The Cambodia Daily
April 21, 2013
Thailand’s ambassador to The Hague brought four days of hearings
before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to an end on Friday by
asking that the case brought by Cambodia regarding disputed territory at
Preah Vihear temple be deemed inadmissible and thrown out.
Like Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong on Thursday, Ambassador
Virachai Plasai also warned of the consequences the court’s pending
decision could have on security and stability at the contested border.
Mr. Namhong had warned the court of “unfortunate consequences” if the
ICJ did not once and for all decide who owned a 4.6-square-km plot of
land next to the border-hugging temple of Preah Vihear, and over which
the two neighbors have fought a series of bloody battles since 2008.
Mr. Virachai in turn warned of similar consequences if the ICJ did
decide to settle the dispute in court, instead of letting Thailand and
Cambodia negotiate their border bilaterally.
“To grant Cambodia’s request today would be to undermine the
stability and finality” that the ICJ was striving for its 1962 ruling,
when the court granted ownership of Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia, Mr.
Virachai said.
The case before the court stems from Cambodia’s request in 2011 that
the ICJ interpret the 1962 decision. Cambodia argues that the decision
granted it both the temple and the land, which is now in dispute,
because both are situated inside Cambodia, according to a colonial-era
French map that the ICJ relied up to make its decision.
In its original 69-page decision, the ICJ decided that Thailand had
effectively accepted the boundaries of that map by never objecting to
it.
Mr. Virachai, however, argued that the ICJ did not give the map any
particular significance in 1962, and certainly did not set the border
between the two countries.
But now, he said, “Cambodia is relying precisely on what the court
did not say in its 1962 decision in order to claim more land in Thai
territory.”
“The question of the boundary was outside the scope of the 1962
proceedings,” he said. “That was left to the parties to settle
themselves.”
Thai counsel James Crawford pointed out that the court in its final
1962 decision never used the words boundary or frontier and argued that
it deliberately chose vague ones like “territory” and “vicinity”
precisely because it had not needed to determine exactly where the
frontier ran.
And because the ICJ did not clearly define its terms then, he said, the court could hardly be expected to do so now.
As Mr. Crawford put it, “you can’t make bricks without straw.”
The court is expected to render a decision in the coming months.
6 comments:
Thailand know the next border war will be a huge war involving Vietnam because Vietnamese will not allow Thailand to invade their country....There is no Cambodia and Thailand want a piece of it.
Are you stupid or something ! lol. CPP is a very close ally of Hanoi but still Cambodia is not Vietnam you idiot. We just not enemies any more with each others. Vietnam had taken many square kilometers of Cambodia territories already. They will not take the rest even Hun Sen will not allow it. Hun Sen is not that stupid to allow Viets takes his only remaining power left which is Cambodia. China will not allow Hanoi to annex Cambodia that would give Viets more land and resources to be strengthen that could fight Bejeing back. This is the world of politics. Don't be so blindly wish your motherland belong to someone else so you can gain political advantages. Scare tactics only works on poor uneducated farmers NOT the rest of us. Who ever you are you need to learn a whole new world history. Get educated from ABC up.
China and foreign investors has had poured so much money into Cambodia. They will not allow Cambodia to be destroyed by the Thais or Viet Cong, also Khmer freedom fighter will be born again if these foreign invaders invades Cambodia. Just look back in the '80s.
Anyone thinks Cambodia belongs to Vietnam is no different than thinking that Vietnam belongs to China. Yea..there are alot of Youn(Viets) parasites living in Cambodia freely and not to mention enjoying first class treatment, all thank to Ah Hai Phuc(Ah Hun Sen). This is just temperary. Soon or later, Cambodian people will be up to their ears in sick and tired of this Youn(Viet) parasites and want a clean up. What's keeping this Youn parasitic infestation in Cambodia is Ah Hai Phuc(Ah Hun Sen). He's still bow down to Hanoi while he's still can because there are unlimited power reward to Ah Hai Phuc for being a very obedience puppet.
Thailand is very cunning, trying to twist things and turn around to accuse Cambodia of being a villain instead. The fact is that Thailand is the the villain and the invader, it invaded the Preah Vihear temple in 1954 and lost the icj case in 1962. It again invaded Preah Vihear in 2008 after Unesco inscribed the temple and now Thailand is accusing of Cambodia of having an agenda? Well, a thief will saying anything in order for the police to release him.
The temple belongs to the world. Don't know why we have to argue. None of us writing these comments will be around 500 years from now.
We might all belong to the same nation.
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