Q & A Handbook On Thai-Cambodian Dispute To Be Issued

[webfact]

Q&A handbook on Thai-Cambodian dispute to be issued

By English News

BANGKOK, Jan 29 – Thailand's Foreign Ministry will issue a question-and-answer handbook to create public understanding of the Phra Viharn (Prear Vihear) temple dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, a ministry spokesman said.

Nattawut Pothisaro, spokesman of the Thai legal team defending the dispute, said the handbook, titled “50 Years, 50 Points, Q&A on Phra Viharn Temple,” will be distributed to government agencies and schools and universities next week while the general public can view or download the handbook on the Foreign Ministry’s website: www.mfa.go.th/phraviharn from today.

According to a recent survey by ABAC Poll, 82.5 per cent of people said the government has failed to give clear information on the Phra Viharn legal conflict which is pending a ruling by the International Court of Justice.

Mr Nattawut said the poll results prompted the Foreign Ministry to provide more information on the complicated issue which has engaged Thailand and Cambodia for years.

The handbook consists of 50 Q&A subjects to remove public doubts regarding the Phra Viharn dispute, he said, adding that more publicity in the form of cartoons and documentaries will also be produced.

Mr Nattawut said an official team will meet soon with community leaders and government officials in some provinces along the Thai-Cambodian border to disseminate the information on the temple dispute.

He said that the Thai people have started to understand that the dispute is an old court case and that Cambodia has sought an International Court of Justice (ICJ) interpretation of the 1962 ruling.

He added that Thailand has protested about 40 times against Cambodia’s construction in the disputed zone, with the latest protest lodged in November.

“I can assure that the Foreign Ministry has done in every manner to protect Thailand’s rights under international law. I ask the public to feel comfortable [about the ministry’s activity]. However, we have to be careful about bilateral relationship,” he said.

Cambodia has sought the world court’s ruling on its claimed ownership of a 4.6 sq km parcel of land surrounding Phra Viharn. The ICJ ruled in 1962 that the structure belonged to Cambodia but no decision was made on the adjacent land. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2013-01-29

[warfie]

Surely one look at the photo would be enough to suggest a sensible place to draw the border...

[lemoncake]

But by whom would the book be written? Surely depending on the writer answers will vary if he was from Thailand or Cambodia

[culicine]

One thing is sure - the booklet will certainly not state the land belongs to Cambodia.

[Hornell]

Informative..... if you go into the website and click on "English", you get a message that says "No Information". Clearly one has to be a Thai in order to be interested.

[lemoncake]

Informative..... if you go into the website and click on "English", you get a message that says "No Information". Clearly one has to be a Thai in order to be interested.

or ignorant enough to believe whatever is written

[MEL1]

The fact that they'll make it into a comic book is reason enough not to believe its content.

-mel.

[comserve]

Don't know when that photo was taken but is the site open to the public yet?

[hellodolly]

I wonder if they will mention that they had and still do have a chance to show the world how cooperative they can be with a joint venture on land that is affected both sides of the border.

I wonder if they will mention that the land they are claiming and unwilling to talk about but willing to have Thai's die for is only 4.6 sq. Kilometers and not good for anything. Is the comic going to mention the fact that the people in the area on both side have coexisted peacefully until people wearing yellow shirts stirred it up for political reasons.

Is the book going to mention that for 50 years it was happy with the arrangement.m It was only in the last few years for political reasons that they started lodging protests.

As usually another Thai fiasco being continued. On and on we go. I believe they have all ready said if the decision goes against them they will not except it. Maybe if they get clear title on it they could build silo's to store rice. At the rate they are planning for they will need them.

[mccw]

Him sen plays the nationalist card just as often and badly as any yellow shirt. Depending which maps and how far back you go much more of now Cambodia could be considered Thai territory. Wich ever way the verdict goes its still a load of nonsense. They should just do a Joint Development pact to turn it in to a tourist attraction and split the entrance fees 50/50

[noitom]

Who would ever believe that Thais would "read" a handbook or would ever read such a book or any book? Who would believe that such a handbook would be an objective treatment of the alleged issue? The ruling establishing Cambodia the territorial owner of this temple decades ago with no response or challenge from Thailand should be left to stand. The ICJ should sustain that position.

Thailand acquiesced to the Cambodian map and claim to this temple decades ago and never responded to numerous submissions by the Cambodians and the French. Only recently when it was "politically" expedient in Thailand, did certain factions in Thailand begin taking up this cause. Thailand's claim to this temple is nothing more than petty internal bickering and squabbling among Thai politicians seeking to curry favor and monetizing that.

[whybother]

Who would ever believe that Thais would "read" a handbook or would ever read such a book or any book? Who would believe that such a handbook would be an objective treatment of the alleged issue? The ruling establishing Cambodia the territorial owner of this temple decades ago with no response or challenge from Thailand should be left to stand. The ICJ should sustain that position.

Thailand acquiesced to the Cambodian map and claim to this temple decades ago and never responded to numerous submissions by the Cambodians and the French. Only recently when it was "politically" expedient in Thailand, did certain factions in Thailand begin taking up this cause. Thailand's claim to this temple is nothing more than petty internal bickering and squabbling among Thai politicians seeking to curry favor and monetizing that.

What has the French involvement been since the 1962 ruling on the temple?

Thailand aren't currently trying to "claim the temple". They are trying to claim the land adjoining it. The 1962 ruling didn't specifically cover the surrounding land, which is the reason that Cambodia have gone back to the courts - to get a clarification as to whether the ruling covers the surrounding land or not.

The Cambodians originally (in 1959) asked the court to rule on the ownership of the temple, so theoretically the ruling only covers the temple.

The 1904 treaty puts the temple and surrounding land in Thailand. The 1907-08 maps (which were never officially accepted - or rejected) puts the temple and surrounding land in Cambodia. The courts chose to accept the maps in it's ruling on the ownership of the temple in 1962, saying that Thailand never rejected them.

The possibilities for the clarification are that the 1962 ruling only covered the temple, leaving the surrounding land in dispute, or that the 1962 ruling also covered the surrounding land.

As one of the ministers said recently, Thailand will either lose or nothing will change.

[whybother]

Him sen plays the nationalist card just as often and badly as any yellow shirt. Depending which maps and how far back you go much more of now Cambodia could be considered Thai territory. Wich ever way the verdict goes its still a load of nonsense. They should just do a Joint Development pact to turn it in to a tourist attraction and split the entrance fees 50/50

Previous maps (regardless of how far back you go) are irrelevant. The only relevant documents are the 1904 treaty and the 1907-08 maps.

[siberianwarcat]

As one of the ministers said recently, "Thailand will either lose or nothing will change."

That is one of the funniest things I read in ages. I can think of a hundred uses of this quote! Thanks for that.

[FarangTalk]

Depending which maps and how far back you go much more of now Cambodia could be considered Thai territory.

Let's go back a little further and all of Thailand was all Khmer and Burmese.

[hellodolly]

Who would ever believe that Thais would "read" a handbook or would ever read such a book or any book? Who would believe that such a handbook would be an objective treatment of the alleged issue? The ruling establishing Cambodia the territorial owner of this temple decades ago with no response or challenge from Thailand should be left to stand. The ICJ should sustain that position.

Thailand acquiesced to the Cambodian map and claim to this temple decades ago and never responded to numerous submissions by the Cambodians and the French. Only recently when it was "politically" expedient in Thailand, did certain factions in Thailand begin taking up this cause. Thailand's claim to this temple is nothing more than petty internal bickering and squabbling among Thai politicians seeking to curry favor and monetizing that.

the book is being written as a comic. That will get the Thais to read it and not believe it. After all in a perverse way the whole thing is comical

[mccw]

Depending which maps and how far back you go much more of now Cambodia could be considered Thai territory.

Let's go back a little further and all of Thailand was all Khmer and Burmese.

Exactly.

Edited January 31, 2013 by mccw

[I Like Thai]

We'll need to wait until the cartoons come out before we will know what is really going on.