Synopsis: Uprooted families in Banteay Meanchey face prolonged hardship at government resettlement sites as Bangkok blocks border demarcation.
ASEAN observers witnessed humanitarian hardships facing displaced Cambodian families in Banteay Meanchey province, as Cambodia renewed its call for the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Boundary Commission to resume border demarcation work to facilitate their return.
The ASEAN Observer Team, facilitated by the Cambodian Liaison Group, conducted an observation mission yesterday in Rong Cham village, Sla Kram commune, Svay Chek district, where members met displaced civilians, the Ministry of National Defence said in a statement.
Rong Cham villages, also known as “Waiting Villages”, are government resettlement sites in Banteay Meanchey province established to accommodate families displaced by military clashes along the border.
The statement said families are unable to return to their homes because areas of Cambodian territory remained under Thai occupation. Barbed wire and shipping containers have been installed in the affected areas, and some homes have been destroyed, the ministry said yesterday.
The visit provided ASEAN observers with the opportunity to witness the humanitarian consequences of the conflict facing civilians and highlighted the need to resume the border demarcation process under existing agreements, the ministry said.
The ASEAN Observer Team visits the displaced in Rong Cham village, Sla Kram commune, Svay Chek district, Banteay Meanchey province, yesterday. Ministry of Defence
Government spokesman Pen Bona said yesterday that the AOT plays a role in documenting incidents and the situation along the border. He called the members eyewitnesses whose reports are essential to verifying the implementation of the ceasefire and bilateral agreements.
“Their reports are highly valuable in verifying the implementation of the ceasefire and all the points stipulated in the Joint Statement of December 27, 2025, as well as the Kuala Lumpur Peace Agreement of October 26, 2025, to achieve a genuine resolution to the border issues and lasting peace between the two countries,” he said.
The observation mission follows Prime Minister Hun Manet’s proposal that ASEAN observers from Cambodia and Thailand be invited to witness future joint border surveys to ensure transparency.
Speaking at a graduation ceremony last month, Mr Hun Manet said the JBC should promptly resume joint surveying and demarcation, and added that the process must be based on existing treaties, conventions and agreements between the two countries.
“Let us complete the surveying. Survey based on the treaties and conventions that were agreed upon more than 100 years ago, and conduct the surveying through the commission that we have agreed upon,” he said. “I have also proposed that during the next round of surveying, the AOT from both sides be invited to witness and oversee the process,” he added.
He said Cambodia has facilitated AOT visits to various locations along the border to observe and verify the situation on the ground, including areas where border markers had been agreed upon and locations where Cambodia said Thai troops had moved beyond border markers.
“They will serve as witnesses,” he said, adding that Cambodia has nothing to hide and has also facilitated visits by UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Cambodia, Thomas Andrews, to verify the situation along the border.
Mr Hun Manet said the JBC remains the appropriate bilateral mechanism for addressing boundary issues, and added that surveying should proceed based on historical documents and agreements rather than unilateral actions.
The last official meeting of the Cambodia-Thailand JBC took place on October 22–23, 2025, in Thailand’s Chanthaburi province. Cambodia has since urged the commission should resume its work and has sought further discussions through the bilateral mechanism.
The December 27, 2025 Joint Statement of the Third Special Meeting of the Cambodia-Thailand General Border Committee provides for the resumption of JBC surveying and demarcation work in accordance with existing agreements.
Lieutenant General Maly Socheata, spokeswoman for the Ministry of National Defence, said on Sunday that the work should proceed as stipulated in Point 4 of the joint statement to enable displaced Cambodians to return home.
She said Cambodia remained committed to protecting its international border in accordance with the line established by the Indochina-Siam Boundary Commission and international law principles, including uti possidetis juris.
“It is important to underscore that Cambodia maintains a firm stance on protecting the Cambodia-Thailand international border as established by the Indochina-Siam Boundary Commission, by respecting the principles of international law, including the principle of the intangibility of inherited borders (Uti Possidetis Juris), and by respecting the Franco-Siamese conventions and treaties, maps, and the procès-verbaux of the Commission of the Abornement of the Boundary between Indo-China and Siam, as well as relevant agreements and documents that both parties have previously agreed upon,” she said.
Cambodia rejected unilateral changes to the international boundary resulting from force.
“Cambodia absolutely does not recognise any border alterations resulting from the use of force,” Lt Gen Socheata added.
The Ministry of National Defence reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the December 27, 2025 GBC Joint Statement, the October 26, 2025 Joint Declaration on the Peace Agreement between Cambodia and Thailand, and other bilateral agreements.
Cambodia said peaceful resolution of border disputes must be pursued through diplomatic engagement and bilateral mechanisms, with observers verifying developments on the ground.
Bangkok has suspended bilateral land border negotiations through the JBC. It said Cambodia’s initiation of compulsory conciliation proceedings under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea concerning maritime boundaries had damaged bilateral trust.
