World Heritage listing for Preah Vihear
QUEBEC CITY – The World Heritage Committee (WTC) has approved Cambodia’s application to list the 11th century Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage site.
Bangkok was opposed to Phnom Penh’s proposal, instead favouring a joint nomination of the site.
Thailand had been unable to convince the WHC to postpone the issue and wait for a joint nomination, or to defer it until the next meeting.
The WHC said the Preah Vihear issue had already been postponed once, at last year’s gathering in Christchurch, New Zealand.
The meeting also inscribed the cities of the Straits of Malacca: Melaka and Georgetown in Malaysia, and the Kuk Early Agricultural Site in Papua New Guinea, AFP reported.
The WHC had sent its representatives to talk with the Thai and Cambodian delegates to clarify their positions.
Pongpol Adireksan, chairman of the Thai World Heritage Committee, said the temple listing would have no effect on the demarcation of the border between the two countries. It was specifically only the temple site.
Pongpol said political problems in Thailand had affected the country’s ability to lobby committee members.
“We are at a disadvantage. Cambodia regards Preah Vihear as a national issue and continued lobbying when Thailand was undergoing a coup,” he said.
Last week, Cambodia deployed riot police to protect the Thai embassy for fear that a border dispute over the temple could spark violent protests.
Security forces were also mobilised to protect Thai-owned businesses in the capital Phnom Penh.
In 1962, the dispute over the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple went before the World Court, which ruled that the temple belonged to Cambodia, although the main entrance lies at the foot of a mountain in Thailand.
The long-standing row appeared resolved last month, after Thailand endorsed Cambodia’s plan to seek World Heritage status at a UNESCO meeting in Canada this week.
But the deal sparked a political controversy in Thailand, and last week Cambodia closed the mountaintop temple after more than 100 Thais marched to the compound to protest the deal.
A Thai court then forced the government to suspend its endorsement of the plan.
Ian Jarrett
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