Officials downplay planned PAD protest

(Posted by CAAI News Media)

Friday, 30 October 2009 15:02 Vong Sokheng

A CAMBODIAN official responded Thursday to Thai media reports of a planned protest by People’s Alliance for Democracy members outside the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok on Monday.

The English-language daily newspaper The Nation reported earlier this week that PAD members planned to protest outside the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok in response to comments made by Prime Minister Hun Sen during the weekend’s ASEAN summit in Hua Hin, Thailand, during which he said that Thai ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a 2006 coup, had been treated unfairly by Thai authorities.

Hun Sen’s comments were seen as undermining Thailand’s judiciary credibility, The Nation reported.

Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said Thursday that the government was not surprised by the announced protest.

“It is not the first time that PAD has warned Cambodia about a protest, but we are not concerned because the Cambodian embassy and its diplomats are under the careful protection of Thai authorities,” Koy Kuong said.

Koy Kuong added that Cambodia has yet to receive official confirmation that Thaksin has plans to visit the Kingdom.

“There is no official notice about his visit. We just heard that he told supporters that he would fly to Cambodia soon, but I think these sources of information are reliable,” he said, referring to Thai press reports that Thaksin had informed supporters via teleconference that he intended to take Hun Sen up on his offer to visit Cambodia.