UNESCO To Send Envoy To Bangkok, Phnom Penh

[webfact]

UNESCO to send envoy to Bangkok, Phnom Penh

By Supalak Ganjanakhundee,

Nuntida Phuangthong

The Nation

With its mission to inspect damage done to Preah Vihear Temple during the border skirmish blocked, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) said yesterday that it would send a special envoy to Bangkok and Phnom Penh soon to pave the way for a visit to the temple.

The border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia spilled over to Unesco, with the Abhisit government blaming the UN body for igniting the conflict by giving the temple a World Heritage Site designation in 2008.

Unesco announced earlier that it would dispatch an urgent mission to inspect the temple after Cambodia claimed the structure was partly damaged by Thai artillery shells during the skirmish from February 4 to 7.

The Thai government, however, is against the mission, saying any visit to the temple had to be permitted by Thai authorities, especially as officials will have to access the site via an area that comes under Thailand's sovereignty.

In response, Unesco director-general Irina Bokova announced that she would shortly send a special envoy to Bangkok and Phnom Penh. She added that any assessment mission to Preah Vihear could only take place once calm has been restored to the area.

Unesco, meanwhile, has voiced regret at the continuing tension between the two neighbouring countries over the issue of Preah Vihear. "A world cultural heritage should never be the cause for conflict," Bokova said in a statement yesterday, adding that Unesco was in touch with senior officials of both nations.

The 900-year-old temple, dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, has been at the core of the conflict between Thailand and Cambodia since the last century.

In a 1962 ruling by the International Court of Justice, Preah Vihear is situated in territory that comes under the sovereignty of Cambodia, but Bangkok has been arguing that the surrounding area belongs to Thailand.

Initially, Thailand was not supposed to have anything to do with the World Heritage designation, but it got involved in the process over fears of losing its sovereignty in the temple's vicinity.

Meanwhile, Thailand's Joint Boundary Committee chief Asda Jayanama is in Paris to meet with Bokova to push for revocation of the temple's World Heritage status. Thailand wants Unesco to suspend the designation until the boundary conflict is settled. This dispute with Unesco is one of Thailand's many international battles against its smaller neighbour.

Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya will lead a delegation of experts from his ministry's Treaties and Legal Affairs Department to the UN Security Council meeting in New York on Monday. They will be armed with historical documents, maps, photographs and video clips of the border clash, an official said yesterday.

The four-day clash at the border killed at least eight people, including a Thai civilian, and injured about 70 others.

As requested by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, the Security Council will hold a closed meeting on Monday with foreign ministers from both sides, diplomats said.

Kasit, his Cambodian counterpart Hor Namhong and Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, who as the current chairman of Asean has been trying to mediate in the dispute, are expected to speak to the council, diplomats said.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke to both sides on Tuesday and offered help to negotiate a peace deal. However, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said his government insisted on bilateral talks, though it did agree to send a delegation to the UN.

-- The Nation 2011-02-12

[sirchai]

The Thai government, however, is against the mission, saying any visit to the temple had to be permitted by Thai authorities, especially as officials will have to access the site via an area that comes under Thailand's sovereignty.

Weren't they asking for the UN before?

I remember when the Tsunami hit Thailand and forensic experts, from the BKA sent by the German government to identify the bodies, were accused to work without a work permit.

Hope the UN will arrive with the right type of visa. :jap:

Edited February 12, 2011 by sirchai

[stepenwolf1958]

The Thai government, however, is against the mission, saying any visit to the temple had to be permitted by Thai authorities, especially as officials will have to access the site via an area that comes under Thailand's sovereignty.

Weren't they asking for the UN before?

I remember when the Tsunami hit Thailand and forensic experts, from the BKA sent by the German government to identify the bodies, were accused to work without a work permit.

Hope the UN will arrive with the right type of visa. :jap:

I never heard of that about German forensics. If truth,(no reason to have doubt what you said) it is incredible how much establishment was retarded. Well, they surpassed themselves even. Was it Thaksin time?

[stepenwolf1958]

The Thai government, however, is against the mission, saying any visit to the temple had to be permitted by Thai authorities, especially as officials will have to access the site via an area that comes under Thailand's sovereignty.

Weren't they asking for the UN before?

Yes, that is exactly what shows recent government, including PM, as immature and incapable to handle this situation under control.

Pressure from inside, from yellow shirt, is so strong that actual government makes ridiculous steps in rush, trying to oppose to Cambodian challenge.

So delicate situation, walking on the edge, and so silly, inappropriate acting of recent government.

[asiawatcher]

UNESCO - another incredible waste of an interfering do-good body that achieves very little for the amount of money they spend annually. Oh well - great if you could get a 9-3 job with them with all the travel, 5 star hotels and expense accounts to interfere in other Nations' business.