Gunfire at the border
Foreign Minister Sompong Amornvivat urged Thai nationals in Cambodia to leave for home immediately after a Wednesday afternoon military battle along the disputed border. "Thai businessmen who have no need to be in Cambodia now, please rush back to Thailand," Sompong told reporters. "We have our evacuation plan ready," he added. In the Northeast, officials told residents of the border to be ready to move out quickly in case hostilities resume and escalate.
Thai and Cambodian troops reportedly exchanged gun fire for about 10 minutes at the border of Kantalak district, Si Sa Ket province at around 2.30pm. The incident reportedly occurred three kilometres from Phreah Vihear temple, and at the site of an Oct 3 clash which left two Thai soldiers and one Cambodian wounded. Thailand issued an official protest to the Cambodian government over that alleged border incursion.
Cambodia's Preah Vihear governor Prieb Tan claimed that Thailand started shooting at the Cambodian army first. Thai army spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd, meanwhile, claimed that Cambodian soldiers started the shooting first by firing about seven to eight shots onto the Thai soil so Thai soldiers had to defend themselves by firing them back using small weapons.
According to Col Sansern, four Thai army rangers were wounded while one Cambodian soldier was killed in the incident. On Tuesday, Col Sansern reiterated that Thailand would not shoot first, but warned that Thai troops were ready if Cambodian forces encroach into Thailand. The Thai army is ready to confront any incident to protect the country's sovereignty, he said. Meanwhile, Thailand put air force fighter jets and C-130 transport planes on alert. The C-130s have been used in a previous operation to bring Thais back home from Phnom Penh. "Normally we have fighter jets on stand-by at various regional headquarters ready for operation within five minutes, but under the current circumstances we have increased our readiness," Grp Capt Montol Suchookorn was quoted by the AFP news agency.
"I do hope the use of force is the last resort," he added.
EDITORIAL
Border tension must be cooled
The claim by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen that his country may be on the verge of a military confrontation with Thailand is unwelcome. There is a lot of evidence that the threat of violence is vastly overplayed.
Still, extraordinary steps may be necessary to ensure that decades of peaceful co-existence along a sometimes disputed frontier can continue. Territorial claims, especially around temples near the border, must be dealt with seriously. A battle or war between Thailand and Cambodia is unthinkable, both because of the disaster it would bring and because it is entirely preventable.
It is worth remembering that Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat was scheduled to begin the traditional tour by new government leaders of Asean with a visit to Phnom Penh on Monday. Correctly, Mr Somchai stayed home to attend to more pressing business. But such introductory meetings are often useful. Presuming officials steer their respective countries peacefully through the next few days, they also should discuss a personal meeting between the two prime ministers - if not in Phnom Penh as custom dictates, then perhaps at a neutral place, or even in Thailand.
Whatever the diplomatic moves in coming days, everyone in both countries must consider their words and actions with double care. A violent border flare-up is not in the interests of either country, and an actual military confrontation is unthinkable. Honest leaders can turn the border disagreement to the advantage of both countries, rather than the ruin of both.
Re-creating the peaceful Thai-Cambodian frontier for now seems to require two steps. The first is to remove the possibility of an accidental war between tense troops along a frontier that both sides consider to be poorly marked and often overgrown with jungle. Details need to be urgently considered and invoked by the joint border committee responsible for peace in the area. It seems prudent that an actual pullback by soldiers of both sides should take place, perhaps even for a few hundred metres. It should not be difficult to establish a temporary non-militarised buffer zone between Thai and Khmer forces where they are currently in close contact.
The second step must be by the leaders of both countries. The easy way on both sides is to accuse the other country of bad faith, lies and ill intentions. Such talk has little value, since it only inflames the hotheads at home, and their counterparts abroad. It must be said that Mr Hun Sen has created opportunities lately to criticise Thailand on a number of issues, as well as making charges that Thai troops harbour ill intentions towards his country.
PM Hun Sen and PM Somchai need to be especially professional and watch their words in public. A casual, careless or even misinterpreted comment by either man can easily make a tense situation worse, and turn confrontation into a battle or a war. It would be helpful if Mr Hun Sen cooled his comments, including what he thinks are the motivations of Thailand. He well knows that the government has serious political and economic concerns, and his ill-considered references to a possible border war could be escalated far out of context by Thai media and battling politicians.
Disputed areas on both the land and sea border must be negotiated to a settlement and not fought over. Cambodia should re-think its opposition to joint use of such areas, perhaps using similar arrangements with Vietnam and Malaysia as models. The correct place to "fight" over the border is at border committee sessions, diplomatic meetings and political summits.
[Source: Bangkok Post]
Myanmar - The Golden Land
Why called "The Golden Land"?
Gold is the most precious metal. Yes, Myanmars love gold. Gold is used every where: pagoda, monasteries, accessories of the nobles, and so on. Most pagodas in Myanmar are covered with gold leaves, or for those who cannot afford use gold paint in the modern days.
When you get to Myanmar, or if you have ever been to Myanmar, this question will need not be answered. You will see golden things or gold-covered monuments in every direction you turn.
No wonder, this is called the Golden Land!
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