Skirmish At The Border

Apparently there has been a bit of bickering at the northern Thai-Cambodia boarder this week, right at my month benchmark.  This is just one example of the many complexities of Cambodia I have yet to dive into deeper. Apparently this particular temple, Preah Vihear (and some others) have been hitting the nerves of Cambodians and Thais for many years.  It’s a touchy topic, especially in a country where, I am learning, there can be limited (or very subjective) consequence for those who break the law. 

Disputed Grounds

The BBC does a pretty good job of summing things up. If you have a minute, definitly check out all the articles here.  Reading in between the lines, there seems to be some unmistakable “he-said-she-said” going on.  Threats that are seemingly idle, given a little background and context. The picture is kind of murky, so I’m still trying to make sense of this conflict, and keep pestering everyone around me for explanations.

But so far none of it has really affected they rhythm of Phnom Penh.  It centers around a the disputed temple at the northern Thai-Cambodia boarder, where some Cambodians and Thai’s in the area are spending their weekend elsewhere.  And some Thai’s in Phnom Penh who prefer not to take any chances are also getting out of town, but this is mostly due to an uneasy history of anger between the two groups that might be waiting for any excuse to flair. 

The moral of the story is:  Things are ok (dare I say normal?) out here in Cambodia today.