By Sam Sotha
Secretary of State of the Office of the Council of Minister and
Advisor to the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and
Vice Chairman of Press and Quick Reaction Unit of the
Office of the Council of Ministers
{The comments are solely the opinion of the author, they do not necessarily reflect the opinion of
the Royal Government of Cambodia}
As the 34
th
Session of the World Heritage Committee (WHC) scheduled for July
25-August 3, 2010 prepare to meet in Brazil, a group of extremists are embarking
on yet another feeble campaign to intoxicate public opinion against the inscription
and management plans for Preah Vihear Temple in the World Heritage list. Given
this nonsensical attempts, they therefore, deserve a reminder to give them a
reality check!
On 7th July 2008, in Québec, Canada, the WHC, an arm of the United Nations
Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) decided to inscribe the
Temple of Preah Vihear on the World Heritage list.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, on June 15, 1962
concluded that Thailand in 1908-1909, did accept the Annex I map as
representing the outcome of the work of delimitation, and hence recognized the
line on that map as being the frontier line. To this end the Court decided that:
1. “finds that the Temple of Preah Vihear is situated in territory under the
sovereignty of Cambodia”;
finds in consequence,
2. “that Thailand is under an obligation to withdraw all military, police or other
guards or keepers, stationed by her at the Temple, or in its vicinity on
Cambodian territory.”
3. “that Thailand is under an obligation to restore to Cambodia any objects of
the kind specified in Cambodia’s fifth submission which may, since the date
of occupation of the Temple by Thailand in 1954, have been removed from
the Temple or the Temple area by the Thai Authorities”.
An excerpt from the article, published in the Phnom Penh Post on November 13
2009, attributed to Mr. Derek Tonkin, British Ambassador to Thailand from 1986-
1989 and who was the second secretary at the British Embassy in Phnom Penh
from 1961-1962, quotes: “When the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 by nine votes to three that the disputed Temple of Preah Vihear was situated in
Cambodian territory and not in Thai territory, passions for a time ran high in
Thailand, but in due course the Thais accepted the ruling.”
Thailand’s ignorance, which in the first place opposed the application and
challenged the listing the decision of the World Heritage Committee deserves
more deliberations so that they will be able to comprehend how to behave in a
proper manner with regard to its neighbor, Cambodia and that too with full
decorum!
On the 2
nd
Anniversary of the listing of the Temple of Preah Vihear as a World
Heritage Site, a roundtable forum was held at the Office of the Council of
Ministers on 8 July 2010 to reaffirm Cambodia's success and pride and also
respond to a handful of Thai extremists who have been longing for ownership of
the Temple of Preah Vihear. This is an impossible desire which completely
contravenes the law.
Those extremist group have repeatedly betrayed history and the principles of
“International Law”: such as Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and princess
Walwipha Jarooroj and some others who stood firm that they would not give up
the contested area 4.6 sq km adjacent to the ancient Temple of Preah Vihear, on
the pretext that they claim that the area is still owned by Thailand.
The Royal Government of Cambodia led by Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen, has
reiterated the ICJ rulings a thousand times --that the Temple of Preah Vihear
belongs to Cambodia and its vicinity is sovereign Cambodian soil.
Based on the rule of international law, please stop trying to betray historical and
legal facts and stop trying to protest against the UNESCO decision of July 7
th
,
2008 to list the Temple of Preah Vihear as a World Heritage site. Furthermore,
Thailand is still under an obligation to withdraw any military or police, or other
guards or keepers, stationed by her at the Temple, or in its vicinity on Cambodian
territory,” as so defined in the ICJ ruling as stated above. There should be thus,
no question about the so-called “over-lapping area of 4.6 sq km,” since it does
not exist.
If Thai leaders keep ignoring the ruling of the international court, they are not
only betraying and fooling themselves, but are also betraying their own
conscience by teaching their people and their children to have no confidence in
their own judicial system. By continuing on this reckless path, they are also
insulting their ancestors for their hard work in defending the Thai case against
Cambodia in 1962, which unfortunately, was ruled against their favor by the
learned judges of the ICJ.
* *
