Kuala lumpur: Samdech Maha Rathsapheathika Thipadei Khuon Sudary, President of the National Assembly of Cambodia, has called upon the international community to keep closely monitoring the Cambodia-Thailand border situation, and make its own assessment based on facts on the ground. 'International fact-finding mission is, therefore, urgently needed,' she said in her remarks at the first plenary session of the 46th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Sept. 18. In this connection, she added, we must continue supporting the ongoing efforts of the Interim Observer Team (IOT) and work towards the swift formation and deployment of ASEAN Observer Team (AOT).
According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, Samdech Khuon Sudary also expressed her concern over the fragile ceasefire agreement, as there are ongoing incidents of violations, including the illegal detention of 18 Cambodian soldiers taken hostage just hours after the ceasefire was reached and illegal installation of barbed wire and actions that disrupt the livelihoods of local communities and the violation of Cambodian sovereignty. She noted that on Sept. 17, Thai authorities used force against Cambodian civilians, injuring more than 20 people.
The Cambodian NA President thus appealed to Thailand to refrain from the use of forces against civilians and properties, stressing that building mutual trust requires efforts from both sides, based on good faith and sincerity. She underlined that the violators of the ceasefire must be condemned or punished. 'We must not use the rule of the jungle and the implementation of martial law with extraterritorial application that infringes on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other countries,' she said. 'We must take all necessary measures to protect the rights, dignity and safety of civilians.'
She further laid stress on the necessity to stop the use of military force to do unilateral boundary demarcation works and let the Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) to continue to work based on existing agreements and international law. In addition, Samdech Khuon Sudary referred to the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), recalling its rulings on the Preah Vihear Temple in 1962 and its surrounding areas in 2013, which she said provided important precedents for peacefully resolving border disputes, particularly in the most complex areas. 'If we have faith in international law, we should respect the decisions of the ICJ,' she emphasised.