[Tlc] TC-Thai troops enter Cambodia

[justinm at ucr.edu]

FYI.
Thanks,
justin


Official: Thai troops enter Cambodia

By KER MUNTHIT

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — About 40 Thai troops entered Cambodian
territory on Tuesday as tension escalated over disputed land around an
ancient temple, a Cambodian official said.

The Thai military denied any border violation, saying the troops had
only deployed near the disputed area near the 11th-century Preah
Vihear temple "to protect our sovereignty."

The claimed intrusion follows the arrest by Cambodia of three Thai
citizens who crossed the frontier near the temple, which was recently
awarded World Heritage Site status by UNESCO.

Thailand claims some of the territory near Preah Vihear.

The Thai troops entered Cambodian territory near the temple, said Hang
Soth, director-general of the national authority for Preah Vihear
temple, an agency responsible for the monument.

Cambodian troops have been ordered to be on alert but not to be the
first to fire, Hang Soth said.

Thai Maj. Gen. Kanok Netakawesana, the regional army commander, said
in a telephone interview that the troops were on Thai soil close to
the disputed area. He declined to give the number of soldiers
deployed.

"We are not violating the territory of Cambodia. We have every right
to deploy troops here to protect our sovereignty," Kanok said.

Hang Soth said a Thai Buddhist monk, a woman and a man apparently
managed to evade a checkpoint on the Thai side and crossed through a
jungle border into Cambodia.

The incident marked the first cross-border foray by Thai protesters
since Cambodia shut off access to Preah Vihear temple to visitors from
Thailand late last month.

He said they were immediately stopped by Cambodian guards and were
being held until Thai officials came to take them back. Earlier, he
had said the protesters had already been returned to Thailand.

In 1962, the International Court of Justice awarded the temple and the
land it occupies to Cambodia.

The decision still rankles many Thais even though the temple is
culturally Cambodian, sharing the Hindu-influenced style of the more
famous Angkor complex in northwestern Cambodia.

Cambodia's recent move to secure the world landmark status has angered
political leaders in Thailand. Thais have held small protests, fearing
it would jeopardize their country's claims to the disputed land.

Domestic opponents of Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej have seized
on the issue in an attempt to bring down his government.

On Tuesday, the activist movement, People's Alliance for Democracy,
launched impeachment proceedings against the government by submitting
40,000 signatures of eligible voters to the upper house of Parliament.


______________
Dr. Justin McDaniel
Dept. of Religious Studies
3046 INTN
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, CA 92521
951-827-4530
justinm at ucr.edu