A border fence too far

The territorial conflict over Ban Nong Chan in Sa Kaeo province may compel some officials to opt for permanent fences along the Thai-Cambodian border.

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Supreme Commander Gen Songwit Noonpakdee backs the army’s idea of building fences along the shared border with Cambodia, given the armed conflict that broke out in late July.

Ban Nong Chan has become a hotspot in the past weeks amid confrontations between Thai villagers and Cambodian settlers who staged boisterous protests after the Thai military surrounded the village with barbed wire.

Security experts said Thailand set aside the land as a refugee camp to receive those fleeing the Cambodian war in the 1970s. They have occupied the area since.

Past efforts by the government to push back the Cambodian settlers were unsuccessful. Successive Thai governments have submitted a series of protests to Cambodia, to no effect.