Wednesday, February 2, 2011

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Posted: 02 Feb 2011 02:08 PM PST
Cambodian justice queried

3/02/2011
Bangkok Post
... high-level [Cambodian] government figures had been able to use the court system to target opposition leaders, activists and journalists with defamation suits. Such an assessment clearly paints the Cambodian justice system in a negative light.
From the outset the additional charge of espionage slapped on Veera Somkhwamkid and his secretary Ratree Pipatanapaiboon by the Cambodian authorities, smelled fishy.

The two were among a group of seven Thais, including Democrat MP Panich Vikitsreth, who were on a trip to investigate Thai villagers' complaints of alleged border intrusion in Sa Kaeo province by Cambodian forces and civilians, when they were arrested by the Cambodian military on Dec 29. They were all initially charged with illegal entry and trespassing in a military area.

No explanation was given why these two were singled out to face the espionage charge, despite the fact that all the seven Thais were on the same trip and at the same spot when they were stopped and apprehended by Cambodian forces. Hence the assumption that the charge was fabricated, probably to teach them a lesson for their open hostility to Cambodia.

Mr Veera is a co-leader of the ultra-nationalist Thai Patriots Network and has been very outspoken against the 2000 Memorandum of Understanding on boundary demarcation between Thailand and Cambodia.

He had been arrested once before by the Cambodians for illegal intrusion, but had been released shortly afterward.

Ms Ratree is also a member of the network which has been spearheading an anti-Cambodian and anti-Abhisit government campaign together with the People's Alliance for Democracy.

Tuesday's conviction of Mr Veera and Ms Ratree with tough prison terms by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on all the three charges was not surprising, given the fact that the case has been politicised by the Cambodian government for reasons that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen should be fully aware of.

The lawyer of the two Thai defendants, Nathaporn Toprayoon, said that he would appeal the sentence. However, he admitted he was puzzled why his clients were given different jail terms - eight years for Mr Veera and six years for Ms Ratree - despite the fact that they had been arrested at the same time and charged with the same offence.

The only explanation to his query is that this was Cambodian-style justice.

Cambodia's opposition leader Sam Rainsy should be a suitable authority to speak about the Cambodian justice system, after having been tried in absentia and sentenced to two years in prison and a fine of 8 million riel (60,000 baht) early last year, on charges of fuelling racial tensions and destroying demarcation posts on the Cambodian-Vietnamese border.

Government critics and other opposition MPs in Cambodia who faced defamation charges, could also join Mr Rainsy's bandwagon to echo the problems of rule of law and the Cambodian judiciary.

In last year's report, New York-based Human Rights Watch said that as most judges and prosecutors in Cambodia were members of the ruling Cambodian People's Party, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and other high-level government figures had been able to use the court system to target opposition leaders, activists and journalists with defamation suits. Such an assessment clearly paints the Cambodian justice system in a negative light.

If the entire Cambodian court drama was meant to shame and discredit Thailand in the eyes of the international community, it has done just the opposite. The drama has, once again, exposed the weakness of the Cambodian judiciary as just a political tool of Hun Sen.
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 11:53 AM PST
Wednesday, 02 February 2011
Thomas Miller
The Phnom Penh Post

United States officials finished a three-day trip to Cambodia yesterday focused on bilateral military cooperation and supporting the development of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces into a "professional force".

Neang Phat, secretary of state for National Defence, led the Cambodian delegation in the meetings and said yesterday the visit demonstrated "that the relationship between Cambodia and America is very good".

The purpose of the visit was to emphasise "commitment to assisting the RCAF develop a professional force, while encouraging Cambodia to continue on a path of improved transparency, governance, commitment to the rule of law, sustained democratic development and respect for human rights," a statement from the US Embassy said.


Derek Mitchell, principal deputy assistant secretary of defense, said at the US Embassy in Phnom Penh yesterday the Cambodian military was carrying out "notable institutional reforms" that had the potential to create a "transparent RCAF" that respects human rights and acts as a force for stability in the region.

He declined however to offer details on those reforms.

Mitchell said Cambodian counterparts showed great interest in engaging with the US, "and they know we come with certain standards ... we were very clear in our dialogue in laying those out and reaffirming that".

Mitchell emphasised the value of US training and support over its direct military aid, which he said stands at US$1 million annually.

Mitchell also met with NGOs, which he said were "extremely important in this society".

Ou Virak, president of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, and other human rights workers met with Mitchell yesterday.

"I do have a sense that the US engagement militarily is a given, so the conversation is 'how', not whether they should [engage] or not," he said.

Ou Virak said the Cambodian armed forces are "most responsible for most of the rights violations, particularly the land grabbing", in Cambodia.

"There is a lot of talk of professionalising the military," he said, but "not enough" action. He said it is not yet clear what "professionalising" the military means.

He said the US has to be "extremely careful in making sure that the engagement isn't enhancing the tools that oppress the people."

The best way to do that, he said, was through frank talk.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SEN DAVID
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 11:49 AM PST
BANGKOK, Feb 2 (MCOT online news) – Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya goes to Phnom Penh Thursday to hold talks with his Cambodian counterpart on two Thai activists sentenced by a Cambodian court and border issues, Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi said on Wednesday.

"Foreign Minister Kasit will visit Cambodia to hold talks with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong to discuss help for the two Thais and [solutions to the] border disputes," Mr Thani said.

Two Thai activists, Veera Somkwamkid and Ratree Pipattanapaiboon, his secretary were found guilty of espionage, illegal entry and trespassing in a military zone.


A Cambodian court on Tuesday handed down an eight-year jail term and a 1.8 million riel (US$450) fine for Veera Somkwamkid, a key activist of a Thai nationalist movement and a six-year jail term and a 1.2 million riel (US$300) fine for his secretary.

Legal advisers of the two activists were prepared to appeal the ruling. The foreign ministry respected their decision and was ready to assist them, the ministry spokesman said.

Regarding the Cambodian foreign ministry's statement stating that Cambodia will neither dismantle Wat Kaew Sikha Khiri Sawara nor remove the Cambodian national flag flying over the temple as demanded by the Thai foreign ministry on Monday, the ministry's spokesman said Thailand will not issue a daily 'tit-for-tat' statement.

The ministry however will study facts and settle the problem through negotiations to create better understanding with Cambodia and to find a solution to the problem, he said.

The temple is located on 4.6-kilometre-square disputed area, claimed by both countries. Cambodia last month demolished two stone tablets erected at the temple, accusing Thai troops of invading Cambodian territory following a request by Thailand and asserting that the area belongs to Cambodia.
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 11:43 AM PST
Wednesday, 02 February 2011
James O'Toole
The Phnom Penh Post

The Khmer Rouge tribunal's investigating judges issued a statement today providing an update on the progress of the court's controversial investigations in its third and fourth cases.

The statement follows the admission from Cambodian Co-Investigating Judge You Bunleng yesterday that he was participating in the investigations, which have faced opposition from Prime Minister Hun Sen and Cambodian tribunal officials including co-prosecutor Chea Leang.

"For these cases, I am working with the foreign judge and already have a specific plan," You Bunleng said on Tuesday.

"Now we are examining the cases and documents in relation to the previous cases."
The judges said in their statement today that they "wish to make an update to the public on the ongoing work on Case Files 003 and 004".

"The work at present is focused on examining and analyzing the documents available on the Case Files, particularly the existing documents in the previous Cases Files 001 and 002," the judges said, adding that they had established "joint working groups".

"Therefore, at this stage, no field investigation is being conducted."

Anne Heindel, a legal adviser with the Documentation Centre of Cambodia, said the statement reflected the political sensitivity of the issue, with the judges attempting to "minimise the scope" of You Bunleng's involvement in the investigations.

"I think he's trying to do his job but stay below the radar," she said.

"It's still an investigation; it's just a paper investigation."

Heindel added that You Bunleng may not yet have signed rogatory letters authorising investigators to work outside the office.

In June, You Bunleng and his foreign counterpart, then-Co-Investigating Judge Marcel Lemonde, made public letters revealing that they had disagreed on the timing of the Case 003 and 004 investigations.

Lemonde called on You Bunleng to sign a rogatory letter authorising investigations of potential crime sites in the cases, which You Bunleng signed initially before changing his mind, saying he preferred to wait to consider the matter until after the issuance of indictments in the court's second case.

Those indictments were handed down in September, after which Lemonde stepped down and was succeeded by the German judge Siegfried Blunk.

As recently as late November, however, You Bunleng said he was still undecided on how to proceed with the cases.

During a visit to Cambodia by United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon in October, Hun Sen reportedly said the pending investigations in Cases 003 and 004 were a threat to the Kingdom's stability.

"Samdech [Hun Sen] clearly affirmed that Case 003 will not be allowed," Foreign Minister Hor Namhong told reporters following the meeting.

"We have to think about peace in Cambodia or the court will fail."

Although the judges' statement cited "ongoing work on Case Files 003 and 004", Clair Duffy, a court monitor with the Open Society Justice Initiative, said in an email that there appeared to have been "little substantive investigation" in the cases to date.

"These cases have been before the co-investigating judges since September 2009," she said.

"My question is at what point does it become essential – as required by the rules of the court themselves – to provide more information to the Cambodian people and the international community about the progress of these cases?"
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 11:37 AM PST
February 2, 2011
Press Release

Cambodian tourism businesses have launched a colorful, global campaign, Adore Cambodia!, to let GLBT travelers know they are especially welcome in the Kingdom of Wonders.

With the spread of ultra-cheap flights from regional hubs like Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam, gay and lesbian tourists have discovered a quiet haven of tolerance, culture and world heritage that is actively reaching out to the economically powerful GLBT niche travel market.

"Siem Reap is remarkable because major players in the hospitality and service industries are comfortable extending a genuine welcome specifically to GLBT visitors," explains John Goss, director of Utopia-Asia.com which lists more than 70 gay-owned and gay-friendly businesses around Cambodia. "These include Travel and Leisure's #1 hotel in Cambodia, dozens of gay-run boutique accommodations, trend-setting restaurants, and fashion and design innovators that are part of a hip, emerging contemporary arts movement dubbed Cambodia Cool."


Siem Reap also boasts Cambodia's first men-only leisure complex combining an uber-stylish hotel, spa, and gym designed by one of the country's leading architects. The New York Times even stood up and took notice recently, proclaiming Siem Reap to be a "gay haven" in 2010.

"Mutual respect between people is deeply a part of Khmer culture. Gays and lesbians are included as long as cultural traditions are respected," explains openly gay business owner, Sopheara. "More and more Cambodians, in all strata of society, are living an open gay life. But you won't find provocative displays of sexuality here, as you might in some other countries. Cambodia is refreshingly free and easy for gays wanting to blend in with our live-and-let-live lifestyle."

There's lots for gay and lesbian travelers to adore in Cambodia. Here are some of the charms to be discovered on your next weekend getaway or extended tropical holiday...

Romantic, gay-run boutique hotels for every budget. Inexpensive foodie thrills, from Khmer fusion fine dining to the handsome grilled banana vendor's cart. A thriving arts, crafts and fashion scene splashing vivid colors across glossy magazines and runways around the globe. Rainbow travel services and tour guides to show you the ancient wonders of Angkor Wat. Responsible eco-tours to remote ruins and forests while viewing wildlife and interacting with locals in rural, community-building projects. A relaxed, no-hustle selection of gay-run bars, gyms, saunas, and spas to add just the right amount of fun and fitness to the laid-back local lifestyle. Super cheap flights on budget airlines to connect you to many of Southeast Asia's heritage cities. And, the tolerant and kind Khmer people who work so hard to make your holiday relaxed and trouble-free.

Discover the beauty of a warm Khmer welcome. You're sure to Adore Cambodia!

The Adore Cambodia! logo design is based on the Cambodian national flower, the Rumbdul, depicted in the six colors of the internationally recognized "gay rainbow."

For more information, please visit www.utopia-asia.com/ucool/article_cambodia.htm
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 10:10 AM PST
By Prak Chan Thul

PHNOM PENH Feb 2 (Reuters) - A bank in Cambodia has stopped certain Vietnamese from getting dollars from its ATMs after a surge in withdrawals, apparently by traders taking advantage of a drop in the black market value of Vietnam's currency, the dong.

ANZ Royal Bank, partly owned by Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ANZ.AX), said customers of Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Techcom) had taken millions of U.S. dollars out over the past few weeks.

"We have blocked customers of Techcom bank from accessing our ATMs," said ANZ Royal's chief executive, Stephen Higgins. "They have withdrawn around $13 million from our ATM network, principally in Phnom Penh."


The dollar is used for the bulk of transactions in Cambodia. It was not clear what lay behind the jump in withdrawals or why Techcom card holders seemed especially active.

Vietnamese taking out dollars in Cambodia, well away from the prying eyes of bank managers and regulators back home, would have their accounts docked at the official rate, plus fees, but could then exchange dollars for dong at the higher unofficial rate.

Vietnam allows the dong VND= to trade in a narrow band against the dollar but it has been below the weak end of that band for over four months on the black market. Before this week's Tet holiday it was about 7 percent below.

Another Cambodian lender, ACLEDA Bank, which has the biggest ATM network in the country, said it was limiting withdrawals from its machines to $500 per day from $1,000 on the advice of Cambodia's central bank.

It said it regarded the spate of withdrawals as normal transactions rather than anything fraudulent, but they were also clearly a nuisance.

"We have to put cash in the machines more often. It's disruptive, we need to reserve cash for this," said the bank's vice-president, So Phonnary.

She put the value of recent withdrawals at $5.5 million and said a lot of that was taken out in Bavet, a town on the border with Vietnam that happens to have a casino. (Editing by Alan Raybould)
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 06:56 AM PST
2/02/2011
Bangkok Post

A Cambodian website has called for readers to help launch a cyberwar against the Bangkok Post to help counter what it sees as biased media coverage.

The website, run by a group calling itself Cambodia Air Defense, published an article on Jan 31 calling for readers to attack the Post's online advertising revenues by submitting false reports to Google Adsense.

"We have realized it is possible to attack back this Bangkok Post, and this is the idea of today post: online attack exercise. We would like to share this to all readers who facing trouble with online media around the globe,'' the authors said.

Cambodia Air Defense claims to be "part of Infantry, the Royal Cambodian Army. Our works aiming to contribute an assistant to other 10 departments of the National Defense to cope with Insurgency in Thailand.[sic]''
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 01:04 AM PST

Wednesday, 02 February 2011
Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post

Opposition party leader Sam Rainsy said on a radio programme on Monday that corruption and joblessness could lead to a rebellion in Cambodia on par with recent protests in Tunisia and Egypt. "I see that it is not long … that there would be such a situation in Cambodia that is the same as Egypt and Tunisia, where people have ousted leaders from power," he said during his Candle Light Radio Program. Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said Sam Rainsy was attempting to throw the country into disorder for his own personal political gains.
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 12:26 AM PST

"Whoever stands in the way [of democratic reform] is out of the equation" – Egyptian minister Dr Samir Radwan
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 12:12 AM PST
Cartoon by V. Sina
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 12:09 AM PST
Click on the article in Khmer to zoom in
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 12:05 AM PST
Please read the original article here: The Buddha was bald.

December 30th, 2010

By Eisel Mazard, Guest Contributor

The Buddha was Bald … but is Everywhere Depicted with a Full Head of Hair
By Eisel Mazard (大影)


Written in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 2010, with special thanks to Rev. Nyanatusita (of Kandy, Sri Lanka) for drawing my attention to several sources quoted in this article.

§1.

One of the most obvious fallacies of modern Theravāda Buddhism is the depiction of the Buddha with a full head of hair. Living in Southeast Asia, asking the average Buddhist about this results in a range of answers, from a shrug and smile (admitting that it is incorrect but supposing that it is not worth worrying about) over to the opposite extreme of taking offense and demanding to know how anyone could dare to raise the question. Some might ask how we could know what the Buddha looked like after so many centuries, if we didn't blindly trust in a succession of statues and amulets. It is needless to say that the Pali canon does not contain photographic evidence, but it does contain evidence of another kind, and this article tries to answer the question (that almost nobody dares to ask) in as few words as possible, by working from the primary sources.

In broaching this issue, we deal with another in passing: the core of the Pali canon does contain some useful descriptions of what the historical Buddha looked like, however, these are not found in devotional poetry that simply provides effusive praise of him (without providing useful details). Although the issue is not philosophical, the method used to find the answer is much the same as we use in the study of Buddhist philosophy: the details emerge from the context of debate, from contrasting claims and (sometimes) even accusations and insults.

I am not the first author to raise this question, and, in the closing paragraphs of this essay (§6, below) I do briefly survey the work of a few other scholars have tried to answer it. However, priority is given to disclosing the primary sources: in this case, as in many others, there is no controversy at all if we simply lay bare the original texts, and let them speak for themselves.

I should also note that that many modern authors on this subject have been primarily interested in art-history and statuary; although I can sympathize with this difference in emphasis, it entails that (very often) authors on this subject were neither primarily interested in the textual sources nor in looking beyond the explanation of the extant art and statues of Buddhist tradition. In museums, I have frequently seen the different styles of the Buddha's hair contrasted in explaining different periods of statuary; the failure to question the underlying assumption that the Buddha should be depicted with hair at all is encouraged by the art-history, simply because the latter begins at too late a stage of development (relative to the most ancient texts that are still extant); traditional adherents of Buddhism, finding their own cultural assumptions affirmed with the imprimatur of scholarly institutions (such as museums) are even less inclined to skepticism, when looking back on the timeline of this development. Simply put, many discussions of the art-history commence at a period much later than the composition of the Pali canonical text, with no connection to the historical Buddha, simply because the statuary is more recent than the texts (and "more recent" by a significant number of centuries, as we shall see, below).

§2.

In mural paintings seen throughout Southeast Asia, there's an incongruous contrast between the Buddha and the crowd of monks surrounding him: apparently, the Buddha is the only one who doesn't shave his head. If this tradition actually dated back to the era of the canon's composition (or, putatively, if these images had any resemblance to the historical Buddha) we would expect to find the same contrast between the description of the Buddha and his fellow monks in the most ancient textual sources. We don't.

Throughout the Pali canon, the same term, muṇḍaka, is used to describe both the Buddha and the monks who were his contemporaries and followers. The meaning of this word is no mystery: it means "a bald-shaven man", and it has a disparaging nuance. In the following examples, it is used in a somewhat insulting way.

In the Ambaṭṭha-sutta [DN #3] the Buddha debates with a Brahmin who is openly contemptuous of him; the Brahmin describes the Buddha as a bald-shaven man (…gotama muṇḍakā samaṇakā…) and as "black" like other members of the vassal social class, i.e., in reference to India's caste hierarchy (…ibbhā kaṇhā bandhupādāpaccā…). [Cambodian canon vol. 14, p. 222–3; cf. PTS DN 1, p. 90; the passage is quoted in full in the boxed text, provided as an illustration.]

"Black" and "white" are correlative and culturally-conditioned concepts, but it is nevertheless significant that a Brahmin would perceive the Buddha as "black" (i.e., by the Brahmin's own social standards) and that one would reproach the other on this account. While the Brahmin's bias is obvious, this text is much more useful than passages that merely glorify the Buddha without telling us how he was perceived by his contemporaries.

The dialogues of the canon depict the Buddha at various ages and stages of his career, but in this dialogue he explicitly describes himself as elderly (…vuddhehi mahallakehi ācariyapācariyehi…) and so the situation is of a young Brahmin insulting a non-Brahmin who is significantly older than himself.

In the discussion that ensues, the Buddha does not dispute his own appearance (he neither protests against the description of him as "black" nor describes himself as otherwise); instead, he points out that the Brahmin's own ancestry is partly black. The discussion reveals that this Brahmin's clan-name (scil. kaṇhāyana) incorporates the same Pali word for "black" (kaṇha) because the family traces their origins back to one of the slaves of the (presumably mythic) king Okkāka. Eventually, the Brahmin admits that he had been taught the same origin story for his clan and clan-name (though he concedes the point only after some coercion from the gods, who seem to intervene just to keep the story moving at a rapid pace).

Not all of the Brahmins in the canon are so rude; as drama or satire, it is both peculiar and plausible that this one Brahmin who was especially motivated to question the Buddha's ethnicity was himself of questionable ethnic status within his clan —the story makes it clear to the reader that this imperious Brahmin was precarious in his own position of caste privilege. Whereas the dialogue started with the Brahmin insulting the Buddha, the Buddha ends up consoling the Brahmin (who is ridiculed by other Brahmins, on account of his lineage). The Buddha tells him that he should not feel ashamed of his ancestry, relating some of the accomplishments of this former slave of king Okkāka, who became a holy-man or conjurer of some kind. This entire discussion of genealogy is laden with magic and mythology, but it retains an aspect of social realism, and clearly reflects cultural attitudes from the milieu of its authorship.

Of course, the description of the Buddha as bald is neither questioned nor disputed in the text itself, but the same sutta contains an interesting mention of the (contemporaneous) practice of the higher castes (ritually) shaving a man's head before casting him out of the community (…pakaraṇe khuramuṇḍaŋ karitvā… [PTS p. 98]). This provides some further cultural context for the disparaging use of the term muṇḍaka ("bald-shaven man") found in the core of the canon. Evidently, there was more than one religious reason for a man to have a shaven head in India at that time: if there had been significant numbers of men whose heads were shaven as a punishment (prior to some sort of banishment or period of penitence) we cannot expect that any special was respect accorded to the Buddhist monks of that era simply on account of their lack of hair.

For Buddhists who have grown up in cultures where the shaven head is exclusively associated with monasticism, this sort of contrast in cultural assumptions is too easily forgotten in considering the evidence of the original texts.

§3.

For a brief corroboration of these intersecting cultural attitudes, we may consider the description of a Brahmin who shouts out at the Buddha, seeing him at a distance, "Stop right there, you shaven-headed man, you recluse, you outcaste." (…tatreva muṇḍaka tatreva samaṇaka tatreva vasalaka, tiṭṭhāhī-ti) [KN:Sn, , Uragavagga 1:7, Vasala suttaŋ; PTS Sn p. 21]

Although it is not a consistent feature of the Pali language, this sequence of three epithets all end with "-ka", and (as with muṇḍaka, aforementioned) the suffix can add a diminutive nuance. This means that the word here translated as "recluse" is clearly disparaging in the source text (samaṇa+ka makes this clear, even though, in other contexts, the word samaṇa is certainly not insulting). The cultural association of being bald-shaven with banishment from one's clan (and loss of caste status) makes this an unsurprising trio of insults.

Each of these scenarios confirms that the Buddha was perceived and described as a bald-shaven man in his own cultural context, and there was at least some ambivalence toward him on account of his appearance (if not outright hostility, on occasion) . It is also clear that the Buddha's selection of the bald-shaven head as the sole ornament of the monastic uniform created a very clear break (or demarcation) between his own religion and the religion(s) of the Brahmins in his own time.

Similarly, in the Sundarika-sutta [SN §7:1:9, PTS vol. 1, p. 167] a Brahmin responds negatively to the sight of the Buddha's baldness, on account of its implications for his caste status. The story is told as the prose preamble to a poem and the circumstances seem to be contrived to bring latent caste attitudes (and antipathies) to the fore. The Buddha is sitting under a tree, apparently with part of his robe draped over his head, or using some of the robe's loose cloth like a hood (…rukkhamūle sīsaŋ [~ sasīsaŋ] pārutaŋ nisinnaŋ… [ibidem]). A Brahmin approaches him on foot, seeing that the Buddha is a holy man but not yet seeing that he is shaven bald, intending to give him the food left over from a Brahmanical fire-offering ritual that he has just conducted by the riverside.

In terms of the simple fact that the Buddha was indeed bald, I would note, that when the Buddha hears the Brahmin approach and reveals his head (sīsaŋ vivari) the Brahmin is surprised to see that this is a man with a shaven head (and this is denoted with the same term discussed above, muṇḍaka).

The Brahmin then reconsiders offering the food, not wanting to donate to a bald-shaven man; however, he is ambivalent because, he reflects, amongst the bald-shaven men, some are still Brahmins after all (muṇḍāpi hi idhekacce brāhmaṇā bhavanti). Apparently, the implicit concern here is that the vast majority of men with bald-shaven heads are either low-caste or outcastes, i.e., perhaps with reference to the form of banishment aforementioned, or else simply reflecting the ethnic and religious divisions of the era. The next step for this Brahmin, then, is to ask the Buddha his caste status, to determine (from his perspective) whether or not the Buddha is a suitable recipient for the donation.

The poem that follows opens with a standard Buddhist argument that it is a man's conduct that should be judged, not his birth nor his ethnicity. There seems to be a minor witticism here: the poem specifies that people who are born to "low" status can become great religious figures, just as fire can be born from any block of wood. The word used for "fire" is not one of the most common nouns, but an old Vedic ritual term (jātaveda); evidently, most Brahmins would neither have accepted the premise that such a sacred fire is equal to any other fire, nor would they have accepted the equality of human beings that the Buddha advocated. The same allegory of lighting a fire is used to refute caste privilege elsewhere (in the core canon) several times, with significant variations (in context and content); however, this instance is especially dramatic, and clearly links the issue of the shaven head to caste identity.

§4.

There is no difference between the terms used to describe the Buddha as bald and the terms used to describe other monks of the same era. In numerous passages, exactly the same terms are used to refer to Buddhist monks (in general) as men with shaven heads. For a very brief example, a group of monks including the Buddha are all forbidden from coming to drink water (at a particular well) with the same disparaging terms for "shaven-headed recluses" (…mā te muṇḍakā samaṇakā pānīyaŋ apaŋsū-ti). [KN:Ud 7:9 Udapāna-sutta, PTS Ud p. 78]

Unlike the depictions found in Southeast Asia today, wherein the Buddha appears starkly different from his followers, there is an indicative passage in the canon where we find that the Buddha cannot be distinguished from a crowd of other Buddhist monks. Of course, if the Buddha had a full head of hair (or magical hair of any kind) he would have been clearly visible in a crowd of men with bald-shaven heads; however, these passages (quoted below) also show more generally that there was nothing supernatural about the Buddha's appearance, and that (for most of his career) he did not look much different from the other monks who were his followers.

In the (relatively well-known) Sāmaññaphala-sutta [DN #2] a King rides an elephant from his palace to seek out the Buddha in a mango-orchard. After the king dismounts and approaches the Buddha on foot, he looks at the assembled monks, and asks aloud, in effect, "…but which one here is the Buddha?" Literally, he asks his companion (named Jīvaka) "…but Jīvaka, where indeed is the blessed one?", i.e., where within the group of monks he is looking at. (Upasaɲkamitvā jīvakaŋ komārabhaccaŋ etadavoca, kahaŋ pana samma jīvaka bhagavā-ti) [PTS DN vol. I p. 50]

The reply, too, does not indicate anything remarkable about the Buddha's appearance, but simply indicates where he is sitting, and the direction he is facing. I would digress to note that the same remarks on the seating arrangements (with the Buddha located by a central pillar, facing eastward) appear in the Sekha-sutta, [MN #53] in the Mahāparinibbāna-sutta, [DN#16] and also in the Saṅgīti-sutta [DN #33]; in the opening pages of the latter source, we seem to be reading a complete description of the cultural protocol for hosting a Buddhist lecture compiled largely from passages found elsewhere in the canon. In other words, either there really was a standard seating-arrangement for public lectures in ancient Buddhism, or else it came to be presented as if it had been standard (after the fact) in order to set out the desiderata for organizing such a sermon (in the process of the canon's redaction).

Despite the fact that the Buddha is seated prominently, according to the formal seating arrangements described, the King in this dialogue cannot differentiate the Buddha from his followers at a glance. This has clear implications for the (still-widespread) Mahayana assumption that the Buddha had freakish physical abnormalities.

In a very different sutta [MN #140, Dhātuvibhaṅga-sutta] a young man who is (by happenstance) sleeping in the same room as the Buddha (in a potter's workshop) actually explains to the Buddha that he is a devotee of the Buddha, not realizing to whom he is speaking. It is significant that neither party can initially recognize the other as a Buddhist, despite the fact that the circumstances have already made it obvious that both are religious eremites of some kind. It is also salient to our present interest that this younger man sat and had a conversation with the Buddha for a fairly long time before surmising that he was speaking to the Buddha himself —and even this was an inference based on the content of the sermon, not on the man's appearance. We should also note that the Buddha seems to enjoy the dramatic irony of the situation, asking aloud if the young man has actually seen the Buddha before, or if he thinks he could recognize the Buddha on encountering him (diṭṭhapubbo pana te bhikkhu, so bhagavā, disvā ca pana jāneyyāsī-ti). [PTS MN Vol. 3, p. 238-9] In the denouement to this discussion, the young man apologizes for having failed to address the Buddha in accordance with his higher status, as he did not know to whom he was speaking; however, there is no mention made of the fact that the Buddha was also incorrect in addressing the younger man as a monk (bhikkhu); the unwinding of the plot reveals that the latter had aspired to become a monk, but had not yet ordained.

Evidently, the Buddha did not have physical abnormalities (nor any other remarkable characteristics) that would have allowed his devotees to recognize him at close range, nor did his followers have a tradition of believing this to be the case in the era of the composition and compilation of the most ancient canonical texts. Conversely, in this scene, it seems that it was not even easy for the Buddha himself to distinguish his own adherents from eremites of other kinds, i.e., apparently because of the simplicity of the monastic regalia.

Apart from the question of his hair (or lack thereof) all of these examples affirm that the Buddha wore the same uniform as the other monks: in the former example, the king cannot distinguish the leader from his followers, and in the latter example, both the Buddha and the younger man are unsure of each other's monastic "rank".

§5.

There is a more flattering (but still very mortal) description of the Buddha in the Khuddaka-Nikāya that reflects some of the same cultural issues. On first seeing the Buddha from a distance, and then later approaching him in person, King Bimbisāra considers the Buddha as a candidate to recruit into the army. [KN:Sn, Pabbajjā-sutta, PTS Sn 71 et seq.]

Here, too, the perception of caste identity plays a role. The king remarks that the Buddha seems to be suitably born for the job, as a member of the warrior caste (vaṇṇārohena sampanno jātimā viya khattiyo). Given that the Buddha is in his usual attire of robes, and the same passage describes him collecting alms with his begging bowl (and so on), the king seems to be responding directly to the Buddha's physical appearance with these comments (there is nothing to suggest that he is a descendant of warriors in his regalia, and the king had never seen him before). This first impression would therefore be based on the Buddha's facial features (or ethnic characteristics).

This dialogue further indicates that the shaven head was not of any univocal significance during the Buddha's lifetime: the scenario is that a king might see such a man and offer him a position in the military (and, apparently, this is neither offensive nor extraordinary). While we could imagine that (once in a while) monks might be tempted to change careers and become soldiers, I would tend to think that those who were perceived as long-term holy-men by the recruiters would not be actively sought after for the job (i.e., presumably, most eremites would lack the strength and skills to become soldiers). The plurality of possible meanings for the shaven head explains the king's assumption that this unknown wanderer passing through his kingdom might be interested in joining the military. and the (aforementioned) custom of shaving a man's head before banishment provides some useful background to the episode.

We could speculate a little further that shaven-headed exiles from one kingdom could (sometimes) be conscripted into the military of another kingdom: having lost their status within their own clan, they might be eager candidates for such a job in a foreign land.

The fact that this dialogue between the Buddha and a king seemed plausible (and inoffensive) is more significant than whether or not it actually happened; its apparent ordinariness within the cultural context of the canon's composition is what makes it significant to us now. Presumably, some of the monks reciting this story would have had similar experiences of being offered employment of some kind, based on a misunderstanding of their appearance, and then having to (politely) decline.

§6.

Thus far, we have demonstrated that (1) the core canon explicitly describes the Buddha as a bald-shaven man; moreover, (2) implicitly, these texts are incompatible with the historically-subsequent assumptions about the Buddha's physical appearance now commonly found in statuary. The ancient texts can neither be reconciled with the image of the Buddha having a full head of hair, nor with his having magical curls of hair, nor with his having a freakishly deformed skull. There is no doubt as to the antecedence of one source of information over the other.

Over the very long period of time we are describing, it is not surprising that we would have major discontinuities in the public cults surrounding the Buddha: if we presume the earliest origin of the Pali texts to be in the fifth or sixth century B.C., there is a tremendous lapse of time before the iconography of the second century A.D. —and even then, culturally, there is no reason to assume that the sculptors were attempting historical accuracy. The materials that the art-historians rely upon (such as extant stucco, bas-reliefs, etc.) are generally available from the second century onward, and the early "aniconic" tradition (of sculptors refusing to depict the Buddha at all, representing only his absence or his footprints, etc.) obviously does not contain any indication of what people assumed about the Buddha's hairstyle at the time.

It is also in the second century A.D. that the Sanskrit poet Aśvaghoṣa began writing his lyrics about the life of the Buddha; he had undertaken the creation of entirely new myths that had no precedent in the (much more ancient) Pali canon, and many innovations in the increasingly fictional life of the Buddha have no earlier precedent than his poetry. There is certainly confusion about this simple fact: Aśvaghoṣa's myths (that are neither canonical nor even Theravāda) continue to be depicted in Theravāda mural paintings, movie adaptations, and even appear in seemingly-authoritative textbooks (as if they could be cited as canonical texts).

However, in looking at the shifting assumptions about the Buddha's appearance, it is important to keep in mind that Aśvaghoṣa's work is still earlier than the composition of the Pali commentaries. There is a great deal of confusion resulting from the conflation of the core canon with the (much later) commentarial literature in the minds of many Buddhists (and even secular researchers) today. The present subject of discussion is one of many that demands we keep these two bodies of literature distinct in visualizing the progress from the canon to the commonly found iconography.

Writing in the second century A.D., Aśvaghoṣa was apparently the first to dramatize the Buddha cutting off his hair. In contrast to the historically plausible tone of the Pali texts quoted in the foregoing sections, Aśvaghoṣa's poetry makes everything glitter, and the action proceeds with an unreal sense of stagecraft: the Buddha's hair (along with his royal turban) is cut away with a glittering sword, covered with glittering jewels, and the Buddha then throws it into the air, whence the gods snatch it in mid-flight. [Ānadajoti, ed., 2005, Ch. 6, verses 56–59]

Elsewhere in the same poem, it is lamented aloud that the Buddha's once-beautiful hair had been tossed on the ground; [Ch. 8, verse 51] this passage presumes the Buddha had merely mortal locks of hair, and specifies that they had been cut off and discarded in a normal fashion. In contrasting these two passages, it does not seem possible that Aśvaghoṣa himself was (intentionally) proposing any change to Buddhist iconography in his poetry, nor that he (implicitly) thought of the Buddha as having supernatural hair (in either passage); his purpose seems to have simply been dramatization and embellishment. If there had been other (cultic) beliefs about the Buddha's head in the second century A.D., we can only say that Aśvaghoṣa did not subscribe to them.

This hair-cutting scene found in Aśvaghoṣa's work (and further elaborated in the Lalitavistara and other Sanskrit works of the early Mahayana tradition) does not have any precedent in the core of the Pali canon. For a useful contrast, the Mahāsaccaka-sutta [MN #36] describes the first time the Buddha cut off his hair in precisely two words (kesamassuŋ ohāretvā) with no embellishment. There was nothing magical (nor even anything ceremonial) about the first time the Buddha cut off his hair in the more ancient texts.

Following the written record, we would surmise that these unorthodox ideas entered the Theravāda mainstream through a work called the Nidānakathā, a commentary that was traditionally ascribed to Buddhaghosa (of the fifth century A.D.) but today, scholars generally presume its authorship to be unrelated to Buddhaghosa. The format and contents of the Nidānakathā are closer to a work of popular fiction than to Buddhaghosa's own genre. Some scholars now attribute the text's authorship to Buddhadatta (another author of the fifth century A.D.) but the evaulation of these claims is not the purpose of the current essay. For our current purposes, it is only important that we keep in mind that (i) Aśvaghoṣa wrote (in Sanskrit) many centuries after the origin of the Pali canon, and (ii) the Nidānakathā (although written in Pali) originates several centuries later than Aśvaghoṣa.

In the Nidānakathā, the story of the Buddha cutting off his hair that apparently began with Aśvaghoṣa has expanded to include an important new aspect: here, for the first time in the textual tradition, we "see" what the statuary had already been depicting (sporadically) in the same period (2nd-5th centuries A.D.). Departing radically from the Pali canon, the Nidānakathā confidently asserts that the Buddha did not have a clean-shaven head, but instead possessed a set of supernatural curls that remained in the same shape (i.e., neither growing in length nor falling out) after this episode with the sword and the gods collecting his severed locks out of the air. This is not explained at length in the Nidānakathā, but is presented in passing; presumably, the authors did not think that this was anything surprising, and that it did not require explanation. At the time of authorship, it seems likely that this reflected an assumption that was already widespread amongst the audience and patrons for a new work of popular literature of this kind; in religion, innovation requires careful justification, whereas the affirmation of crass assumption requires none at all.

In retrospect, we seem to have a very casually adopted heresy: the notion that the Buddha had hair (after becoming a monk) seems to have become a normal assumption among many Buddhists in the 5th century —despite the fact that it was blatantly contradicted by the most ancient (and most sacred) of Buddhist texts. Clearly, people continued to make new statues and tell new stories, regardless of this contradiction.

In this respect, I differ from Coomaraswamy (1928, p. 833) who proceeds on the assumption that, "…the old books would have been examined with a view to testing the propriety of the current representations…"; at the same time, Coomaraswamy wants to believe that the authors of the Pali commentaries were themselves influenced by the Buddha as they saw him in (5th century A.D.) statuary, because they lived "…long after the practical problem of iconographic representation had been settled…" (ibidem). Approaching the matter in this way, Coomaraswamy is looking at the statues as if they were evidence of the interpretation (or misinterpretation) of the ancient texts, and then he is looking at the commentaries as if they were interpretations of the statues.

The "problem" (if it is a problem) is simply that the earliest extant statues all have hair (or else, as mentioned, they are "aniconic" and do not depict the Buddha at all). Writing much more recently than Coomaraswamy, and partly in response to him, Krishan (1996, p. 117) remarks that the trouble is that the Nidānakathā does explain the popularity of depicting the Buddha with short curls of supernatural hair, but it fails explain why so many of the very earliest statues have long, flowing hair. I think, however, the nature of this problem arises from the interpretation. Krishan remarks that, "These types of hair arrangement… could only be explained by assuming that the sculptors had disregarded the scriptural tradition. This, however, could not be." [p. 117-119] This repeats same the fundamental mistake made by Coomaraswamy. The simplest assumption is that the sculptors did not know or did not care about the contents of the most ancient texts.

It does not matter whether the statues prefigured the belief (that the Buddha had magical hair) or if the belief was the cause of new styles of statuary: the fundamental fact that we must reiterate is that the Nidānakathā is the first Pali text to record the belief in a non-bald Buddha (and it is a non-canonical text). This arose as something completely separate from the Pali canon, many centuries after the death of the historical Buddha, with no connection to the more ancient texts whatsoever. If it is asked why the authors of the Nidānakathā were not concerned that they had contradicted the core canon, I would assume the answer is the same as for the sculptors: most likely, they did not think of themselves as historians (nor as philologists) but as the creators of something new.

In rebuttal to Coomaraswamy's work, Banerjea (1931) set out an array of useful facts; the latter article settles a range of questions about the Buddha's hair (and the earliest appearance of the deformed skull, now standard in Chinese Mahayana images) from the 2nd century onward. It is a very good article, but it neither asks nor answers the question of the Buddha's baldness prior to the period of art-history it investigates (i.e., the oldest part of the Pali canon, the subject of our inquiry above, is not discussed). However, for readers who would like to know more about this history, Banerjea's work is useful because it is scrupulous in detailing the author's sources, and in describing how certain facts first came to be known (including, e.g., the difficulties of the first European scholars who struggled to identify particular statues as bald, the classification of the different types of hair, and so on).

§7.

In every illustration I've seen in the current generation of Cambodia's (government-issued) school textbooks, the illustrators draw the Buddha with a full head of hair, worn in a loose topknot. Consistently, these pictures show the Buddha with naturalistic hair, never the supernatural curls typical of Chinese-Mahayana images. In my own university textbooks, so far as I can recall, the hirsute Buddha was only contrasted to the earlier period of "aniconism" in Buddhist art. The simple but inevitable question as to why the Buddha would be depicted with anything other than a shaven head is rarely asked, and rarely answered.

It is not only traditional Buddhists who have selectively disregarded the evidence. I was surprised to find that Professor Donald S. Lopez has published his opinion in support of the notion that the Buddha as depicted with magical hair and a deformed skull is correct; in his opinion, the supernatural reality of the Buddha's appearance, "…was suppressed by European scholars who used their scientific skills to reduce the swelling and rearrange the Buddha's hair to make him more human." [Lopez, 2005, p. 32] This amazing claim is offered without the citation of any specific source. If it were true, Lopez's argument would mean that I myself and all the sources I have cited (primary and secondary) are somehow a party to a "scientific" conspiracy to "suppress" the truth of the Buddha's physical appearance.

On the contrary, I think the only conspiracy is a widespread lack of interest in the primary sources —and this lack of interest is neither new nor limited to laypeople. Lopez's opinion is also a reminder that secular authorities on religious matters require as much skepticism as authorities of any other kind; employment as a university professor does not exclude religious motives, nor religious bias.

For Theravāda Buddhists who are alive today, and who continue to paint new images of the Buddha on temple-walls, there is a genuine question of why they (or anyone) should value a tradition that actually contradicts the writ of their own religion's canon. If the Buddha was bald, why is he everywhere shown with a full head of hair?

To ask the same question in another way, is the purpose of the religion (today) to pay homage to the man described in the ancient texts, or to pay homage to a style of statuary that began in Gandhara many centuries after his death?

The real significance of culture is the sum of the questions that it prevents from being asked: the doubts that are precluded by crass assumption are the substance of culture itself. Texts may answer questions, but they remain inert if people do not ask them; philosophies may raise new doubts, but only for those who are willing to hear them.

The question of the Buddha's baldness is an interesting example wherein Buddhist culture has become something quite separate from the religion, and, indeed, the culture has come to exalt a heresy. In Southeast Asia, this heresy is not merely common but ubiquitous; it is fair to say that many modern followers of the Buddha know very little that came out of his head aside from his hair, and this very dubious hair (along with the worship of "hair relics", and so on) is now more widely known than any philosophical discourse the Buddha ever recited.

Bibliography

Ānandajoti, ed. 2005. The Buddha-Carita, or The Life of Buddha by Aśvaghoṣa. Available online: www.ancient-buddhist-texts.net/Texts-and-Translations/Buddhacarita/index.htm [This is an e-text based on the earlier work of Edward B. Cowell, 1894–5, but incorporating some later material from E.H. Johnson, 1936, and Peter Schreiner, 1990. Cf. Edward B. Cowell, 1894–5, _The Buddha-Karita of Asvaghosha_, Clarendon Press: Cambridge, U.K. (in two volumes).]

Banerjea, Jitendra Nath. 1931. "Uṣnīṣa-śīraṣkata (a mahapurusa-laksana) in the early Buddha images of India", in: _The Indian Historical Quarterly_. 7:3 (Sept., 1931). [Digitally archived, with diacritics omitted and other apparent typographical errors, at: http://sino-sv3.sino.uni-heidelberg.de/FULLTEXT/]

Coomaraswamy, Ananda K. 1928. "The Buddha's Cūḍā, Hair, Uṣṇīṣa, and Crown", in: _Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland_, No. 4 (Oct., 1928, p. 815-841).

Guruge, Ananda W.P. 1997. _The Buddha's Encounters with Māra the Tempter: Their Representation in Literature and Art._ The Wheel [series] No. 419. Buddhist Publication Society: Kandy, Sri Lanka. (This text first appeared in 1988 in the Sri Lanka Journal of Buddhist Studies, Vol. II.)

Krishan, Yuvraj, 1996, The Buddha image: its origin and development, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan: Delhi, 1996.

Lopez, Donald S. 2005. Critical Terms for the Study of Buddhism. University of Chicago Press: Chicago.

Thomas, E. J. 1940. "The Lalitavistara and Sarvastivada". _Indian Historical Quarterly_. Vol. 16, issue 2, p. 239-245.
Posted: 02 Feb 2011 12:00 AM PST
Dear all

The Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), as a member of the World Organization Against Torture SOS Torture Network, joins 93 other civil society organizations from around the world urging all governments as well as regional and international organizations, to clearly and unequivocally denounce the ongoing violent crackdown against the public protests and demands for democratic reform and government accountability that have been occurring across Egypt since 25 January 2011. Please find attached a copy of the Urgent Appeal from International Civil Society


Thank you and kind regards

CCHR

Click on the appeal to zoom in







.
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:55 PM PST
Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer
Tuesday, 01 February 2011
"There should not be such a restrictive law, because it is the people who will lose benefits."
Despite concessions made in the drafting of a law to govern NGOs, officials from the main opposition Sam Rainsy Party say the legislation still risks limiting freedoms and can be a setback to good governance.

The NGO law is being drafted by the Ministry of Interior and contains provisions for the regulation of the non-governmental sector. But critics warn that it can bog down organizations in red tape and could limit their functions or efficiency.

Mu Sochua, a Kampot representative for the opposition, told VOA Khmer the government could instead focus on strengthening existing registration mechanisms.

"We don't see any need to have this law," she said in an interview Friday. "There should not be such a restrictive law, because it is the people who will lose benefits."


NGOs contribute to sectors spanning education, health, infrastructure, human rights and democracy, she said, and a law that is too restrictive will inhibit rights guaranteed under the constitution.

The Ministry of Interior last week said it was adjusting provisions in the law that were main areas of concern for many NGOs, and its supporters say the law will not run counter to rights and freedoms.

"This law does not contradict the constitution," Nuth Sa An, secretary of state for the Ministry of Interior and head of the drafting task force, said. "With the law in place, there will be smooth operation" for NGOs.

The most recent draft of the law reduces the number of founders required for an organization, lower requirements for registration and an amended provision for unregistered NGOs, he said.
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:53 PM PST
Kalyanee Mam


Men Kimseng, VOA Khmer

Washington, DC Tuesday, 01 February 2011
"This economic crisis affected us all, not just those in the US, France or Germany."
With the documentary "Inside Job" now nominated for Oscar contention, its US-Cambodian collaborator says she hopes more people will watch the film.

"Inside Job" is an investigation into the 2008 global financial crisis and of the people in power responsible. Already well received, the film will now compete against four other finalists for an Academy Award on Feb. 27.

"Once people see this film, they can be informed about the issue," associate producer and photography director Kalyanee Mam told VOA Khmer recently. "It will help shape our thinking about the issue and try to find a way to avoid the recurrence of the crisis."

The film has broad appeal, she said. "This economic crisis affected us all, not just those in the US, France or Germany."

Such films are a "critical tool" to help people understand society and "have a say about it," she said. "When we make a movie, we don't first think about getting an award."
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:48 PM PST
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
By Khmerization
Source: RFA

The military situations near Preah Vihear temple on the Cambodian-Thai border have become very volatile after Thai PM Abhisit Vejjajiva threatened Cambodia with war if Cambodia refused to pull down the Cambodian flag hoisted over a Cambodian pagoda in the nearby area. Mr. Abhisit said war with Cambodia will be the last resort if Thailand's wish cannot be achieved through peaceful means.

The Thai Foreign Ministry had further fueled the tensions by demanding that Cambodia dismantle the pagoda and remove the Cambodian flag. When Cambodia refused, Thai troops had sneaked in to hoist Thai flag which has further fueled the already heightened tensions.

A Cambodian military source said hundreds of Cambodian and Thai troops are confronting each other near Preah Vihear temple, where they are only about 200 metres apart. The source said Cambodia will not negotiate with Thai troops like in the past and will use the self-defence rights to protect Cambodian territory if Thai troops invaded the areas again. "For that areas, we do not need to negotiate any more. If Thai troops are sent to the prohibited areas of Sombok Khmum, we will attack. We won't negotiate", he said.


He added that hundreds of Thai troops and tanks have been moved to the area. "They have sent in the troops, but they were not sent to the front lines yet, they were only sent to the area behind the front lines. Hundreds of tanks and troops. Opposite us, there are about 40-50 tanks. And when we went to ask them why they sent too many troops and tanks to the area, they said it is for military drills", he said.

Mr. Cheam Yeap, chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance and Audit, said the Cambodian parliament had allocated sufficient fund for the defence of Cambodian territory against any Thai invasion. "We are the victims who are invaded and violated by someone, so we are very hurt and must be more determined to defend ourselves and our territorial integrity more than those who invaded us. The invaders don't have stronger will to fight", he said.
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:31 PM PST
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:26 PM PST
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:22 PM PST
2/02/2011
Bangkok Post

The Cambodian court's sentencing of yellow-shirt activist Veera Somkwamkid and his secretary Ratree Pipatanapaiboon to jail was unfair, Democrat Party MP Panich Vikitsreth said on Wednesday.

Mr Panich, one of the seven Thais who were arrested by Cambodian soldiers on Dec 29 for illegal entry, said he felt for Mr Panich and Ms Ratree and was very disappointed with the verdict.

He said the additional charge of espionage against them was unjustified because they had no intention to steal anything from Cambodia.


"Mr Veera initially thought that the pinhole camera could not capture pictures, while Ms Ratree was only taking photos as souvenirs.

"I'll do my best to prove all seven Thais are innocent by working with the government to present the truth," the MP for Bangkok said.

Appeals would filed as soon as possible and all charges would be denied, he added.
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:20 PM PST
Feb 2, 2011
DPA

Bangkok - A nationalist protest movement on Wednesday gave the government a three-day deadline to secure the release of two Thais imprisoned in Cambodia for spying.

People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leader Chamlong Srimuang threatened to intensify the group's street protests in Bangkok if the government failed to have Veera Somkwamkid and Ratree Pipatanapaibul released by Friday.

The PAD, also known as the yellow shirts for their preferred protest garb, have been occupying a section of Ratchadamnoen Nok Road near the government's office compound since January 25.

PAD followers Veera and Ratree were sentenced Tuesday by a Cambodian court to eight and six years in prison, respectively.


The two were arrested December 29 along with five other Thais for trespassing on Cambodian soil.

Last month, a Cambodian court released the other five on bail but refused bail for Veera and Ratree because they faced the more serious charges of spying on which they were found guilty Tuesday.

Both are members of the Thai Patriots Network, an ultra-nationalistic group pressuring the government to take a more aggressive stance toward Cambodia on a sovereignty dispute over the Preah Vihear temple.

The network and other Thai nationalists insist the 11th-century Hindu temple belongs to Thailand despite a ruling by the World Court in 1962 that the temple is on Cambodian territory.

Relations between Thailand and Cambodia have been tense for more than two years with sporadic clashes between troops over disputed territory near Preah Vihear.

The PAD, which held street protests in Bangkok for seven months in 2008, which culminated in its weeklong seizure of the capital's two airports, has vowed to hold demonstrations until Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's government agrees to its conditions.

The PAD wants Abhisit to revoke a 2000 agreement between Cambodia and Thailand that set up up a joint border committee to solve the two countries' sovereignty disputes.

Abhisit has warned that revoking the agreement might lead to war.
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:16 PM PST
BANGKOK, Feb 2 (MCOT online news) -- Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban on Wednesday said he was disappointed that the Cambodian court handed down quite harsh sentences against two Thai citizens for illegal entry, trespassing into a military area and spying charges but the Thai government would continue helping them.

Mr Suthep said he believed the verdict would not affect bilateral relations between the two neighbouring countries and urged the Yellow Shirt activists of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) not to incite violence. Nonetheless, he said the government has no plan to disperse the protesters.

He also instructed officials to step up security at government offices including Government House, Parliament and the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok.


The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Tuesday handed down an eight-year jail term and a 1.8 million riel (US$450) fine for Veera Somkwamkid, a coordinator of Thai Patriots Network, and a six-year jail term and a 1.2 million riel (US$300) fine for his secretary Ratree Pipattanapaiboon finding them both guilty of espionage, illegal entry and trespassing in a military zone.

The pair was told they can appeal within 30 days.

Mr Suthep said the legal procedures were not over yet as the pair could appeal and the Thai government would give full support to help them.

The verdict should not be drawn to intensify the rift between Thailand and Cambodia as Thailand should live with the neighbouring country peacefully, said the deputy prime minister.

As for the request for a possible royal pardon, Mr Suthep said it would depend on Mr Veera and Ms Ratree themselves to make such a decision, but if they decided so the government would facilitate and discuss it with Cambodian authorities.

He affirmed that the relations between Thailand and Cambodia are still at a level at which amends can be made.

The deputy prime minister commented as the PAD threatened to mobilise more supporters Saturday to step up pressure on the government to help free Mr Veera and Ms Ratree.

The PAD has encamped near Government House since Tuesday to protest the government's handling of the border disputes with Cambodia.
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:11 PM PST
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:04 PM PST
This photo by AP clearly shows a Cambodian flag flying over Wat Keo Sekha Kiri Svarak on 18 July 2008, shortly after the Thai troops invasion, yet Thailand never complained about this flag, so why is it doing that now? (Photo: AP)

February 2, 2011
By SUPALAK GANJANAKHUNDEE
THE NATION

Phnom Penh claims structure, flag are legal; erected before 2000 MoU

The war of words between Thailand and Cambodia continued yesterday as Phnom Penh issued another statement and insisted it would not remove a contentious pagoda on the border, as demanded by Bangkok.

However, an outbreak of fighting in the area near the historic Preah Vihear temple seems unlikely despite troops being boosted on both sides.

The Cambodian foreign ministry statement said it was well acknowledged in Thailand that Wat Keo Sikha Kiri Svara pagoda was built by Cambodian people from 1998, with their national flag flying since then.

"The question is why has Thailand only now demanded the Cambodian flag be removed."


The pagoda was situated in Cambodian territory "and by no means will Cambodia relocate this pagoda elsewhere and Cambodia will continue to fly its flag there," it said.

Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi said Bangkok's demand for the pagoda was in accordance with the memo of understanding (MoU) signed by the two countries in 2000. Article 5 of the MoU said both sides should not carry out any work resulting in changes to the environment of the frontier zone, he said.

"Therefore, the Thai foreign ministry insists there should be no building in the area where the joint boundary committee needs to negotiate for demarcation," Thani said.

However, Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said the foreign ministry may have misunderstood the MoU and the pagoda.

"Anything built before the 2000 MoU should be left as it was but anything after 2000 should be removed," he said.

"I think the MoU makes clear about that and we live together by this practice," Prawit said.

Thailand has objected to construction in disputed areas from time to time. The Foreign Ministry reiterated its stance over the pagoda this week after the nationalist People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and Thai Patriots Network (TPN) rallied and demanded that the Thai government act. They accused Abhisit Vejjajiva's government of losing territory adjacent to Preah Vihear to Cambodia.

The PAD protest has put pressure on the government to act to show strength and that it would not bow to Cambodia. Abhisit managed to get two stone tablets at the pagoda taken down, and wanted the Cambodians to remove their flag also.

Army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha said things were normal on the Cambodian border and that the dispute could be solved via joint boundary committee talks. Military action would be a last resort, he said.

"Both sides are ready to protect their respective territory but we don't invade the other's territory," he said.

"We are moving forces within our territory and they are doing their own. It is a normal adjustment of troops and such military exercises are our routine job," he said.

Local residents in Si Sa Ket province who live near Preah Vihear told The Nation they had Thai troops moving to the area near the Hindu temple over recent nights. The military had moved men, heavy weapons and equipment into the area, they said - and they feared fighting would erupt.

But Veerayut Duangkaew, chief of Sao Thong Chai sub-district, near the historic temple, said he did not expect clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops.

"I phoned a Cambodian soldier whom I know and got the impression that Cambodian troops won't wage a war with Thailand since it would cause damage on both sides," he said. "I'm sure there will be no war."

The boundary committee should sit together and talk to solve the dispute now, he said. "I see no point to launch a war of words without solving any problem."
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 10:39 PM PST

The MESSENGER Band
Posted: 01 Feb 2011 10:03 PM PST
2/02/2011
Bangkok Post

The Cambodian court's sentence imposed on yellow-shirt activist Veera Somkwamkid and his secretary Ratree Pipatanapaiboon was harsh but all sides must accept it, Deputy Prime Minister overseeing security Suthep Thaugsuban said on Wednesday morning.

Mr Suthep said he did not want to criticise the Phnom Penh Municipal Court's ruling yesterday.

"The case is not yet over and they [Mr Veera and Ms Ratree] can still file an appeal.

"All sides have to respect the verdict and refrain from inciting conflict between the two countries," he said.

The pair and their families will decide whether they would seek a royal pardon when the case is final, he said.


The deputy premier said he believed Thai-Cambodian relations can still be amended despite Cambodia's refusal to remove its national flag hoisted in the disputed border area near Preah Vihear temple.

He denied claims the government plans to disperse the protest rally by the yellow-shirt People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) outside Government House. The government will prevent the protesters from inconveniencing other people.

The government will not allow protesters to set fires at state offices of Thailand or Cambodia, Mr Suthep said.

The Cambodian court on Monday evening sentenced Thai Patriots Network (TPN) coordinator Veera Somkhwamkid to eight years in prison and Ms Ratree to six years on espionage and illegal entry charges.

The court fined Mr Veera 1.8 million riel (about 14,000 baht) and Ms Ratree 1.2 million riel (about 10,000 baht).

They have the right to appeal within 30 days.

 

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