Cambodia's border posts grow legs!

Former King, Norodom Sihanouk, is understandably far from being happy as he undergoes chemotherapy at Beijing Hospital. Much of this unhappiness and frustration revolves around his own sense of powerlessness in resolving Cambodia's sensitive border disputes with its neighbours, especially Vietnam.
 
Underlying all this angst and anxiety is the unspoken fear that once he leaves the scene there may not be anyone influential enough to challenge the validity of the border agreements Vietnam signed with Cambodia in the 80s. This was at a time when Vietnam was an occupying force and the then government in Phnom Penh was not recognised by the United Nations and lacked international legitimacy.
 
For that matter, Sihanouk himself had never recognised these agreements with Vietnam, a sticking point in the bilateral relations. It was therefore small wonder that Sihanouk sent out an open letter on March 31, to the governments of Vietnam, Laos and Thailand, unceremoniously accusing them of even now ''nibbling away" at Cambodian territory. This was not pique, it was strategy.
 
This letter was more strident than Sihanouk's memorable quote some years earlier about the stone border markers with Vietnam having legs and surreptitiously walking deeper and deeper into Cambodian territory! Given these legs, Sihanouk, in his letter, called for a "joint verification, kilometre by kilometre, on the ground and on the spot of the delimitation of our common borders found in the US geographic maps produced by Washington DC between 1963 and 1969".
 
Sihanouk's totally unexpected and unwelcome letter must have displeased Prime Minister Hun Sen and the other CPP leaders no end. They would have immediately recognised it as being similar to Sihanouk's earlier abdication strategy of forcing them to address an issue that was on the CPP back burner.
 
Likewise, the governments of Vietnam, Thailand and Laos would certainly not have been amused by Sihanouk's gambit but diplomatically opted to maintain a frosty silence. Sihanouk is far too astute not to have anticipated such a reaction and would appear to have calculated that desperate problems called for unorthodox measures.
 
Cambodian leaders are skilled in political manoeuvres and one-upmanship which they practise with tremendous enthusiasm. In the event, the Cambodian government was no less creative than the former King and promptly established a politically heavyweight seven-member Supreme National Council on Border Affairs which Sihanouk was persuaded to chair by King Norodom Sihamoni, his son.
 
It was all politically correct and the initial hype raised expectations among the Cambodian diaspora, in Cambodian newsgroups and among sections of the Cambodian public. The general view was that if anyone could move bilateral negotiations forward, it would be Sihanouk and that the Council would go forth and boldly push the border markers where they legitimately ought  to be.
 
Much of the euphoria quickly evaporated and was replaced with sheer disappointment when the Royal Decree, which established the Council, was made public. These articles of the Decree were not seen as being politically correct at all, especially the requirement that every decision of the Council had to be unanimous. To many this alone was an unsurmountable hurdle, as some in the Council considered the border agreements signed with Vietnam in the 80s as the legitimate basis for negotiations. The others clearly found this unacceptable.
 
Significantly, a day before the inaugural meeting, state television telecast a speech made in 2002 by DPM Sok An, CPP strategist and a member of the Council, in which he stoutly defended the border treaties of 1982, 1983 and 1985 which Cambodia had signed with Vietnam. The official explanation for the repeat telecast was "to remind people that the government had worked hard on border issues".
 
The reality to most was that until and unless the Council could speak with one voice, there was little hope of negotiations or joint border inspections with neighbouring countries any time soon, if at all.
 
There was also disappointment at two other constraints: that the Council's deliberations were to be kept confidential and that the Council would serve in an advisory role, which led Sihanouk to complain that it was effectively powerless. Neutral observers, however, understand the need for secrecy when such sensitive internal issues are discussed by the Council.
 
Nevertheless, it was leaked to the media that at the inaugural two-day meeting on May 11 and 12, Council member Princess Norodom Vacheara submitted an amended draft of the Royal Decree in which the Council would be given greater powers, in particular to negotiate directly with the neighbouring countries. Both the royalist Funcinpec and the opposition SRP supported the amended Royal Decree while the CPP representatives needed time to discuss the issue within the party structure.
 
Sihanouk played his cards well. He did not openly betray any disappointment or raise any doubts. At the end of the inaugural meeting Sihanouk diplomatically expressed optimism, stating "everyone had learned from one another" about the complex border issues. A couple of days later, this did not prevent him from calling on "anonymous patriotic compatriots" to discreetly report to him any border encroachments.
 
No date has been set for the next meeting. The initial euphoria and high expectations are gone. The cynics and the detractors see little hope. The King's admirers are glad the controversial agreements were given an international airing and believe Sihanouk may have a couple of tricks up his sleeve.
 
For the moment the concern is for Sihanouk's health.