The seven Thais arrested by Cambodian officials on Wednesday for alleged illegal entry were found to have been on Cambodian soil during their arrest, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said yesterday.
The seven Thais had admitted to intruding into Cambodian soil when shown their actual position on the map and the video recording of their presence.He said that a survey by officials from the Department of Treaties and Legal Affairs and the Royal Thai Survey Department found that the group, which included Democrat MP Panich Vikitsreth and yellow-shirt activist Veera Somkwamkid, were about a kilometre inside Cambodia.
Panich, Veera and the five other Thais were inspecting a disputed border area in Sa Kaew province before their arrest. They are now in a prison in Phnom Penh.
The foreign minister said yesterday that he did not think the incident would worsen the bilateral ties between Thailand and Cambodia, which were improving.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi said yesterday that the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh had requested the Cambodian authorities to allow the detainees' families to visit them in prison.
He expected permission in a day or two although it was the New Year holiday.
He said the detainees told him during his visit on Thursday that they were unaware they had entered Cambodia and they had no intention of violating the law. Thani said the detainees got good treatment from the prison authorities and the vegetarians among them were allowed vegetarian food supplied by embassy officials.
Outside Government House yesterday, some 50 yellow shirts from the People's Alliance for Democracy held a protest, demanding faster government action to ensure early release of the seven detainees. The protesters also brought a coffin posted with photos of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on four sides. They said they would camp out there until Tuesday.
Separately, more than 100 people led by academic ML Wanwipa Charoonroj, yesterday gathered outside the Cambodian Embassy to protest against the arrest.
A coffin and wreaths with images of Abhisit and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen were burnt.
Source: The Nation
