Soldiers fence off Preah Vihear

Writer: BangkokPost.com, AFP
Published: 17/09/2009

Protesters of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) will not be allowed inside the disputed 4.6-square-kilometre area around the Preah Vihear temple since this could affect relations with Cambodia, Lt-Gen Wibulsak Neepan said on Thursday.

The Second Army commander was responding to the PAD's announced plan to converge on Phra Viharn National Park in Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district and demand that Cambodian troops and villagers be pushed out of the disputed area around Cambodia's Preah Vihear temple.

Veera Somkwamkid, chairman of the Civil Rights and Liberty Group, which is affiliated to the PAD, has said protesters from various provinces would gather in Kantharalak district before moving to the border area on Saturday.

Pol Lt-Gen Krisda Pankhongchuen, head of Region 3 Provincial Police, said about 200 police had been mobilised from Si Sa Ket and nearby provinces to support soldiers in preventing the protesters from entering the disputed area.

Chavanont Intarakomalsut, secretary to Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, said that during his inspection trip to the border area near the Preah Vihear temple on Sept 13 Mr Kasit and high-level officials of Cambodia agreed to solve the dispute through negotiations.

Mr Chavanont said the Thai-Cambodian Joint Border Committee (JBC) has surveyed the disputed area for border demarcation. The results of the past three meetings of the JBC were expected to be reported to parliament next month. The problem had existed for a long time and more time was needed to solve it through negotiations, he said.

Mr Chavanont said the protesters should be careful about going inside Phra Viharn National Park because there might still be some uncleared land mines in the area and they were very dangerous.

Somchai Phetprasert, a Puea Thai MP for Nakhon Ratchasima and chairman of the House committee on military affairs, urged the government, foreign minister and armed forces commanders to remind Cambodia that Thai people have the constitutional right to peaceful assembly.

At the same time, the army should take measures to prevent the protesters from getting near the disputed area since they might appear provocative to Cambodian troops.

Soldiers have put up barbed wire to prevent PAD protesters entering Phra Viharn National Park, and set up more checkpoints along the road to the park, according to a local reporter in Si Sa Ket province. Entry to Preah Vihear is through Phra Viharn park.

The barbed wire was placed around around the park office and the entrance to the national park and two more military checkpoints were now on the road between Nam Khun and Kantharalak districts, in addition to existing checkpoints manned by para-military rangers.

Large signs opposing the PAD's planned rally have been put up at various intersections along the road between Kantharalak district of Si Sa ket and Muang district of Ubon Ratchathani, the reporter said.

Cambodia on Thursday deployed riot police around the disputed border, its defence ministry said.

Cambodian defence ministry spokesman Chhum Socheat said at least 50 police with dogs, batons and tear gas have been deployed at the temple ahead of the demonstration.

"Our anti-riot police have been deployed to the border at Preah Vihear temple in case the Thai yellow-shirt protesters illegally cross the border to cause problems," Chhum Socheat said.

"We will order our forces to prevent them entering. We don't want bloodshed, but if they don't listen to us we will use self-defence measures," he said.

The two countries have been at loggerheads for decades over Preah Vihear.

The World Court ruled in 1962 that it belonged to Cambodia, but the most accessible entrance to the ancient Khmer temple with its crumbling stone staircases and elegant carvings is in northeastern Thailand.

The last gunbattle in the temple area in April left three people dead while clashes there in 2008 killed another four people.

The border between the two countries has never been fully demarcated, in part because it is littered with landmines left over from decades of war in Cambodia.