Thailand gives tough ICJ response to Cambodia?s ?fake? map.

Virachai Plasai, Thai ambassador to the Hague and leader of the legal team, said his Cambodian counterparts had fabricated information and attempted to mislead the court by using a falsified map.

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Judge Peter Tomka (centre) presides over the International Court of Justice (ICJ) during the case between Thailand and Cambodia over the Preah Vihear temple. Thailand presented its first oral arguments on Wednesday afternoon, Thailand time. (EPA photo)

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Thailand: Cambodia has agenda

Bangkokpost.com

Cambodia was hoping that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) would change its 1962 verdict on the Preah Vihear case when it petitioned the court to reinterpret the ruling, a member of Thailand's legal team said in an oral statement to the ICJ on Wednesday.

Donald McRae said Phnom Penh had asked the ICJ to reinterpret the 1962 verdict, which awarded the possession of the ancient Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia, because it wanted the court to rule that the boundary line is defined by a French-made 1:200,000-scale map.

However, the court declined to rule on the map in 1962, and said specifically it had no jurisdiction to decide on demarcation.

Phnom Penh's petition lacked clarity and specificity, McRae said.

Ambassador Virachai Plasai and Thai government counsel Professor Alain Pellet were among those who addressed the International Court of Justice on behalf of Thailand.

Virachai Plasai, Thai ambassador to the Hague and leader of the legal team, said his Cambodian counterparts had fabricated information and attempted to mislead the court by using a falsified map to back its request for an interpretation of the court's 1962 ruling on the temple.

Mr Virachai told the court Cambodia showed the fake map during its presentation of its statement on the case earlier this week with the intention of creating a misunderstanding. The map was different to the one attached in its petition to the court.

The map clearly showed the Preah Vihear temple was situated on the Cambodian side but the border lines shown in the two maps were different, Mr Virachai said.

"Thailand has strictly followed the 1962 verdict," he said. "But Cambodia's intention is clear, (and it is) trying to get the court to interpret the 1:200,000-scale map and trying to get Preah Vihear listed as a World Heritage Site," Mr Virachai said.

Alina Miron, an attorney representing Thailand, said the 1:200,000-scale map drawn by France that was proposed to the judges by the Cambodian side, had many versions and they have to be considered thoroughly.

Alina Miron, an attorney representing Thailand, says Cambodia's controversial Annex 1 map is riddled with geographical errors.

She said many map experts agreed that the map could not be used as a reference because it has geographical errors.

Many inaccuracies can be found when the French-made map is placed on top of the current map, Miron said.

Alain Pellet, another lawyer representing Thailand, said the barbed wire laid around Preah Vihear by Thailand 51 years ago was to set the boundary line of the ancient temple, not to demarcate the Thai-Cambodian border.

Pellet said the late King Norodom Sihanouk appeared happy and celebrated at Preah Vihear after learning that Thailand had laid barbed wire around the temple a week after the verdict was delivered.

You can read the full story here: http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/345764/thailand-cambodia-has-agenda

preside – to be in charge of an official meeting, ceremony or other event เป็นประธาน ในพิธี ในที่ประชุม
oral – spoken rather than written ที่ใช้การพูด
argument – a reason or reasons why you support or oppose an idea or suggestion เหตุผล
(hidden) agenda – a (secre) reason for doing something because you will get an advantage from it เบื้องหน้าเบื้องหลัง;  วาระซ่อนเร้น
verdict – a decision by a court of law คำพิพากษา
petition – to ask someone in authority to do something ยื่นคำร้อง
interpret – to decide what the intended meaning of something is ตีความ, ชี้แจง, อธิบาย
reinterpret – to make a new decision on what the intended meaning of something is after having made a first interpretation ตีความใหม่
ruling – a decision by a court of law คำตัดสิน คำชี้ขาด
legal – relating to the law or lawyers เกี่ยวกับกฎหมาย
possession – having or owning something การครอบครอง
ancient – very old ที่เก่าแก่ ที่โบราณ
define – to describe clearly and exactly what something is  กำหนด,  ระบุ, ทำให้ชัดเจน
boundary – a real or imagined line that marks the edge or limit of something  เขตแดน,เส้นแบ่งเขต
decline – to say politely that you will not accept something or do something ปฏิเสธ
specificially – in a detailed and exact way เฉพาะเจาะจง
jurisdiction – the authority that an official organisation has to make legal decisions about somebody/something เขตอำนาจตามกฎหมาย
demarcation – (the making of) a border or a rule that shows the limits of something or how things are divided การแบ่งเขต, การกำหนดเขต,เส้นแบ่งเขต
clarity – the ability to be easily seen, heard  or understood  ความชัดเจน
specificity – the quality of being specific, exact and clear  ความจำเพาะ๒. สภาพจำเพาะ
ambassador – a senior official who lives in a foreign country and represents his or her own country there เอกอัครราชทูต
counsel – a lawyer who gives someone legal advice and represents them in a court of law ทนายความ
address – to speak publicly to a group of people  กล่าวปราศรัย
on behalf of – as a representative of ในนามของ ในฐานะของ
counterpart – someone/something who has the same job or purpose as another person or thing, but in a different country, time, situation, or organisation  ผู้ที่ทำงานประเภทเดียวกัน; ผู้ที่อยู่ในตำแหน่งเสมอกัน
fabricate – to invent or produce something false in order to deceive  สร้างข้อมูลหรือเรื่องราวที่ไม่เป็นความจริง
mislead – to make someone believe something that is incorrect or not true ชักนำไปในทางที่ผิด
falsify – to change something, such as a document, in order to deceive people ปลอมแปลง
fake – made to look like something real in order to trick people ปลอมแปลง
intention – a plan in your mind to do something ความตั้งใจ เจตนา แผนการ
situated – located  ระบุที่อยู่ ที่ตั้ง
border – the official line separating two areas, regions or countries  เขตแดน อาณาเขต
strictly – completely อย่างเข้มงวด
World Heritage site – a place, building, structure, etc. that has been determined by the UN to be of great historical or culture value and is given a special protected status โบราณสถานที่เป็นมรดกโลก
attorney – a lawyer ทนาย
proposed – suggested as an idea for a group to consider ถูกเสนอ
version – a particular form of something which varies slightly from other forms of the same thing – ชุด, เวอร์ชั่น
consider – to give careful thought to something before making a decision พิจารณา
riddled with – full of (something bad) เต็มไปด้วย
inaccuracy – a statement, detail, or measurement that is not accurate, i.e., not correct or true in every detail ความไม่ถูกต้อง, ความผิดพลาด
current – of the present time ปัจจุบัน
barbed wire – thick wire with a lot of sharp points sticking out of it, used for making fences ลวดหนาม
late – dead ที่ล่วงลับไปแล้ว