In spat with 'Siem', Hun Sen needs Hanoi in his corner

Published: 18/01/2010 at 12:00 AM

via CAAI News Media

Relations between Thailand and Cambodia have shown no signs of improvement. Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya has insisted that normal diplomatic ties cannot resume until Phnom Penh ends its relationship with former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Keeping relations sweet: Cambodian PM Hun Sen, right, with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

Meanwhile, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen continues to challenge the Thai leadership. On January 12, 2010 Mr Hun Sen said that ties might be restored soon because Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's embattled government would not last much longer.

To understand what has been happening in Thai-Cambodian relations, one must not analyse them solely in the bilateral context. The need to consider other geopolitical factors, particularly within mainland Southeast Asia, is imperative in order to comprehend certain behaviour of political leaders and the reasons behind their policies in regard to their neighbours.

Cambodia is a small state, being sandwiched between two bigger neighbours: Thailand and Vietnam. Leaders in Phnom Penh have taken the advantage of its location by playing one neighbour against the other. This is not a new tactic. Siam used the same strategy when it dealt with the British and the French during the colonial period. Some Thai historians agree that it was this strategy that helped Siam escape colonisation.

For Cambodia, Vietnam has always been a powerful nation. Prior to the advent of the French colonialists, Cambodia was dominated by Vietnam and paid tribute to its rulers in Hanoi. During the Cold War, relations between Cambodia and Vietnam were shaped by conflict and mutual distrust.

In 1978, Vietnamese forces began a full-scale invasion of Cambodia. Not until 1990 did Vietnam completely withdraw its troops from the country.

Today, however, ties between Phnom Penh and Hanoi are at their best. Mr Hun Sen is known to have forged close relations with the Vietnamese leadership and has attempted to reduce the level of economic dependence on Thailand.

In many ways, Mr Hun Sen has used his intimate relations with Hanoi to counter-balance his country's ties with Bangkok. At this critical juncture in Thai-Cambodian relations, his strong friendship with Vietnam had added a sense of confidence to his uncompromising diplomacy vis-a-vis Thailand.

Ou Virak, director of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, interestingly explained the current state of the Thai-Cambodian conflict in the context of Cambodian-Vietnamese relations. He said that Hun Sen has to think about the Cambodian-Vietnamese border to the east as well, not just the Cambodian-Thai border to the west.

Mr Ou Virak reportedly said: "The debates about the Khmer-Vietnamese border have been restricted by the government, but on the Khmer-Thai conflict, we see not only that the Cambodian government pays special attention, but incites anger against Thailand, complicit in the change of the word from "Thai" to "Siem" to describe the Thai people, using television and radio networks to attack Thailand.

"But on the eastern (Vietnam) side, we have never seen the Cambodian government support border protection against Vietnam's encroachments."

This observation of Mr Ou Virak has became more tangible in the recent political struggle between Hun Sen and Sam Rainsy, leader of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party (SRP).

In October 2009, Mr Sam Rainsy led a number of Cambodian farmers in Svay Rieng province in removing six wooden posts that marked the border with Vietnam. A month later, he released a statement accusing the Hun Sen government of failing to protect Khmer territory.

Mr Sam Rainsy said: "Vietnam has been, over the last 30 years, grabbing thousands of square kilometres of Khmer territory. This is an ongoing painful process that Hun Sen does not want us to look at. But we cannot help see the tears and hear the cries of countless Khmer farmers who are losing their rice fields to Vietnam."

He also said that the farmers' land rights in the area were not respected in the border demarcation process between Cambodia and Vietnam that is currently underway and scheduled to be completed by 2012.

Mr Hun Sen struck back by charging Mr Rainsy with destruction of property and racial incitement. At present, Mr Rainsy is in exile in France.

Mr Hun Sen is aware that he cannot allow domestic politics to upset the Vietnamese leadership. To put it simply, he cannot fight with both Thailand and Vietnam. After all, the country has already suffered from the interruption in bilateral trade with Thailand. Cambodia cannot afford to jeopardise its economic interests with Vietnam.

In recent years, Vietnam has made significant economic inroads into Cambodia. It has reportedly expressed its interests in Cambodia's agri-business, aviation, telecommunications and banking. Last month, Hanoi signed an agreement with Phnom Penh that could result in investments worth billions of dollars, including a deal in aluminium ore, known as bauxite, in Cambodia's border province of Mondokiri.

The Vietnamese connection does not lie only in Cambodia's economic domain. Vietnam has continued to build up its influence in Cambodian politics through its proxies. It has been reported widely and much discussed among diplomats in Southeast Asia that many Cambodian ambassadors are of Vietnamese lineage.

These include Cambodia's Foreign Minister Hor Nam Hong, Ambassador to London Hor Nambora, and Ambassador to Bangkok You Ah (currently recalled). They are strong allies of Hun Sen and are formidable forces that help strengthen his regime. For example, it was reported that, in July 2009, Hor Nambora lashed out at the Global Witness organisation which accused Mr Hun Sen of corruption. Likewise, Mrs You Ah chose to use offensive language against Thailand as the bilateral conflict reached its peak last year.

But this game of politics, found inside Thailand and Cambodia, runs parallel with the local reality on both sides of the border. Local Thais and Cambodians want to keep bilateral ties "normal". The friendly boat race in Koh Kong early this month, among teams from Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam, proved that the people at the borderlands undoubtedly prefer peace to conflict.

Pavin Chachavalpongpun is author of the forthcoming book, "Temple of Doom: Hysteria about the Preah Vihear Temple in the Thai Nationalist Discourse."