Cambodia to seek aid to conserve Preah Vihear temple

Preah Vihear Temple

PHNOM PENH, 15th June 2012 (Cambodia Herald) - Cambodia plans to seek aid to conserve the Preah Vihear Temple during an upcoming UNESCO meeting in Russia, Preah Vihear National Authority chairman Chuch Pouern said.

"The Cambodian delegation ... will ask the UNESCO committee about last year's grant of $70,000 to conserve Preah Vihear Temple of which we haven't seen a penny," he said.

"According to Cambodia's ambassador to UNESCO in Paris, Preah Vihear is not to be mentioned in the conference because they consider the problem over."

Yet "Thailand still bans us from launching conservation in the area," said the chairman, who is also secretary general at the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts.

"The temple is in a very bad condition since Cambodian and Thai armed forces clashed," he said. "The government, however, is doing its best to prevent corrosion."
The 36th session of the World Heritage Committee is scheduled to take place in St Petersburgh between June 24 July 6.

Preah Vihear Temple was listed as a World Heritage Site in 2008, leading to several armed clashes between military forces along the Cambodian-Thai border.