[Marxism] Cambodian and Thai troops face off at Temple on often-tense border

["Fred Feldman" <ffeldman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

The Thai-Cambodian border area was a hot spot from 1979 till 1991, when
Thaiand ran a string of refugee camps along the border that were basically
handed over to the forces of the ousted Pol Pot regime, which they were
supporting against the Vietnamese and Cambodian forces who had ousted Pol
Pot in 1979.-

An international agreement in 1991 led to the withdrawal of most foreign
troops and to a UN peacekeeping presence, which subsequently ended.

The government, now headed by Hun Sen, which Vietnam had supported and
Thailand had sought to oust remains in power in Cambodia. Despite occasional
strains with Washington, the government is very much capitalist and
neoliberal in orientation. I see no sign of US involvement in what seems to
me to be a threat of aggression against Cambodia.

But by instinct and force of habit, I tilt toward Cambodia on this one.
Fred Feldman

July 21, 2008
Thai-Cambodian Temple Standoff Continues 
By SETH MYDANS
KANTHARALAK, Thailand - Hundreds of Thai and Cambodian soldiers faced off at
the ruins of an ancient Hindu temple here for a sixth straight day on
Sunday, in a modern-day echo of the age-old clash of empires across
Indochina.

The temple, perched high on a bluff on a disputed patch of border, may be
the prize. But the conflict has also created a secondary, more prosaic
target: an embattled government in Bangkok, where the opposition is using
the historical dispute and nationalist fervor as weapons.

The fires of nationalism have spread in both nations over the past few
weeks. Old grievances have flared, and troops and heavy weapons have been
mobilized in the mists above the jungle. Over the weekend, truckloads of
reinforcements from each country were seen heading toward the temple, called
Preah Vihear. 

Tense moments have been reported when weapons were aimed within the temple
complex. The prime ministers of both nations have exchanged stern notes,
hardening their positions.

The Cambodian government has taken its complaint to the United Nations,
saying that Thai troops have intruded onto its territory. The Thai prime
minister, Samak Sundaravej, insists that the area is Thai.

Neither government appears to want a war, and there were plans for the
countries' defense ministers to talk Monday. 

The conflict comes at a delicate time for both countries. Thailand has its
slow-burning political crisis, and nationalism is looming as a factor in
Cambodia's general election next Sunday as well.

But in Bangkok, political damage has already been done: the resignation of a
cabinet minister, a censure debate in Parliament and accusations of national
betrayal have further weakened a shaky, ineffective government.

"The Democrats have used this quite dishonestly to get at the current
government," said Chris Baker, a British historian of Thailand, speaking of
the main opposition party. "This of course is a very dangerous game. A troop
buildup is a very dangerous game. It's a very stupid way for Thailand to
deal with an important neighbor." 

Sovereignty is a volatile issue in a region where dominance has shifted over
the centuries among empires in what are now Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and
Thailand. "The dark side of nationalism is as dangerous as ever," said
Thongchai Winichakul, a historian and the author of "Siam Mapped: A History
of the Geo-Body of a Nation" (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1994).

Cambodia, which has been annexed throughout history by its neighbors on both
its eastern and its western borders, is particularly sensitive, and its
temples are a source of national pride. They symbolize its last period of
greatness, under the Angkorean kings, which ended with a Thai invasion in
the 15th century.

Just five years ago, mobs in Cambodia burned down the Thai Embassy because
of rumors that a Thai actress had claimed Thai sovereignty over Cambodia's
greatest temple, Angkor Wat.

The catalyst of today's confrontation seemed mild enough: the naming of the
Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage Site, a designation that is meant to
preserve historical monuments, not to call out armed soldiers.

The temple, built between the 9th and 11th centuries, is unlike any other.
It is an ornate, sagging ruin of broken pillars and sweeping roofs that
stands alone on a finger of rock, high above the forests of the Dangrek
Mountains. It was consecrated to the Hindu god Shiva when it was built, but,
like other temples in the Angkorean period, was converted to Buddhist use.

Questions of sovereignty are complicated by the temple's location at the top
of a 1,640-foot cliff. It is almost inaccessible from Cambodia, but it is
reachable through Thailand by a comfortable drive over a paved road.

On June 17, Unesco placed the temple on its list of protected monuments, or
World Heritage sites. It was responding to a bid from Cambodia that included
a disputed map drawn up by French colonial rulers in 1907.

Legally, the temple has belonged to Cambodia since 1962, after a ruling by
the International Court of Justice in The Hague. The French had left
Indochina seven years before, and the temple had been occupied in the
interim by Thai soldiers.

The Thais were forced to withdraw, and the court's decision has rankled in
Thailand ever since. The validity of the French map and the court's logic
have been questioned, and the focus is now on 1.8 square miles around the
temple that were not specifically covered in the ruling.

In a strangely passive response last month, the Thai government failed to
insist on joining Cambodia as a bidder for the Unesco designation and signed
off on the questionable map that Cambodia presented.

This was fuel enough for the Thai opposition, which says, without presenting
evidence, that a backroom deal had been struck and that the man behind it
was the country's most prominent wheeler-dealer, former Prime Minister
Thaksin Shinawatra.

Mr. Thaksin, who was deposed in a coup in 2006, remains influential in
business and politics, and has financial interests in Cambodia. The man who
let Cambodia's bid slip through - and who was forced to resign as a result -
was Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama, once Mr. Thaksin's personal lawyer.

The embattled prime minister, Mr. Samak, is also seen by his critics as Mr.
Thaksin's proxy, and, under pressure from the opposition, he has begun
talking tough. Having earlier called the nationalist protesters crazy, Mr.
Samak sounded a nationalist note on Friday, saying that the Cambodian
presence at the temple "is a continued violation of Thailand's sovereignty
and territorial integrity." 

The Dangrek mountain range and the high plains in Thailand that lie beyond
it are home to dozens of lesser temples in Khmer style, including two in
Thailand that Cambodia laid claim to in 2003. Experts say there are 15 more
overlapping locations along the nations' 500-mile border that need to be
resolved.

But Preah Vihear, in its majesty and geographical ambiguity, has been the
symbol for both sides' claims of dominance. "The Preah Vihear temple is part
of a wounded history of Thailand and Cambodia," said Charnvit Kasetsiri, a
historian Thammasat University in Bangkok.

That history - as the troops and heavy weapons deployed at the temple show -
has not yet receded into the past.



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