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By John Hall and Sophal Ear
New America Media
In the dense jungles on the border between Thailand and Cambodia, thousands of troops are involved in a tense armed standoff.
A long-simmering dispute over which nation has claim to a 900-year-old temple has in recent days become far more sinister. Thousands of Thai nationalists descended on the temple and a confrontation with Cambodian authorities quickly escalated. Cambodia claims that Thai troops have crossed the border. One Thai soldier has been seriously injured. There is a real danger, and unless cooler heads prevail a disaster could unfold that has serious implications for the stability of the region.
The temple in question, the 11th and 12th century Shiva-dedicated Preah Vihear, is widely considered one of the masterpieces of ancient Khmer architecture, sharing the Hindu-influenced style of the more famous Angkor complex.
Unfortunately, the temple sits astride the border between Thailand and Cambodia, and both countries have claimed the site. Thai forces occupied the temple in 1954 when the French withdrew from Cambodia. In response, the newly independent Cambodia asked the International Court of Justice to rule that the temple was within Cambodian territory.
In a landmark ruling in 1962, the ICJ upheld Cambodia's claim to the temple and the land on which it sits. Former U.S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson represented Cambodia in the Hague, arguing that a 1907 survey map drawn by French officers established the border's precise location. That map, which had been supplied to Siamese authorities, showed the temple as being on the Cambodian side of the border. Thailand's legal team, which included former British attorney general Sir Frank Soskice, argued that the map was invalid.
Crucial in the ICJ's ruling in favor of Cambodia was the fact that Thailand had failed to object in international forums to the map's depiction of the border, despite ample opportunity to do so, and had benefited from other parts of the border treaty. Despite massive protests in Thailand, Cambodia took possession of the temple in 1963. The 1962 ICJ ruling remains deeply unpopular in Thailand, and has been used as a trigger of crude nationalist and anti-Cambodian sentiment. The issue remains a hot-button political topic, and for many Thais, the temple is an embodiment of stolen Thai history and culture.
For Cambodians also, the Preah Vihear temple has a particular cultural resonance that fosters fervent nationalism. The temple symbolizes what is seen by Cambodians as the determination of their more prosperous and powerful Thai neighbors to claim as their own the greatest achievements of ancient Khmer culture. In addition, it was within this vicinity, the Dangrek Mountains. in 1979 that Thai soldiers forced thousands of Cambodian refugees back across the border into an area known to be infested with landmines and Khmer Rouge guerrillas. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of the refugees died. Hundreds or thousands more were robbed and raped by Thai forces before being returned to Cambodia and their fate. It is a shameful episode largely unknown in Thailand, but vivid in the memory of Cambodians.
The spark that ignited the current confrontation was the recent decision by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee to formally recognize Preah Vihear as a World Heritage site — only the third such designation for Cambodia, after the Angkor temples and traditional Khmer dance. Cambodia has submitted an application for Preah Vihear, including surrounding land, perennially since at least 2001, but had thus far been thwarted by Thailand. In 2008, this time with the support of the Thai government, Cambodia resubmitted for just the temple and not the disputed land. The reaction among Thai nationalists was angry and swift: Protesters swarmed to Preah Vihear, and on June 22, Cambodia closed the border.
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