"What Is the Kangaroo Court Waiting For?": Sam Rainsy
Dec 16, 2009
16 December 2009
WHAT IS THE KANGAROO COURT WAITING FOR?
Mr. Pao Pheap, 40, second deputy chief of Samraong commune (Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province) from the Sam Rainsy Party has been summoned by the Svay Rieng Provincial Court to appear before a judge on 22 December 2009. The summons is in connection with the “incitement” and “public property destruction” charges that the same Court has levied against me following the 25 October incident in Samraong commune’s Koh Kban Kandal village where I uprooted six wooden poles in the middle of a rice field at the request of its owner. Those poles purported to be tentative border posts but were actually false boundary markers illegally planted on a private property.
Why hadn’t the Court summoned me first? As the main “suspect” or “accused” of an obviously political crime I should be the first person to be summoned and interrogated. Why judicial proceedings to “punish” me have come to a standstill? Why the CPP-controlled authorities were in such a hurry to remove my parliamentary immunity on 16 November without first asking me any question? Why is it so quite now? How much time do they need to continue to test the waters? Is it so embarrassing for them?
I want their kangaroo court to prosecute me now.
Sam Rainsy
Member of Parliament
Why hadn’t the Court summoned me first? As the main “suspect” or “accused” of an obviously political crime I should be the first person to be summoned and interrogated. Why judicial proceedings to “punish” me have come to a standstill? Why the CPP-controlled authorities were in such a hurry to remove my parliamentary immunity on 16 November without first asking me any question? Why is it so quite now? How much time do they need to continue to test the waters? Is it so embarrassing for them?
I want their kangaroo court to prosecute me now.
Sam Rainsy
Member of Parliament
Pardon Exposes Inconsistent System: Opposition
The By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Wahington
16 December 2009
The surprising pardon last week of a Thai man convicted on espionage charges demonstrates the ongoing politicization of the judicial system, observers say.
Siwarak Chothipong, a 31-year-old engineer for the Thai company that monitors Cambodia’s air traffic control, was facing a seven-year sentence and a 10 million riel fine, about $2,500, before he was pardoned by King Norodom Sihamoni just four days after his conviction.
Siwarak was found guilty on Tuesday, Dec. 8, of leaking information about a flight to Thai Embassy officials, as ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra arrived in Cambodia as a the newest economic adviser to Prime Minister Hun Sen.
By Friday, he had been pardoned, and on Monday he received a Mercedes escort from Prey Sar prison to Hun Sen’s Phnom Penh residence, in the shadow of Independence Monument, where he met with the prime minister and other officials. Thaksin, whom the Thais want extradited to serve a two-year jail term for corruption, arrived the day before—his second trip to Cambodia in recent weeks—and met with Siwarak at Prey Sar.
His pardon was unprecedented in recent Cambodian judicial history, Son Chhay, a lawmaker for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said Monday.
What’s more, he said, the quick release, reportedly at the behest of a political party association with Thaksin, ran counter to earlier public remarks by Hun Sen, who has said prisoners should be incarcerated for at least two-thirds of their sentence before they can be pardoned.
“In principle, we want a court in our country to make a proper judgment,” Son Chhay said. “A criminal convicted must be prosecuted according to his wrongdoing and should not be used for political influence,” he said. “That is shameful to our court system.”
The government should look into injustices perpetrated against Cambodians in the court system, he said, such as those jailed for protesting alleged land theft or other issues.
“Our citizens who have been victimized by land violations and detained have proposed to His Majesty, the king, the same,” he said. “The government should give a green light and ask the king to grant them a pardon too.”
So much effort spent over a Thai national, he said, “we still think it’s not normal.”
Government officials say Hun Sen had the right to make a decision in Siwarak’s case. Phay Siphan, a spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said the decision was made in the national interest.
Chea Vannath, an independent political analyst, pointed to the five-year detention of two men widely thought innocent in the killing of a labor leader in 2004: Born Samnang and Sok Samoeun. Neither of the men was pardoned, despite a plea from the former king, Norodom Sihanouk.
With strong legal institutions, she said, enforcement of the law would be consistent. “But in [Siwarak’s] case, we see that it is far different from previous cases.”
Siwarak Chothipong, a 31-year-old engineer for the Thai company that monitors Cambodia’s air traffic control, was facing a seven-year sentence and a 10 million riel fine, about $2,500, before he was pardoned by King Norodom Sihamoni just four days after his conviction.
Siwarak was found guilty on Tuesday, Dec. 8, of leaking information about a flight to Thai Embassy officials, as ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra arrived in Cambodia as a the newest economic adviser to Prime Minister Hun Sen.
By Friday, he had been pardoned, and on Monday he received a Mercedes escort from Prey Sar prison to Hun Sen’s Phnom Penh residence, in the shadow of Independence Monument, where he met with the prime minister and other officials. Thaksin, whom the Thais want extradited to serve a two-year jail term for corruption, arrived the day before—his second trip to Cambodia in recent weeks—and met with Siwarak at Prey Sar.
His pardon was unprecedented in recent Cambodian judicial history, Son Chhay, a lawmaker for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said Monday.
What’s more, he said, the quick release, reportedly at the behest of a political party association with Thaksin, ran counter to earlier public remarks by Hun Sen, who has said prisoners should be incarcerated for at least two-thirds of their sentence before they can be pardoned.
“In principle, we want a court in our country to make a proper judgment,” Son Chhay said. “A criminal convicted must be prosecuted according to his wrongdoing and should not be used for political influence,” he said. “That is shameful to our court system.”
The government should look into injustices perpetrated against Cambodians in the court system, he said, such as those jailed for protesting alleged land theft or other issues.
“Our citizens who have been victimized by land violations and detained have proposed to His Majesty, the king, the same,” he said. “The government should give a green light and ask the king to grant them a pardon too.”
So much effort spent over a Thai national, he said, “we still think it’s not normal.”
Government officials say Hun Sen had the right to make a decision in Siwarak’s case. Phay Siphan, a spokesman for the Council of Ministers, said the decision was made in the national interest.
Chea Vannath, an independent political analyst, pointed to the five-year detention of two men widely thought innocent in the killing of a labor leader in 2004: Born Samnang and Sok Samoeun. Neither of the men was pardoned, despite a plea from the former king, Norodom Sihanouk.
With strong legal institutions, she said, enforcement of the law would be consistent. “But in [Siwarak’s] case, we see that it is far different from previous cases.”
Two Khmer Rouge To Face Genocide Charges
Nuon Chea (L) and Ieng Sary (R)By Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
16 December 2009
At least two senior leaders detained at the Khmer Rouge tribunal will be charged with genocide, an escalation of atrocity crimes charges against them, officials said Wednesday.
Nuon Chea, who was Pol Pot’s lieutenant and an influential ideologue for the communists, and Ieng Sary, the former foreign minister, will be charged with the crime in an upcoming case against them. Both already face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Investigating judges read their decision to prosecutors, defense lawyers, and the accused in hearings Monday and Wednesday, tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said Wednesday.
“This is the first additional charge following a more than two-year investigation by investigating judges,” Reach Sambath said.
Two more leaders in tribunal detention, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Thirith, will have similar hearings in coming weeks. Defense lawyers said Wednesday the two are also expected to be charged with genocide.
The new charges are based on mass killings of Vietnamese and Cham Muslims under the regime.
Cham Muslims were singled out and killed in the central, eastern and northwestern zones, Reach Sambath said. “And especially in the village of Trea II, in Krouch Chhmar district, and in the O’Takuon pagoda, in Kang Meas district,” in Kampong Cham province, he said.
Son Arun, a defense lawyer for Nuon Chea, said Wednesday he will appeal to strike the genocide charge. “This is a very serious charge, because my client was ignorant of some areas,” he said.
However, Youk Chhang, executive director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, called the genocide charge a good step.
“Genocide is the right word to describe the difficulties of the people and the atrocities in Democratic Kampuchea’s regime,” he said. “This charge is not only important legally but it is important historically.”
The Documentation Center, which has spent decades researching Khmer Rouge crimes, estimates between 100,000 and 400,000 Cambodian Muslims were killed under the regime.
The total number of Vietnamese killed is not known, though at least 200,000 Vietnamese were expelled from Cambodiain the 1970s, and at least 345 Vietnamese soldiers and civilians were killed in the Khmer Rouge’s Tuol Sleng prison. Many Vietnamese were seized by the Khmer Rouge in Prey Veng and Svay Rieng provinces during armed conflict in the 1970s.
Nuon Chea, who was Pol Pot’s lieutenant and an influential ideologue for the communists, and Ieng Sary, the former foreign minister, will be charged with the crime in an upcoming case against them. Both already face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Investigating judges read their decision to prosecutors, defense lawyers, and the accused in hearings Monday and Wednesday, tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said Wednesday.
“This is the first additional charge following a more than two-year investigation by investigating judges,” Reach Sambath said.
Two more leaders in tribunal detention, Khieu Samphan and Ieng Thirith, will have similar hearings in coming weeks. Defense lawyers said Wednesday the two are also expected to be charged with genocide.
The new charges are based on mass killings of Vietnamese and Cham Muslims under the regime.
Cham Muslims were singled out and killed in the central, eastern and northwestern zones, Reach Sambath said. “And especially in the village of Trea II, in Krouch Chhmar district, and in the O’Takuon pagoda, in Kang Meas district,” in Kampong Cham province, he said.
Son Arun, a defense lawyer for Nuon Chea, said Wednesday he will appeal to strike the genocide charge. “This is a very serious charge, because my client was ignorant of some areas,” he said.
However, Youk Chhang, executive director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, called the genocide charge a good step.
“Genocide is the right word to describe the difficulties of the people and the atrocities in Democratic Kampuchea’s regime,” he said. “This charge is not only important legally but it is important historically.”
The Documentation Center, which has spent decades researching Khmer Rouge crimes, estimates between 100,000 and 400,000 Cambodian Muslims were killed under the regime.
The total number of Vietnamese killed is not known, though at least 200,000 Vietnamese were expelled from Cambodiain the 1970s, and at least 345 Vietnamese soldiers and civilians were killed in the Khmer Rouge’s Tuol Sleng prison. Many Vietnamese were seized by the Khmer Rouge in Prey Veng and Svay Rieng provinces during armed conflict in the 1970s.
Cambodia: Cut off by Khmer Rouge, film scene revives at refugees return
Guests attend ‘Golden Reawakening,’ an exhibition about the golden era of Cambodian filmmaking in the 1960s and ’70s. (Photo: James Grant)In Cambodia, filmmakers are slowly returning after decades as refugees who fled the Khmer Rouge.
December 16, 2009
By Geoffrey Cain and Kounila Keo
The Christian Science Monitor
Phnom Penh, Cambodia — Just before the communist Khmer Rouge marched into the capital in 1975, Tea Lim Koun, the director of the classic Cambodian film “The Snake Man” (1972), escaped bloodshed by fleeing to Canada. Over the next four years, the genocidal regime executed most of Phnom Penh’s remaining directors and actors, wiping out Cambodia’s vibrant filmmaking scene.
Traumatized, Mr. Koun vowed never to make a film again. But he was overwhelmed when he learned that Davy Chou, the French Cambodian grandson of a famous director who disappeared in late 1969, had returned to Cambodia last summer to start an annual film festival. “The younger filmmakers will give hope to Cambodian society again,” Koun says.
He sent his daughter to represent him and his films at the exhibition called “Golden Reawakening.”
As the post-Khmer Rouge generation of Cambodians grows up, they’re producing a flurry of films that mimic the vintage style of the 1960s – widely considered the country’s golden era. Much of the revival is owed to educated filmmaker refugees who are repatriating to Cambodia from France and the United States and opening the country’s first film institutes at local universities.
Mr. Chou, the grandson of Van Chann and a film professor at the Royal University of Phnom Penh, is at the forefront of the movement with his new film, “Twin Diamonds,” released in October. “People thought this would never happen, that Cambodians wouldn’t be able to come together and revive the arts,” he says. “Young people here are doing amazing things.”
“Twin Diamonds” was screened at the festival among scores of Cambodian films, most of which explored themes of family dynamics and infidelity.
December 16, 2009
By Geoffrey Cain and Kounila Keo
The Christian Science Monitor
Phnom Penh, Cambodia — Just before the communist Khmer Rouge marched into the capital in 1975, Tea Lim Koun, the director of the classic Cambodian film “The Snake Man” (1972), escaped bloodshed by fleeing to Canada. Over the next four years, the genocidal regime executed most of Phnom Penh’s remaining directors and actors, wiping out Cambodia’s vibrant filmmaking scene.
Traumatized, Mr. Koun vowed never to make a film again. But he was overwhelmed when he learned that Davy Chou, the French Cambodian grandson of a famous director who disappeared in late 1969, had returned to Cambodia last summer to start an annual film festival. “The younger filmmakers will give hope to Cambodian society again,” Koun says.
He sent his daughter to represent him and his films at the exhibition called “Golden Reawakening.”
As the post-Khmer Rouge generation of Cambodians grows up, they’re producing a flurry of films that mimic the vintage style of the 1960s – widely considered the country’s golden era. Much of the revival is owed to educated filmmaker refugees who are repatriating to Cambodia from France and the United States and opening the country’s first film institutes at local universities.
Mr. Chou, the grandson of Van Chann and a film professor at the Royal University of Phnom Penh, is at the forefront of the movement with his new film, “Twin Diamonds,” released in October. “People thought this would never happen, that Cambodians wouldn’t be able to come together and revive the arts,” he says. “Young people here are doing amazing things.”
“Twin Diamonds” was screened at the festival among scores of Cambodian films, most of which explored themes of family dynamics and infidelity.
Photos Show Chams in Another Light
Two brothers (Photo: Emiko Stock)
Cham Women (Photo: Emiko Stock)Additional photos from Emiko Stock can be viewed here
By Pich Samnang, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
16 December 2009
In one photo a Cambodian Cham carries a traditional scarf over his left shoulder, his home festooned with lights to welcome friendly spirits and keep the malicious at bay. In another, three old Cham men in white dress and headscarves worship at a mosque. Such are the divergent portrayals in a new photo exhibition highlighting nine years of work by Emiko Stock, a French anthropologist who studies the minority group here.
“The exhibition is to show the public that there is not just one group of Chams, or the same Cham community, in Cambodia,” said Stock, whose 88 black and white photos were on display Monday night at Phnom Penh’s Reyum Institute. “In fact, the Chams in Cambodia have various characteristics in terms of celebrating marriages, religious rituals, or even the way they address their parents.”
The photos were taken from 2000 to 2009, in the provinces of Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang and Mondolkiri, as well as Phnom Penh.
“I think the show will enable viewers to understand that the Chams are different from Islam or Muslims, as is widely misunderstood,” Leb Ke, a Cham, said at the exhibition.
The Chams are descendents of the lost Champa empire, located in today’s Vietnam. When the Vietnamese conquered the kingdom in the 15th Century, the Chams were forced to move into southern Vietnam and Cambodia.
In Cambodia, the group numbers nearly half a million, and most—but not all—are Muslim. And though the group has been here a long time, it is little understood.
“Some people who were led to believe bad rumors about the Cham will better understand their ethics,” said Nos Sles, an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Education, of the exhibition.
The exhibition, which was shown in Malaysia in October, will move to Hawaii in January.
“The exhibition is to show the public that there is not just one group of Chams, or the same Cham community, in Cambodia,” said Stock, whose 88 black and white photos were on display Monday night at Phnom Penh’s Reyum Institute. “In fact, the Chams in Cambodia have various characteristics in terms of celebrating marriages, religious rituals, or even the way they address their parents.”
The photos were taken from 2000 to 2009, in the provinces of Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang and Mondolkiri, as well as Phnom Penh.
“I think the show will enable viewers to understand that the Chams are different from Islam or Muslims, as is widely misunderstood,” Leb Ke, a Cham, said at the exhibition.
The Chams are descendents of the lost Champa empire, located in today’s Vietnam. When the Vietnamese conquered the kingdom in the 15th Century, the Chams were forced to move into southern Vietnam and Cambodia.
In Cambodia, the group numbers nearly half a million, and most—but not all—are Muslim. And though the group has been here a long time, it is little understood.
“Some people who were led to believe bad rumors about the Cham will better understand their ethics,” said Nos Sles, an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Education, of the exhibition.
The exhibition, which was shown in Malaysia in October, will move to Hawaii in January.
Hun Sen launches another savage blast at Abhisit
Hun Sen (L): Waiting for 'the next government'
17/12/2009
Thanida Tansubhapol and AFP
Bangkok Post
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has launched a fresh attack on the Thai government, saying relations will continue to simmer while the Abhisit government remains in office.
Relations between the two countries, which have fought a string of deadly gun battles along their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia.
Both recalled their ambassadors last month and diplomatic tensions were further raised when Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit as economic adviser.
"I tell you [Mr Abhisit] I'm waiting for the next Thai government to come to power and for them to send back the ambassador," said Hun Sen in a speech at a Phnom Penh ceremony.
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said in a four-page statement yesterday the already sour relationship between Bangkok and Phnom Penh had been worsened by Hun Sen's interference in Thai affairs and his insults of the Thai judicial process.
"The Thai-Cambodian relationship was normal up to Oct 21, but it became worse after that [when Hun Sen came out to criticise Thai politics and appoint Thaksin as his economic adviser]. It is necessary to tackle the problem at the root in order to solve it," he said.
But Hun Sen said yesterday the issue which had soured ties was the dispute over the ancient Preah Vihear temple.
"You raise the issue of Thaksin, but you forget the issue of Preah Vihear," he said, in reference to the 11th century Khmer temple at the centre of the deadly border dispute between the two countries.
"I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me," Hun Sen said.
Mr Kasit yesterday also came out in defence of Kamrob Palawatwichai, the diplomat under attack for his part in the jailing in Cambodia of convicted spy Sivarak Chutipong.
"The minister never ordered Mr Kamrob to carry out any espionage action in Cambodia nor did it order him to undertake a task inappropriate to the diplomatic framework," Mr Kasit said in the statement released yesterday by the Foreign Ministry on his behalf while he is in China.Mr Kamrob was expelled from Cambodia on Nov 12 for telephoning Sivarak, a Thai aviation engineer working for Cambodia Air Traffic Services, on Nov 10 to check Thaksin's flight arrival details.
Mr Kasit said the root of the problem was Thaksin who had entered Cambodia despite being a fugitive from Thai justice.
read more “Hun Sen launches another savage blast at Abhisit”
17/12/2009
Thanida Tansubhapol and AFP
Bangkok Post
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has launched a fresh attack on the Thai government, saying relations will continue to simmer while the Abhisit government remains in office.
Relations between the two countries, which have fought a string of deadly gun battles along their border since last year, plunged last month when fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra became an economic adviser to Cambodia.
Both recalled their ambassadors last month and diplomatic tensions were further raised when Phnom Penh refused to extradite Thaksin during his first visit as economic adviser.
"I tell you [Mr Abhisit] I'm waiting for the next Thai government to come to power and for them to send back the ambassador," said Hun Sen in a speech at a Phnom Penh ceremony.
Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said in a four-page statement yesterday the already sour relationship between Bangkok and Phnom Penh had been worsened by Hun Sen's interference in Thai affairs and his insults of the Thai judicial process.
"The Thai-Cambodian relationship was normal up to Oct 21, but it became worse after that [when Hun Sen came out to criticise Thai politics and appoint Thaksin as his economic adviser]. It is necessary to tackle the problem at the root in order to solve it," he said.
But Hun Sen said yesterday the issue which had soured ties was the dispute over the ancient Preah Vihear temple.
"You raise the issue of Thaksin, but you forget the issue of Preah Vihear," he said, in reference to the 11th century Khmer temple at the centre of the deadly border dispute between the two countries.
"I want to say that relations cannot be normalised as long as you are still invading me," Hun Sen said.
Mr Kasit yesterday also came out in defence of Kamrob Palawatwichai, the diplomat under attack for his part in the jailing in Cambodia of convicted spy Sivarak Chutipong.
"The minister never ordered Mr Kamrob to carry out any espionage action in Cambodia nor did it order him to undertake a task inappropriate to the diplomatic framework," Mr Kasit said in the statement released yesterday by the Foreign Ministry on his behalf while he is in China.Mr Kamrob was expelled from Cambodia on Nov 12 for telephoning Sivarak, a Thai aviation engineer working for Cambodia Air Traffic Services, on Nov 10 to check Thaksin's flight arrival details.
Mr Kasit said the root of the problem was Thaksin who had entered Cambodia despite being a fugitive from Thai justice.
Thai-Cambodian row a popularity boost for govts
December 17, 2009
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
Normalisation of bilateral relations between Thailand and Cambodia remains an uphill task at this moment as both sides continue to enjoy - for domestic consumption - political benefits from the dispute.
The Thai government has set conditions for normalisation of relations - Cambodia must respect the Thai judiciary; stop interference in Thailand's internal affairs; and remove fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra from the position of adviser to the Cambodian government.
Cambodia, on the other hand, says it wants Thailand to return its ambassador to Phnom Penh, otherwise relations can never get back on track.
The Thai government reply is it would not return its ambassador to resume duty as long as Thaksin remained an adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, and continued to avoid extradition to face punishment following his conviction in Thailand for corruption.
Thaksin has been at the core of the bad relations between the two countries since Hun Sen gave him the economic adviser's post in October. But even before this, feelings had been bad due to the conflict over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear.
The two governments intentionally put the Thaksin issue into the context of bilateral relations because they wanted to use the issue to boost popularity at home and cover their respective administrative failures.
The Democrat-led government badly needed the Thaksin issue to justify its reason for being in power. Conflict with Cambodia over Thaksin has helped improve the popularity of Abhisit Vejjajiva's administration.
Thaksin is a perfect decoy to divert attention from the administration's failure to revive the economy.
The government could easily shift the blame to Thaksin and his red-shirted group for any economic failure. Political stability is indeed a key factor for economic recovery.
On the foreign policy front, Thailand has a good excuse to delay a resolution on the conflict with Cambodia over Preah Vihear. The issue is complicated and many government supporters, notably the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), don't want the country to end the dispute over the temple.
They believe - wrongly- that if Thailand delays settlement on Preah Vihear until February next year, the World Heritage Committee would remove the temple from its listing.
Prime Minister Abhisit might know that perception is wrong but as long as it keeps the PAD away from putting pressure on the government, it's fine.
The opposition too can benefit from the Thai-Cambodian conflict as it uses the case of Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong to move a censure motion against Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya.
They blame Kasit for instructing Thai diplomat Kamrob Palawatwichai to get Thaksin's flight information from Sivarak, who was later pardoned from a seven-year jail term on the spying charge.
Cambodia also wanted the Thaksin issue to fuel its conflict with Thailand to boost support for the government. Angered by the Preah Vihear case, many Cambodian people wanted Prime Minister Hun Sen to take a tough stance against Abhisit's government.
Thaksin is a powerful weapon for Hun Sen to wield against the current Thai government as the issue could cause the Thai prime minister and his foreign minister to lose direction in handling the situation.
Thaksin is also useful for Cambodia in real terms as Hun Sen can utilise his connections with international investors to bring capital into the Cambodian economy. Thaksin himself has planned to invest in the country's tourism and energy sectors.
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
read more “Thai-Cambodian row a popularity boost for govts”
By Supalak Ganjanakhundee
The Nation
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
Normalisation of bilateral relations between Thailand and Cambodia remains an uphill task at this moment as both sides continue to enjoy - for domestic consumption - political benefits from the dispute.
The Thai government has set conditions for normalisation of relations - Cambodia must respect the Thai judiciary; stop interference in Thailand's internal affairs; and remove fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra from the position of adviser to the Cambodian government.
Cambodia, on the other hand, says it wants Thailand to return its ambassador to Phnom Penh, otherwise relations can never get back on track.
The Thai government reply is it would not return its ambassador to resume duty as long as Thaksin remained an adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, and continued to avoid extradition to face punishment following his conviction in Thailand for corruption.
Thaksin has been at the core of the bad relations between the two countries since Hun Sen gave him the economic adviser's post in October. But even before this, feelings had been bad due to the conflict over the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear.
The two governments intentionally put the Thaksin issue into the context of bilateral relations because they wanted to use the issue to boost popularity at home and cover their respective administrative failures.
The Democrat-led government badly needed the Thaksin issue to justify its reason for being in power. Conflict with Cambodia over Thaksin has helped improve the popularity of Abhisit Vejjajiva's administration.
Thaksin is a perfect decoy to divert attention from the administration's failure to revive the economy.
The government could easily shift the blame to Thaksin and his red-shirted group for any economic failure. Political stability is indeed a key factor for economic recovery.
On the foreign policy front, Thailand has a good excuse to delay a resolution on the conflict with Cambodia over Preah Vihear. The issue is complicated and many government supporters, notably the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), don't want the country to end the dispute over the temple.
They believe - wrongly- that if Thailand delays settlement on Preah Vihear until February next year, the World Heritage Committee would remove the temple from its listing.
Prime Minister Abhisit might know that perception is wrong but as long as it keeps the PAD away from putting pressure on the government, it's fine.
The opposition too can benefit from the Thai-Cambodian conflict as it uses the case of Thai engineer Sivarak Chutipong to move a censure motion against Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya.
They blame Kasit for instructing Thai diplomat Kamrob Palawatwichai to get Thaksin's flight information from Sivarak, who was later pardoned from a seven-year jail term on the spying charge.
Cambodia also wanted the Thaksin issue to fuel its conflict with Thailand to boost support for the government. Angered by the Preah Vihear case, many Cambodian people wanted Prime Minister Hun Sen to take a tough stance against Abhisit's government.
Thaksin is a powerful weapon for Hun Sen to wield against the current Thai government as the issue could cause the Thai prime minister and his foreign minister to lose direction in handling the situation.
Thaksin is also useful for Cambodia in real terms as Hun Sen can utilise his connections with international investors to bring capital into the Cambodian economy. Thaksin himself has planned to invest in the country's tourism and energy sectors.
From a government point of view, conflict is not all bad - as long as the two governments limit their disagreements and avoid consequences that could backfire. But for either country, any kind of conflict will never bring a good result.
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