BANGKOK, 9 January 2013 The government will, next month, send a team of officials to England to meet with foreign legal advisers, in preparations for the Preah Vihear Temple case filed by Cambodia with the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Phongthep Thepkanjana, who leads the legal team, said on Wednesday that Thai Ambassador to Hague Weerachai Phlasai would also be traveling to London to work with him and his team in February.
Mr. Phongthep stated that the government’s legal team and consultant team there would work on the final verbal statement, which will be given to the ICJ in April, while reviewing other important issues of the case.
Asked if movements from various groups inside the country would affect the case, the deputy premier said that everyone should, instead, lend their help in the case, since the judges will be considering other news and information apart from what they have seen in the case’s dossier.
In addition, Mr. Phongthep believes that the current ICJ president’s being Asian would make no difference in the case as Thailand and Cambodia are both Asian countries. He assured that the Thai legal team would be doing its best although the verdict would still up to the judges.
