The Trouble with Cambodia
Posted by Stuart at 11:58 AM on January 31, 2003
Israel/Palestine. India/Pakistan. Thailand/Cambodia? I have never had the experience of living in a country with a very tense political situation with its neighbor -- until now. I can't imagine Canada, for example, rioting and torching the American Embassy, which is what happened to the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh, Cambodia yesterday. Of course, the US and Canada have never been at war, which can not be said for these two countries.
And what was the Thai response? Grumblings from the Prime Minister. Official downgrade of relations. Looking down on Cambodia in a general sense with a lot of talk about how this will hurt Thai businesses. As the Bangkok Post reported: "Sataporn Jinachitra, president of the Export-Import Bank of Thailand, said most Thai investors had already factored political risks into their business decisions.
"The businessmen we deal with look at risk over the medium term. They understand Cambodia has only adopted democracy over the past 10 or 12 years,'' he said.
Last night about 1000 Thais protested at the Cambodian Embassy in Bangkok. According to the Bangkok Post, "The protesters eventually began to disperse after Pol Gen Sant told them His Majesty the King had appealed for calm, and subsequently led them in singing the national and royal anthems."
Maybe George W should try that with anti-war protesters at home!
Hi Chris. It's not often that I get a comment 4 years after I write a post. Welcome!
In any case, thanks for the update. Yes, the Whitehouse was burned in 1814, but as you said it was the British army that did it, not the Canadians. Canada became an country in 1867, and since then, the US and Canada have not been at war.
But I guess the point I was trying to make is that armies from what is now Thailand and Cambodia have been fighting each other for a thousand years, similar to other troubled places like the Middle East. Our North American history only goes back 400 or so years, and it has been largely peaceful. The US tends to fight wars on other countrys' soil, not their own.
By the way, there is some good info on "Canada-United States relations" at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada-United_States_relations
Anyway, thanks for the comment and for giving me an excuse to go do a little reading on US History :)
- Stuart
Thanks for the reply. Yes, history is fun. I am heading to Thailand soon, my friend and I are moving there in a couple months. When we get there.. we would love to buy you a beer.
It took me all day.. but I read your whole journal... it's great!
Holy Cow. You really read the whole journal? Even I haven't done that! :)
In any case, welcome to Thailand...
"[I can't imagine Canada, for example, rioting and torching the American Embassy,] [Of course, the US and Canada have never been at war, which can not be said for these two countries.]"
Canada and the USA were at war. During this war, Canada entered the USA torching the "whitehouse". The reason this building is called the whitehouse is because after the fire, they painted the remaining portions of the building over with white paint to cover the burn marks.
You can find more information on this on whitehouse.gov. Canada was under european power, so it does say that European army rather than Canadian.