Members of a France-based organization concerned with the status of Cambodia’s borders met with parliamentarians at the National Assembly Tuesday to request that border agreements signed with Vietnam in the 1980s be canceled.
“We do not order the government, but we would like the government to abolish all agreements signed [in the 1980s] between Cambodia and Vietnam because they are unfair,” said Sean Pengse, a French-Cambodian who is president of Comite des Frontieres du Cambodge. “If they are not canceled, it will be valid for 100 years.”
The committee, whose name in English is similar to a government body working to resolve border disputes, was prohibited by the Council of Ministers Monday from holding a conference at the Hotel Cambodiana. The conference was scheduled to begin today. One official said the government was worried that the meeting could harm relations with neighboring countries.
But Sean Pengse said his committee has 20,000 members worldwide and does not oppose the government, but merely wants to share ideas on the issue. He suggested border problems could be resolved by referring to agreements signed in 1954 and 1960.
Um Sam An, secretary general of Student’s Movement for Democracy, said if the conference is not allowed to open, it means the government is discouraging Cambodians from loving their country.
