Bangkok Post
The speedy release today of the Thai engineer convicted in Cambodia last week to seven years in prison on spying charges is not expected to result in a change in the troubled relations between Thailand and its eastern neighbour.
The diplomatic spat that culminated in Sivarak Chutipong's arrest actually has nothing to do with his case. The incident was beaten up simply to stoke the already troubled relations.
Sivarak's tribulations began on Nov 12, not long after former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was appointed by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen as his personal and his government's economic adviser.
Many people are convinced Sivarak was a pawn in a political game and was made a scapegoat to discredit and embarrass the Abhisit Vejjajiva government. Thaksin is thought to be a co-director of this story along with his long-time friend Hun Sen.
It is no surprise to see this distasteful tale ending so quickly after Sivarak's mother, Simarak na Nakhon Phanom, submitted a request for a royal pardon to Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni the day after the Cambodian court ruled on Tuesday her son was guilty of spying by providing the Thai embassy with details of Thaksin's flight plans. It took only two days for the pardon to be granted.
It has been reported Thaksin contacted Hun Sen to ask him to show Sivarak leniency. The Cambodian prime minister respond favourably without any hesitation.
The Cambodian leader's recent public comments that he could not work with Thailand as long as Mr Abhisit and Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya were in power was a clear hint who he preferred to befriend and work with.
The Cambodian leader ignored the Asean principle of non-interference in another member country by condemning the Thai government as illegitimate because it was installed by the leaders of a coup in 2006 which toppled the Thaksin regime.
He also feigned to forget that the fugitive prime minister was found guilty by the Thai Supreme Court for abuse of power in connection with a land purchase scandal. Such ignorance by Hun Sen showed thorough disrespect of the Thai judicial system.
The motive for Hun Sen's actions could be linked to a secret offer if Thaksin ever returns to the Thai prime ministership.
Anti-Thaksin groups suspect Thaksin stood to gain in some way from the maritime border negotiations between Thailand and Cambodia which were suspended by the Abhisit government following the diplomatic spat between the two countries.
Had the negotiations ended in favour of Cambodia, Phnom Penh could potentially gain in some way from the undersea oil and gas reserves in the overlapping offshore area.
What would that mean for a leader like Hun Sen? Not only would he gain popularity at home, but also wealth from the negotiations.
If this theory holds true, it would be a waste of time for a third country like Indonesia, which has offered to act as a mediator, in trying to help the two states patch up their differences.
Unless Thaksin distances himself from the Cambodian leader, which is unlikely, no one should expect relations between the two countries to really improve.
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