian soldiers threw grenades at the Thai side and Thai troops fired small arms to retaliate.
However, Prayuth said he remained hopeful of achieving peace with Cambodia, saying the latest clash might be caused simply by undisciplined soldiers who did not obey their commanders' instructions to cease fire.
A Cambodian commander accused Thai soldiers of firing first. "They began firing artillery shells at our troops at Ta Krabei (Ta Kwai) temple at 4:50am," Suos Sothea, deputy commander of the artillery unit, told Xinhua news agency by telephone from the battlefield yesterday.
"Thai troops may not respect their superiors because on Thursday, their military commander met with our commander and reached a ceasefire, but this morning they still shell us.
"However, we did not fight back, as we are complying with the ceasefire," he said.
7 comments:
The ICJ ruling "The Siamese Government and later the Thai Government had raised no query about the Annex I map prior to its negotiations with Cambodia in Bangkok in 1958.
From these facts, the court concluded that Thailand had accepted the Annex I map. Even if there were any doubt in this connection, Thailand was not precluded from asserting that she had not accepted it since France and Cambodia had relied upon her acceptance and she had for fifty years enjoyed such benefits as the Treaty of 1904 has conferred on her. Furthermore, the acceptance of the Annex I map caused it to enter the treaty settlement.
The Court therefore felt bound to pronounce in favour of the frontier indicated on the Annex I map in the disputed area and it became unnecessary to consider whether the line as mapped did in fact correspond to the true watershed line.
For these reasons, the Court upheld the submissions of Cambodia concerning sovereignty over Preah Vihear."
If we look at the ICJ ruling what chance Thai have none and is the disgrace to go back contest the ruling I doubt they will hire big team like what they say it just their echo or drum up themselves .
Thai news :
The disgrace Thailand have hire a french lawyer and Thai lawyer to the hearing in Hague they talking big drum themselves up invite their ancestors ghost accompany them to the Hague they really united Khmer don't hope that new Thai government will make life easy for khmer thaksin who ever they don't risk their livelihood for us Thai just like Thai they don't change .
This kind of court case takes about 3 years to finalize. In between the Thais will keep attacking Cambodia. However, this is the best option for Cambodia. Mr. Hun Sen should have taken this step since 2008. If he did, maybe the case might have been finalized and no fighting as big as today. No ordinary people on both sides would suffer like today.
Premier Hun Sen take too long to react even the the finalize is today Thai still not easily bow to the judgement , the judgement is crystal clear , what Thai do right now just attacking us keep pressure for us to surrender the land to them why we attack them back boycott their product if our government care about their wealth than their country then we have the problem look at our soldiers can't even have nicer boots I got a few comrades in the frontline I am really concern ,look at our general some of them really rich our poor soldiers do the fighting for them .
Our government should set priority to our soldiers buy powerful weapons at least those powerful weapon act as deterrence Thai have 300,000 men underarm and we have 1/3 I am not really know how many ghosts soldiers in there I got a family member in the navy and he told me "look like we out number by Thai."
If any body have a family in the frontline they know how I feel I just want our soldiers to teach the invader the lesions of war.
11:38 PM
There are few Khmer compatriot left to fight other countries as Hun Sen and his regime killed many of them already.
Some are in prisons, some are overseas. Khmer compatriot can't even talk on the phone in Cambodia because Angkar Leu is always listen and record the conversations.
Also...
Hun Sen sees Khmer compatriots as a threat to his interests on Vietnam.
Thai never change their attitudes they behave like the spoil brats prior France colonize srok Khmer Thai invading Cambodia and after France withdrawn from Cambodia Thai invading Cambodia again they want Cambodia land very ambitious Thai never stop because of a few pieces of papers from ICJ it going to be a long war and the brutal one.
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