ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) urgently calls on the governments of Thailand and Cambodia to choose restraint over retaliation, dialogue over destruction. In the face of escalating violence along the border, ASEAN must act with moral clarity to protect the lives and dignity of border communities.

Cambodia is continuing to ban the import of fuel and gas from Thailand amid the ongoing border disputes between the two countries. At the same time, Cambodia also appears to be leveraging the moment to diversify its energy sources away from Thailand, with the well-connected Kampuchea Tela, the largest energy player in the country, standing to gain even more market share as PTT Oil and Retail Business Public Company Limited (PTT OR), the Thai state enterprise and second-largest fuel distributor in the country, suffers a setback.

Amid simmering tensions over a border dispute with Cambodia, a leaked audio clip captures Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra referring to Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen as “Uncle” while offering him concessions in an effort to ease tensions over the closure of border checkpoints. She also referred to Thailand's Second Army Area Commander as an opponent. Although she said it was a negotiation tactic, has the military been defying the government's de-escalation efforts?

During a meeting of the House Committee on National Security, relevant stakeholders discussed a leaked audio clip linked to Hun Sen’s order to target Cambodian refugees in Thailand. Two Cambodian refugees said they were pursued after fleeing to Thailand, while the National Security Council acknowledged the existence of intelligence operations, but could not confirm whether they involved state-to-state collaboration.

The Cambodian government is deliberately ignoring a litany of human rights abuses including slavery, human trafficking, child labour and torture being carried out by criminal gangs on a vast scale in more than 50 scamming compounds located across the country, Amnesty International said in a new report published yesterday (26 June).

The People’s Party today (19 June) called on Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra to dissolve the House following the leaked audio clip of a conversation between Paetongtarn and Hun Sen, the former Cambodian Prime Minister and current President of the Cambodian Senate, as well as the Bhumjaithai Party’s announcement of its withdrawal from the coalition government.

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra held a press conference today (19 June) apologizing for her phone call with Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen and insisting that the government and the military remains united.

A leaked recording of a private call between Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Cambodia’s Senate President Hun Sen has gone viral on social media. During the call, the Thai Prime Minister admitted she is facing domestic pressure from the military, which put her in the hot seat immediately after the audio was leaked.

Following a fatal border clash on 28 May at the Chong Bok, Thailand and Cambodia agreed to hold bilateral talks through the Cambodia-Thailand Joint Commission on Demarcation for the Land Boundary (JBC) on 14-15 June. Both sides remain at odds on certain matters, particularly Cambodia’s move to refer the case to the International Court of Justice.

Even though there have not been further clashes since the 28 May clash at Chong Bok, the border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia appears to be escalating. Amid growing uncertainty, the Pheu Thai government faces public outcry, fuelled by surging nationalism, talk of legal efforts to replace the Prime Minister, and even calls for a junta, while civil society continues to campaign for peace. Meanwhile, the Royal Thai Army arbitrarily announced its readiness to use force. Supalak Ganjanakhundee, a former news editor, a researcher and an advisor to the House of Representatives' Committee on the Armed Forces, said the Thai military said the Thai military has taken on many responsibilities that should fall under the civilian government.

As tension brews on the Thai-Cambodian borders and waves of nationalistic, anti-migrant rhetoric appear on Thai social media, Cambodian workers in Thailand grow concerned over their own safety and livelihoods.

Following a border clash on 28 May at the Chong Bok border pass in Ubon Ratchathani, Cambodia has said that it intends to take its territorial disputes with Thailand to the International Court of Justice, while the Thai government has said that it is committed to bilateral negotiations through the Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) and will not accept the ICJ’s jurisdiction.