Letter From Phnom Penh: Until My Last Breath, krishna !

                                                                       Phnom Penh, Kingdom Of Cambodia

                                                                           Thursday, August 21, 2008

 Dear heng krishna,

It’s about 260 days or 6240 hours we are apart ! I miss you, darling ! We are meant to be together for the rest of our lives, this we know. Each day that passes I am aware that it means that it is one day closer to being in your arms and see you again. I just wish that their was another way that we could be together without living so far apart right at the time being. I want you to know that I love you and always will, and there is nothing that will ever change how I feel about you. I love you, my dear krishna ! Being apart from you is feeling death in slow motion. I think of how things could have been if only we had gotten married. But, what can we do now ?  I’m lost without you, and I can’t think of anything else, but of what our destiny might be. Suddenly, I close my eyes and I imagine your hands caressing my face, fearing that you’ll feel the tears running through my cheeks. I know you’re hurting as much as I am, but I don’t want you to feel sorry for me. I love you and I’m not sorry for loving you, you’ve giving me so much happiness, and I know you’re loving me in your own great way. I miss you soo much and the fear of losing you is making me mad. Don’t let our love die through the distance, nor let the faith fall away… I’m waiting for you until you come back to my arms, and make the sun shine once again on these stormy times.

Darling ! Let’s we start talking about our national problems:

Firstly, I want to share my idea with you about the process of forming the new government of Cambodia;

As the result of the general election on July 27, The CPP ( Party Of PM Hun Sen ) won 90 out of 123 seats in the National Assembly.This party almost wiped out its long-standing coalition partner, the Funcinpec party, which saw its seats reduced from 26 to two. Two newly formed parties, the Norodom Ranariddh Party and the Human Rights Party, took two and three seats respectively, while the opposition Sam Rainsy Party increased its seats from 24 to 26. Sam Rainsy and Human Rights reject the election results and have filed complaints against election irregularities. They have also threatened to boycott the opening of the new Parliament. While the Funcinpec party and Norodom Ranaridh Party soon changed its mind and accepted the election results.

But, my dear krishna, why CPP does not format the new government alone ?

With the absence of an opposition role, the new Parliament cannot be seen as representing the entire nation, only the majority of its citizens who voted for the Cambodian People’s Party. This Parliament will lose its status and role as one of the three branches of government.  Checks and balances between these three branches and the separation of powers will completely disappear. Cambodia will then become practically a one-party state, a development which is not friendly to democracy, the rule of law and human rights. In order to avoid all these negative developments, Cambodia’s new Parliament should continue the practice of its predecessor. In order to represent the entire nation it must allow the opposition parties to be an integral part of the Parliament and assume the chairmanship of some of its nine committees, so the opposition can play an active role in the governance of the nation.

Secondly, I want to share my idea with you about the dispute between Cambodia and Thailand. I have three questions to mention with you.
My first question is :
 Who owns the Preah Vihear Temple and surroundings ? With no doubt, Cambodia does ! 

On June 15, 1962, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that, ‘the Court, by nine votes to three, finds that the temple of Preah Vihear is situated in territory under the sovereignty of Cambodia.’ The Cabinet of the time made a resolution and announced that Thailand, as a member of the United Nations, accepted the ICJ ruling. Although Thailand protested and reserved the right to request a revision of the ruling as allowed by Article 61 of the Statute of the Court within 10 years after the date of the ruling, Thailand has never officially made any application for such a revision, nor made any request for the Court to clarify the meaning or scope of the judgment, as allowed indefinitely under Article 60. So where have the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD), the Democrat Party and the nationalists been ? After a lapse of 46 years, they still insist on reserving this right. Such a dogged stance can never make any difference, except by showing their own uncivilized minds. The PAD and the Democrat Party say that Thailand has always insisted that the watershed line of Phnom Dongrek Mountain Range was the borderline between Thailand and Cambodia.  The PAD and the Democrat Party say that Cambodia won the case, but owns only the temple, and not the territory on which the temple is situated. What a distorted and craftily arbitrary reading of the ICJ’s judgment ! Please read and reread the judgment. Anyone with an honest and righteous mind will never read it that way. Who built and owned the Preah Vihear temple in the first place ? The Preah Vihear Temple was built at the beginning of the 9th century, and construction continued through the reign of King Suriya Varaman I (1002-1050 ) to be finished in the reign of King Suriya Varaman II ( 1113-1150 ) when the prosperous and strong Khmer empire ruled the region 300 hundred years before the emergence of the Sukhothai Kingdom (see The Preah Vihear Temple: Politico-historical Case Study and Nationalism by Charnvit Kasetsiri, p.2) In a nutshell, the ancestors of the Khmer people built and owned the Preah Vihear Temple in the first place.

My second question:

Is it true that the Preah Vihear Temple used to belong to Thailand, but was lost to Cambodia by the ICJ judgment ?

Originally, the Preah Vihear Temple belonged to the Khmer. Some Thai people always say that Thai loss its torritory ( preah vihear )  to Cambodia ( sic ). As a Cambodian daughter, I answer to you that: Yes, you’re right ! Because the Preah Vihear Temple once belonged to Siam from the reign of the Ayutthaya King Chao Sam Phraya onwards because of the Siamese victory over the Khmer Kingdom. However, according to history in 1431, during the reign of the King Ponhnhea Yat, the Khmer army was defeated by the Ayuthaya kingdom and  Angkor Wat also was seized. The Khmer had to move the capital to Udong Meanchey and then Phnom Penh ( Chaktomuk Serei Moha Mokul ). Since then, Battambang, Sisophon and Siam Reap, as well as the Preah Vihear Temple, were annexed to Siam. On March 23, 1907,  King Rama V signed the Franco-Siamese boundary treaty with the President of France, agreeing to exchange Siam’s Battambang, Sisophon and Siam Reap, as well as the Preah Vihear Temple, for the French-occupied Chantaburi, Trat provinces and Dan Sai in Loei. Once independent from France, Cambodia claimed the Preah Vihear Temple, based on the Treaty, that King Rama V returned it to France who colonized Cambodia .  So it is enough to make you understand about the history ! Forget your daydream PAD’s , The Democrat Party’s leaders and Some extremist Thais.

And my third question:

 If the Preah Vihear Temple is listed as a World Heritage, what would be the pros and cons for Thailand ?

UNESCO would provide personnel and budget for the restoration of the Preah Vihear Temple and its surroundings, as well as serve as a worldwide advertisement for the temple as a world-class tourist attraction on par with Angkor Wat. However, due to the inaccessible sheer cliff and the present lack of proper infrastructure and facilities on the Cambodian side, access could only be made via Thailand. The possible future development of a cable car to reach the temple from the Cambodian side along with investment in infrastructure and facilities including an airport, roads, electricity, water, hotels, etc., would still take years or even decades. So the listing would benefit Thailand’s tourism industry as well as the friendship between the two countries. The scare-mongering by the PAD and Democrat Party within Thai society, alleging that Thailand is poised to lose territory or sovereignty, is therefore just a cheap and dirty political trick which would not do any good to anybody. Hopefully, Thai people understand about their advantages over The Preah Vihear and they will in the future remember the dirty political trick of the PAD and the Democrat Party. Please don’t vote for them !

My dear heng krishna ! I live to live, to spend a lifetime with you as your wife and to grow old with you, loving you for all times from now to eternity. I love to love you.

   Always contact my dear darling, krishna !

Always and forever love you until the last breath of my heart,

sikar tevie

             

The Words Of Wisdom Of Khmer Ancestors

      

My Beloved People:

Your goodness and your bravery are the hallmarks of our hope. We, your heroes and your respectful ancestors, never have evil or vengeful wishes towards you and Cambodia. We only have good wishes, tender care and love for you and our khmer people in our hearts. We have no room for harmful thoughts or evil acts to tarnish our good intention for people and country. Our love for you is infinite and pure. We fought for you ! We fought for our next generation ! We fought for protecting our territory !

 We are not sad or embarrassed if you lack material luxuries, but we are truly sad and embarrassed if you are lack of patriotism, weak, cruel, coward and selfish . Our country, Cambodia, is not the only thing to which we owe our allegiance. It is also owed to peace, independence, justice and to humanity.  Patriotism consists not in waving the flag, but in striving that our country shall be righteous as well as strong. 

            

We are glad and contented to see our country be glorious by your hands of devotion.  We are especially proud to see you have become the good and strong people.

With our best wishes to you !

Mouk Tnout Puk ( A Father’s Palm Hat )

  It’s a hat. The hat belongs to Puk . Puk  wears it when Puk works in the rice paddies under the hot sunshine. Puk is a hero in kon’s life ! Puk works hard in rice fields everyday.  Puk devotes sweat and blood  to earn money for kon !  Sweat Puk becomes a river ! Puk struggles for kon ! kon want to write about Puk’s devotions everyday…… to let other people drop by to see and know that Puk is kon’s hero ! Puk is kon’s guide ! Puk is a holy person ! Puk is everything !
 * I’m grateful that Puk is always here  when kon desperately need puk.

 * I’m grateful that Puk  is a virtual encyclopedia of knowledge when kon need Puk to be.       

 * I’m grateful kon‘ve had Puk as kon’s hero !!!      

                  Looking Puk’s & Mee’s photograph, kon miss Puk & Mee so much ! A photograph never grows old. But kon change, kon change all through the minutes, days, months and years, but a Puk’s photograph always remains the same. How nice to look at a photograph of Mee  & Puk taken many years ago. kon see Puk and Mee  kon really miss ! Puk & Mee robos kon, study is the obligation and devotion, kon always remember Puk’s & Mee’s advice.

Eng H.Leng