Fenced off: Thailand builds border wall after Cambodia clashes

Thailand and Cambodia have been at odds for decades over the demarcation of their border. Deadly clashes broke out in July and again in December last year.(AFP) — A concrete fence topped with coils of barbed wire runs for a kilometer along the Thailand-Cambodia border, interrupted only by stone markers erected during French colonial rule.It is the first section of an 8.4-kilometer (5.2-mile) wall being installed by the Thai military in eastern Thailand following last year’s deadly clashes with its Southeast Asian neighbor.Standing 3.6 meters (11.8 feet) high and made of reinforced concrete, galvanized steel mesh and rolls of barbed wire, the barrier runs through farmland in Chanthaburi province.“We built the fence to prevent illegal activities,” particularly the smuggling of people and goods, Capt. Prachya Hantiem, commander of the Royal Thai Navy Marine Task Force in Chanthaburi, told AFP during a visit Thursday.Thailand and Cambodia have been at odds for decades over the demarcation of their 800-kilometer border. Deadly clashes broke out in July and again in December last year.The neighbors signed a ceasefire agreement in late December, but each side has accused the other of violating the truce.Not far from the fence is a small Thai village of fewer than 200 people who grow corn and fruit, including durian and longan.Villagers said the structure had cut into farmland along the porous border, but those who spoke to AFP were broadly supportive.“We accept it. We accept losing some land in order to gain security,” said Suwin Muangmeung, who runs a grocery store. She acknowledged that she did not always know where the border was.“It gives us a sense of security in our daily lives, since our plantations are along the border,” village chief Itchira Aranchaiyasiri said.“We never really know when Thailand and Cambodia will reconcile, or when we’ll be able to communicate with each other properly. But having this fence here helps.”The wall would cause some disruption, he said.“In the past, we used to come and go freely, or visit each other quite easily,” he said. “But we have to adapt.”Be carefulThe border was largely drawn during negotiations between Thailand — then known as Siam — and France, which controlled Cambodia as part of French Indochina from 1863 until the mid-1950s.Gates in the new wall have been designed to accommodate existing multilingual stone markers bearing inscriptions that include the words “Siam” and “frontiere,” French for border.Prachya insisted the structure was “entirely within Thai sovereignty — 100%.”“Every single step follows the law and can be checked. In fact, Cambodian forces inspect our work at every stage,” he said.Thailand closed its border with Cambodia after the fighting, which displaced 500,000 people.Most have since returned, although 20,000 Cambodians remain displaced.Suwin, 62, remembers large numbers of refugees crossing the border to escape the fighting that followed the fall of the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime in 1979.“My feeling on the fighting was different when I was young. I did not feel anything seriously,” she told AFP.“But when I see the losses from the most recent fighting, my heart aches.”She said she asks her military customers what she should do to remain safe.“They told me to be careful,” she said, adding that she has a bunker at her house just in case.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads