Will peace finally last at Preah Vihear temple?

BANGKOK- It has been a contentious subject between Cambodia and Thailand for almost a century. The beautiful Khmer Temple of Preah Vihear, a 11th century jewel of Angkor architecture had the misfortune to be on a tip of a promontory just on the border line delimiting  Cambodia and Thailand. For decades, the temple has been the witness of a war of words, skirmishes and even sporadic fights between Cambodian and Thai troops due to territorial claims. Officially, Preah Vihear  Temple belongs to Cambodia since 1907, when both Siam and France signed an agreement tracing the border. Since then, Thailand regularly denounced the treaty as ‘biased’, consequently claiming the sovereignty over the temple. Thailand went to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which confirmed in 1962 that the area belonged to Cambodia.

The temple came again under the spotlight when UNESCO decided to list it as a World Heritage Site in 2008. There is in fact a contentious point in the border drawing. Unfortunately to Preah Vihear, the easiest access to the temple is on… Thai territory! A 4.2 km2 buffer zone is in fact under Thai sovereignty.

Things turned to the worst in 2011 when Thailand discovered that Cambodia’s management plan of the World Heritage Site would have integrated one km² belonging to the contested buffer area. War of words was rapidly replaced by  a war from another age as Thai and Cambodian military troops started firing at each other. The temple even suffered casualties due to damage from shooting. Serious clashes took place in February and April last year.

Acting on Phnom Penh’s complaint, a new judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on July 18, 2011 reconfirmed Cambodia’s sovereignty over Preah Vihear. At the same time, the Court ordered that Cambodia and Thailand immediately withdraw their troops from a 17.3 square kilometre demilitarised zone near the temple.

Tensions eased following the election in July 2011 of a new government conducted by Yingluck Shinawatra, the current Prime Minister. And things will continue to improve as Cambodia is now announcing to withdraw troops from a supposed demilitarized zone near Preah Vihear temple. Many times announced, the advocated Preah Vihear demilitarization was neither implemented by Thailand or Cambodia. Indonesian observers from the ASEAN were even denied to watch military troops leaving ! Until last week, sporadic shots were still to be listened.

Cambodia is chairman of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), Phnom Penh’s troops withdrawal is seen as a sign of goodwill as well as a way to improve the image of the country before hosting a series of meetings including the 19th Asean Regional Forum and the 2nd East Asian Summit.

Tensions at Preah Vihear resulted to an almost complete stop of any tourist activities in what could be one of the region’s top attractions. According to Preah Vihear province’s Tourism Department, the total number of visitors for 2011 fell to about 125,000 from more than 130,000 the previous year. Statistics from the Ministry of tourism talk about 42,000 tourists last year, including 10,542 foreigners. An access road has now been built from Cambodia to provide an easier access to the temple without forcing travellers to pass through Thailand. According to data from Preah Vihear province, the area has now two hotels and 19 guest houses offering a capacity of 231 rooms. And if things go again well, Preah Vihear temple could become the main tourism driver for the entire region, including Thailand…

Sourced: traveldailynews