Cambodian soldiers sit on an armoured vehicle as it travels along a street near the Preah Vihear temple. Cambodia and Thailand have pulled hundreds of soldiers out of a disputed border area, a year after a ruling by the UN's highest court, replacing them with police and security guards
Posted: 18 July 2012
Channel News Asia
PREAH VIHEAR,
Cambodia: Cambodia on Wednesday withdrew 485 military personnel from the
Provisional Demilitarised Zone (PDZ) surrounding the 11th century Preah
Vihear temple in order to comply with the order of the International
Court of Justice (ICJ).
China's Xinhua news agency reported that the pullout ceremony was presided over by Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister General Tea Banh, and was attended by foreign diplomats, military attaches, government officials, locals and students.
According to a press release from the Council of Ministers, it was the "first step of troop redeployment" from the arena around Preah Vihear temple including the areas of Dragon Stair market, North Ancient Stair, East Ancient Stair, and Keo Sikha Kiri Svarak pagoda.
The troops were replaced by 255 policemen and 100 guards for safeguarding the temple, said the press release.
China's Xinhua news agency reported that the pullout ceremony was presided over by Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister General Tea Banh, and was attended by foreign diplomats, military attaches, government officials, locals and students.
According to a press release from the Council of Ministers, it was the "first step of troop redeployment" from the arena around Preah Vihear temple including the areas of Dragon Stair market, North Ancient Stair, East Ancient Stair, and Keo Sikha Kiri Svarak pagoda.
The troops were replaced by 255 policemen and 100 guards for safeguarding the temple, said the press release.
General Chea Dara, deputy commander-in-chief of Royal Cambodian Armed Forces in charge of Preah Vihear Direction, said at the event that the redeployment is a testament proving that Cambodia wants peace with Thailand.
Addressing the ceremony, General Tea Banh said that the pullout was to comply with the ICJ's order and it was a progressive step to improve bilateral ties between Cambodia and Thailand.
The redeployment was made after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and his Thai counterpart Yingluck Shinawatra met last Friday in Cambodia's Siem Reap province and agreed to redeploy military personnel in the PDZ surrounding the Preah Vihear temple in order to comply with the ICJ's order.
Cambodia and Thailand have had sporadic border conflict over territorial dispute near Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple since the UNESCO listed the temple as a World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008, but Thailand claims the ownership of 4.6 square kilometres of scrub next to the temple.
Fierce clashes between the two sides' troops had happened in February and April 2011 during Thailand's Democrat Party rule.
The ICJ ordered on July 18, 2011 that Cambodia and Thailand must immediately withdraw their military personnel from the 17.3 square kilometer PDZ and refrain from any armed activity directed at that zone.
Also, it ordered both parties to allow ASEAN observers from Indonesia to access to the zone to monitor ceasefire.
The redeployment on Wednesday was held without the arrival of the Indonesian observers.
Preah Vihear, a Hindu temple, is located on the top of a 525-metre cliff in the Dangrek Mountains, about 500 kilometres northwest of Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia.
- BER/wm
3 comments:
កាប់ឈើល្អៗ អស់ហើយ អាចដកទពបានហើយ។ ខាងថៃក៏ចំណេញ ព្រោះបានទិញយកឈើថោកៗពីខ្មែរ។
ដំបូង ហីង ប៊ុនហៀង ក្រោយមក គន់ គីម ប្រកួតគ្នាកាប់ តើអ្នកស្មានត្រូវទេ តើមួយណា រកលុយបានច្រើនជាង?
ចំលើយ មិនមែនទាំង២។ គឺបងធំទី១ ទេ។
12:54 AM, agree with you. First, they accused Gen. Chea Morn's son of illegally logging and put him in jail. I suspected it was rivalry between Gen. Chea Morn, Gen. Kun Kim and Gen. Chea Dara over a dispute of who can profit the most from illegal logging in Preah Vihear. It is Kun Kim and Gen. Chea Dara who did the dirty job of illegal logging, but Hun Sen pocketed the money, or most of it.
That right, It was an interest conflict(logging) between Chea Morn group n other like Heang Bunheang and Kun Kim. As I wrote in previous comment, at the beginning Kun Kim didn`t interested in this area since the dispute with Thai counterpart occured. Only Heang Bunheang had mobilized his bodyguard unit to this area and began logging. Seeing that, Kun Kim start to put his subordinate to this area and team with Chea Dara plus another politician (S/N) which has agood connection with Thai counterpart.
They earn alot of money from this. Kun Kim is very famous of doing illigal logging since 1997 after cleaning up FUNCINPEC. In Snoul (Kratie province) he cut off a huge forest n sold to VN. Using that land to plant rubber.
Every one should know the real thing in Cambodia, try to think about our nation. Start from what we can do and wait for the chance to reform.
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