A group of parliamentarians today announced a planned visit to Thailand and Cambodia in solidarity with their counterparts, following the recent peace negotiation mediated by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Malaysian Parliamentary Federation for World Peace (PFWP) spokesperson, Senator Hatta Ramli, said at a press conference in Parliament today that Malaysia’s Asean chairmanship this year has encouraged parliamentarians to continue playing their respective roles in ensuring regional peace.

“The peace mediation initiated by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, and witnessed by representatives of the governments of China and the US, de-escalated the armed conflicts between the two Asean member countries.

“PFWP always believes that peaceful and diplomatic solutions should be the mainstay remedy to any conflicts between nations, particularly within Asean.

“To substantiate our position, we intend to keep in touch with fellow lawmakers from the respective countries. Malaysia’s tenure as Asean chair has encouraged us parliamentarians to play our respective roles to ensure the peace accord remains a lasting solution.

“PFWP has decided to dispatch our members to both countries to meet with fellow parliamentarians in a show of solidarity. We hope to do this after the current sitting of the Dewan Rakyat ends in September,” Hatta (above, centre) said.

Mediator of peace

Last week, Anwar announced in Parliament that Thailand and Cambodia want Malaysia to continue mediating their border dispute even after the country’s chairing of Asean had lapsed.

He also informed the Dewan Rakyat that he expects negotiations to take at least another three months, cautioning that such discussions cannot be limited in terms of time.

On July 28, Anwar announced a ceasefire agreement between Thailand and Cambodia, which had seen rising tensions since May 28, following a deadly incident in the Preah Vihear area that claimed the life of a Cambodian soldier.

The two neighbouring countries have a long-standing dispute over their 817km border, which remains partially unmarked.

The ceasefire agreement came after peace talks mediated by the prime minister in Putrajaya.

Anwar, as Asean chairperson, said the ceasefire is among the common understandings reached at the meeting attended by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and acting Thai Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai.

He also emphasised that Asean disputes should not involve global superpowers, and any peacekeeping roles should be restricted to regional countries.

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