Bangkok - Thailand on Tuesday withdrew its support for a
Cambodian proposal to list Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage
site at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO).
The Cabinet decided to backtrack on support for the controversial
temple's listing to obey an Administrative Court order made over the
weekend, Deputy Prime Somchai Wongsavat said.
It is unclear whether the government change in stance on the
listing will derail Cambodia's proposal to list the centuries-old
Hindu temple at UNESCO's upcoming meeting in Geneva on July 2-10.
Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, who is currently visiting
China, called his Cambodian counterpart Hun Sen to personally inform
him of the cabinet decision and to urge him to guarantee the personal
safety of Thai nationals living in Cambodia, said the Thai News
Agency (TNA).
Preah Vihear, a stunning cliff-top temple dedicated to the Hindu
God Shiva, has long been a source of diplomatic spats between the two
neighbouring countries.
The temple is perched on a mountain range that defines the
Thai-Cambodian border.
Cambodia was awarded Preah Vihear by a World Court ruling in 1962,
but when Phnom Penh attempted to list the temple as a UNESCO heritage
site last year, Thailand objected on the grounds that the inscription
map included land that was still subject to a border dispute.
Cambodia in May rewrote the inscription map to exclude a 4.6
square kilometres of disputed land, winning Thai government approval
for the proposal on June 10.
The approval was poorly timed, coinciding with street protests
and a censure debate against the Thai government. Participants in the
street protests and the censure debate used the Preah Vihear issue to
accuse the cabinet of 'selling off' the nation, and furthering the
business interests of certain Thai politicians seeking deals in
Cambodia.
The Administrative Court issued an injunction on Saturday
demanding the the government end its support of the Cambodian
proposal. On Tuesday, the Cabinet obeyed the order.
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