The National Assembly (NA) on Monday unanimously approved five draft laws and the Protocol on the Demarcation and Marker Planting of the Land Boundary between Cambodia and Vietnam.
Consisting of three articles, the protocol was passed in its entirety with 116 votes. The protocol was presented by Hun Neng, chairman of the NA commission on Interior, National Defence, and Civil Service Administration, and was defended by defence minister Tea Banh.
The NA also approved a treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. The four others are related to trade and cooperation between ASEAN member states and the bloc’s outside partners including India and Hong Kong.
In a Facebook post, NA president Heng Samrin said: “The draft laws will further push social development and bilateral and multilateral cooperation on borders, trade and security with neighbouring countries, as well as nations in the region and across the globe.”
After the passage, the Supreme Court-dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) released a statement alleging that the approval of the border protocol was “an official agreement to hand over Cambodian land to Vietnam”.
Cambodia Border Affairs Committee vice-chairman Koy Pisey dismissed the claims. She told The Post on Monday the passage of the protocol was a great achievement for Cambodia. She said Cambodia had not demarcated its borders in decades.
“When we have a clear border, no one can violate Cambodia’s land. The former CNRP was within their right to make the claims. But as a Cambodian citizen, I am delighted by this achievement. In principle, the government has duties to protect territorial sovereignty and the country for the next generations,” Pisey said.
