Asean membership may 'have to be re

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Subject: Asean membership may 'have to be reviewed' 

(From July 7th The Nation)
Asean membership may 'have to be reviewed' 



The Nation 

FOREIGN Minister Prachuab Chaiyasarn said last night that if Cambodia 
was not ready to join Asean, the regional group could delay membership 
until later this year. 

He said although the Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed to 
admit Laos, Burma and Cambodia at the same time, Cambodia could join 
later if it was not prepared. 

He said Asean foreign ministers would have to review the Cambodian 
situation when they meet later this month in Kuala Lumpur. 

Kyodo reported that foreign ministers of Asean have begun consultations 
by telephone with a view to hammering out a response to the Cambodian 
situation. A Thai source saw potential trouble ahead as Cambodian 
Foreign Minister Ung Huot, who was to have represented Cambodia's 
coalition government at the upcoming series of Asean meetings, is loyal 
to Prince Ranariddh's royalist Funcinpec party. 

In a related development, Thailand yesterday beefed up security along 
its border with Cambodia and promised to remain neutral, as four 
military aircraft were on standby to evacuate Thais living in Phnom 
Penh. 

At an emergency meeting between Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh and 
Chief-of-Staff Gen Mongkol Ampornphisit, it was agreed to step up 
security along the border and Thai troops were told to stay alert and 
disarm any fleeing Cambodian soldiers if they wanted to cross into 
Thailand, Lt Gen Rattana Chalermsaengyakorn, director of the Civil 
Affairs Department, said. 

He added that since the fighting in Phnom Penh was an internal affair, 
Thailand would remain neutral and not let any side use its soil. 

As far as evacuating Thais from Cambodia, it was also disclosed 
yesterday that a total of 642 nationals had registered with the Thai 
Embassy in Phnom Penh. 

In Bangkok, the Foreign Ministry's deputy spokesman, Thinakorn Kanasuth, 
said the government was ready to send four C-130 planes to evacuate 
Thais as soon as permission was granted for the planes to land. 

At a press conference held jointly by the Thai Foreign Ministry and the 
Supreme Command, Thinakorn said that the Thai nationals were ready to 
board the planes once the embassy feels it is safe to go ahead with the 
airlift. 

Thinakorn said that Thailand had not yet received any formal requests 
from other countries to help evacuate their people. If such requests 
came forward they would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, he said. 

The Thai Embassy has instructed its citizens to move to four Thai-owned 
hotels and be prepared to be evacuated at any time. 

The embassy yesterday explained the latest situation to those in the 
hotels, saying the four C-130s would evacuate them as soon as possible. 
However, the situation was still too dangerous to risk a landing, as 
well as getting those wanting to leave to the airport. 

An additional 26 Thais working for foreign companies were based outside 
Phnom Penh, living along Route 4, the embassy said. It advised them to 
move to the port city of Sihanoukville and board vessels to Trat 
province. 

Caught in a cross-fire between their warring prime ministers, thousands 
of Cambodians fled the capital yesterday. Western countries were also on 
evacuation alerts. 

Shops closed, cars stayed off the bullet-raked streets and Phnom Penh 
residents huddled in their homes to avoid gun and rocket fire. 


"THERE WILL BE NO REAL DEMOCRACY IF WE CAN'T GURANTEE THE RIGHTS OF THE 
MINORITY ETHNIC PEOPLE.  ONLY UNDERSTANDING THEIR SUFFERING AND HELPING 
THEM TO EXERCISE THEIR RIGHTS WILL ASSIST PREVENTING FROM THE 
DISINTEGRATION AND THE SESESSION."  "WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING THEIR 
STRENGTH, WE CAN'T TOPPLE THE SLORC AND BURMA WILL NEVER BE IN PEACE."


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