The temple of preah vihear in Cambodia

THE LOCATION OF THE TEMPLE
The Temple of Preah Vihear is an Angkorianera monument located in the northern province of Preah Vihear, 400 km north of Phnom Penh and 140 km northwest of Angkor, in

immediate proximity to Cambodia’s border with the
Kingdom of Thailand.

The Temple is perched on the southern end of a 625 meter high rock promontory of the “Dangrek” mountain range.
From the top of this steep escarpment, it looks to the south over a vast plain stretching out below on the Cambodian
side. Beyond the plateau to the north, the terrain extends in a gentle slope towards Thailand.

1./ THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR IS UNDER THE SOVEREIGNTY OF CAMBODIA
(Judgment of the International Court of Justice – 15 June 1962)
Through its petition submitted to the International Court of Justice (the Court) on 6 October 1959, the Cambodian
Government requested that the Court rule on a dispute over territorial sovereignty. In its judgment of 26 May 1961
the Court “upheld its jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the dispute” which it described in the following terms:
“In the present case, Cambodia alleges a violation on the part of Thailand of Cambodia’s territorial sovereignty
over the region of the Temple of Preah Vihear and its precincts. Thailand replies by affirming that the area in
question lies on the Thai side of the common frontier between the two countries, and is under the sovereignty of
Thailand. This is a dispute about territorial sovereignty.”
“The court can only give a decision as to the sovereignity over the Temple area often having examined what the
frontier line is”.
MAPS were submitted to the Court and various considerations were brought to bear on this subject. The Court found
therein the reasons for the Decision that it would render to resolve the dispute.
The Court first noted that:
– The “Dangrek” mountain range wherein the Temple of Preah Vihear stands on a promontory, is in a general way
the border between the two countries in this region—Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the north;
– The border in this area of the “Dangreks” was subject to the relevant provisions of the 13 February 1904
Convention between FRANCE (as the protectorate power of CAMBODIA within French Indochina) and SIAM (as
THAILAND was then known);
– The exact delineation of this border was to be determined by a Franco-Siamese Mixed Commission.
The Court then pointed out that:
– A new Border Treaty had been signed on 23 March 1907 between Siam and France;
– A second Mixed Border Delimitation Commission had then been established;
– A Map (referred to by the Court as Annex I Map) shows the delineation of the border as the result of delimitation
work and locates THE ENTIRE PROMONTORY OF PREAH VIHEAR, INCLUDING THE TEMPLE ZONE,
WITHIN CAMBODIAN TERRITORY.
“Thailand denies this so far as she is concerned, representing herself as having adopted a merely passive attitude
in what ensued. She maintains also that a course of conduct, involving at most a failure to object, cannot suffice to
render her a consenting party to a departure at Preah Vihear from the watershed line specified by Article I of the
Treaty of 1904, so great as to affect the sovereignty of the Temple area.”
“The Court sees the matter differently” because:
“The maps were given wide publicity in all technically interested quarters by being also communicated to the
leading geographical societies in important countries; to the Siamese legations accredited to the British,
German, Russian and United States Governments; and to all the members of the Mixed Commission, French
and Siamese;”

2./ INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
J U D G M E N T of 15 June 1962
“FOR THESE REASONS,
THE COURT,
By nine votes to three,
FINDS THAT THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR IS SITUATED IN TERRITORY UNDER THE SOVEREIGNTY
OF CAMBODIA.”
Remarks:
The above text basically summarizes the judgment that the International Court of Justice published in its “Reports
of Judgments, Advisory Opinions and Orders,” under the heading CASE CONCERNING THE TEMPLE OF
PREAH VIHEAR (CAMBODIA vs THAILAND) – Merits – Judgment of 15 June 1962 – ICJ. Case report, p. 6-37.
The United Nations Charter signed in San Francisco on 26 June 1945, under the provisions respecting the
STATUTE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE, stipulates the following:
Article 60:
The judgment is final and without appeal.
Article 61, paragraph 5:
No application for revision may be made after the LAPSE OF TEN YEARS from the date of the judgment.


3./ THE KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA PROPOSES THAT THE SACRED SITE OF THE TEMPLE
OF PREAH VIHEAR BE INSCRIBED ON THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST
As State Party to the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (commonly referred
to as the 1972 Convention or World Heritage Convention), since November 1991, the Kingdom of Cambodia
presented to UNESCO to inscribe the SACRED SITE OF THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR on the World Heritage
List.
In a letter dated 10 October 2001, His Excellency the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, Samdech Akka
Moha Sena Padei Techo HUN Sen, informed the Director General of UNESCO, His Excellency Mr Koïchiro
MATSUURA, of the Royal Government’s decision to propose this inscription.
Subsequently, a complete portfolio in compliance with the Operational Guidelines of the Kingdom of Cambodia for
the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention was prepared by the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, with
the technical advice and active assistance of UNESCO (Cultural Section and Office in Phnom Penh).
This portfolio was submitted to the World Heritage Center (UNESCO-Paris) on 30 January 2006.

4./ EANING AND SCOPE OF THE WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION

As noted by the members of the World Heritage Committee in the “Budapest Declaration” adopted on 28 June 2002,
during the United Nations Year for Cultural Heritage and on the thirtieth anniversary of the 1972 Convention:
“The properties on the World Heritage List are assets held in trust to pass on to generations of the future as their
rightful inheritance;”
“The 1972 World Heritage Convention is an instrument for the sustainable development of all societies
through DIALOGUE and MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING.”
This Convention adopted by the UNESCO General Conference in Paris on 16 November 1972, states in:
– Article 6, that property inscribed constitutes a world heritage, for whose protection it is the duty of the international
community as a whole to co-operate;
– Article 7, that international protection of the world heritage shall be understood to mean the establishment of
a system of international co-operation and assistance designed to CONSERVE AND IDENTIFY THAT HERITAGE.
– Article 27, that the States Parties shall endeavor by all appropriate means to strengthen APPRECIATION and
RESPECT of the HERITAGE by their peoples.
5./ THE WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION RESPECTS THE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE STATES
AND THEIR RIGHTS

Article 6, the Convention states that State Parties fully respect the sovereignty of the State in whose territory
the heritage is situated.
Article 11, paragraph 3 of the Convention is an essential provision to avoid conflicts and contestations:
“The inclusion of a property situated in a territory, sovereignty or jurisdiction over which is
claimed by more than one State, shall in no way prejudice the rights of the parties to the dispute.”
Paragraph 106 of the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention:
“Where no buffer zone is proposed, the nomination should include a statement as to why a buffer
zone is not required”.
6./ THE SACRED SITE OF THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR IS OF OUTSTANDING UNIVERSAL
VALUE
A non-governmental advisory organization with the World Heritage Committee, the International Council on
Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) is in charge of evaluating proposals for the inscription of cultural property.
In accordance with the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention,
ICOMOS performs “evaluations that are OBJECTIVE, RIGOROUS and SCIENTIFIC, with a consistent level of
professionalism.”
Pursuant to a technical mission carried out on the sacred site of the Temple of Preah Vihear by the ICOMOS representative
from 23 to 29 October 2006, and to additional information requested by ICOMOS and submitted by
Cambodia, on 3 January 2007, ICOMOS approved as of 21 January 2007, the following evaluation:
ICOMOS considers that the site’s OUTSTANDING UNIVERSAL VALUE HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED.
And that the property is in keeping with criteria I, II and IV,

Criterion I
“Preah Vihear is an outstanding masterpiece of Khmer architecture. It is very ‘pure’ both in plan and in the detail of
its decoration”
Criteron II
“Preah Vihear demonstrates an important interchange in human values and developments in art, architecture,
planning and landscape design”
Criterion III
“The architectural ensemble is exceptional in its representation of Buddhist geometry. The position of the Temple on
a cliff edge site is particularly impressive. Stairs and historical access surviving for over a thousand years show a
sophisticated technological understanding. The whole historic structure demonstrates the highpoint of a significant
state in human history.”
Consequently, ICOMOS recommends that the Sacred Site of the Temple of Preah Vihear (Cambodia) be
included on the World Heritage List.


7./ THE WORLD HERITAGE COMMITTEE EXPRESSES ITS SUPPORT TO INSCRIBE
THE SACRED SITE OF THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR IN 2008
(31st session of the Committee – Christchurch, New Zealand – July 2007, Decision No 31 COM 8B.24)
During its 31st regular session held in Christchurch, New Zealand, from 23 June to 2 July 2007, the World Heritage
Committee examined all the documents relating to the proposal to inscribe the Sacred Site of the Temple of Preah
Vihear on the World Heritage List.
The Committee first of all took note of the following statement made by the Chairman of the World Heritage
Committee, approved by the delegation from Cambodia and the delegation from Thailand:
“The State Party of Cambodia and the State Party of Thailand are in full agreement that the Sacred Site of the
Temple of Preah Vihear has Outstanding Universal Value and must be inscribed on the World Heritage
List as soon as possible. Accordingly, Cambodia and Thailand agree that Cambodia will propose the site for formal
inscription on the World Heritage List at the 32nd Session of the World Heritage Committee in 2008 with the
active support of Thailand.”
The Committee then recognized:
“That the Sacred Site of the Temple of Preah Vihear is of great international significance and has
Outstanding Universal Value under criteria (i), (ii) and (iv)” and agreed “in principle that it should be
inscribed on the World Heritage List and noted that the process for inscription is in progress.”
The Committee concluded by requesting the State Party Cambodia:
“To strengthen conservation and management at the site by making progress in developing an appropriate
management plan, which progress will enable its formal inscription by the Committee at its 32nd Session in 2008;”
and “to submit a progress report to the World Heritage Center, by 1 February 2008.”

8./ THE KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA IMPLEMENTS DECISION 31 COM 8B.24 OF THE WORLD
HERITAGE COMMITTEE

The Royal Government of Cambodia created a public institution, the National Authority for the Protection and
Development of the Preah Vihear Natural and Cultural Site (Autorité Nationale pour la Protection et le
Développement du site culturel et naturel de Preah Vihear – ANPV) and has provided it with the human and
financial resources as well as the legal and statutory capacity to:
Reinforce CONSERVATION OF THE SITE and move forward in developing an appropriate MANAGEMENT PLAN
for this site.
In order to implement the aforementioned decision of the Committee in the best possible conditions, the ANPV
conducted a number of appraisal and technical analysis missions on the Preah Vihear site from September 2007 to
January 2008. These high-level missions were made possible due to the kind commitment and generous contribution
of Belgium, the United States of America, France and India, whose distinguished experts also benefited from
valuable input by colleagues from China, Japan and Thailand, as well as the International Centre for the Study of
the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM).
The missions resulted in the preparation of a PROGRESS REPORT forwarded to the World Heritage Centre
(UNESCO) on 28 January 2008.
This document was complemented by a SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT following up on the “Meeting of experts regarding
conservation and management procedures for the Sacred Site of the Temple of Preah Vihear ,” held at UNESCO
Headquarters on 25 and 26 March 2008, at the invitation of the Deputy Director for Culture, Her Excellency
Ms. Françoise RIVIÈRE.
This latter report was forwarded to the Centre on May 13, 2008.

9./ CAMBODIA AND THAILAND ENHANCE THEIR COOPERATION FOR THE INSCRIPTION
OF THE TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR

In a spirit of friendship, neighborliness and mutual understanding between the two countries, the Royal Government
of Cambodia and the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand have been working together in recent months to
strengthen dialogue and consultation in a number of areas of mutual interests.
These fruitful developments focus in particular on inscribing the TEMPLE OF PREAH VIHEAR on the
World Heritage List in 2008.
Thailand has confirmed its decision, as expressed at the 31st Session of the World Heritage Committee held in
Christchurch (New Zealand, 23 June to 2 July 2007), to support the inscription of the Sacred Site of the Temple
of Preah Vihear.
This confirmation was made:
1) Firstly, by the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, His Excellency Mr. Samak Sundaravej, on the
occasion of his visit to Phnom Penh on 3 and 4 March 2008 at the invitation of His Excellency Samdech Akka
Moha Sena Padei Techo HUN Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia;