The standoff emerging after the 28 May clash between Thailand and Cambodia, followed by punitive measures to close key border crossings, has brought almost all activities to a halt in several provinces. It is the grassroots communities who have been left behind, bearing the heaviest burden of a conflict far beyond their control.

Thailand has closed border crossings to Cambodia for all vehicles and tourists as tension simmers, abandoning local people who relied on cross-border trade and jeopardising Thai-Cambodian border trade.

In a surprise announcement on Monday (23 June), the Thai army closed almost all border crossings in seven provinces between Thailand and Cambodia. The orders, which cover border crossings in Sa Kaeo, Buri Ram, Sri Saket, Chanthaburi, Trat, and Surin, aimed at protecting the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Only patients seeking medical treatment and students crossing to schools were exempt.

The latest closures also followed the government’s move to crack down on call centre scams and transnational crime along Thailand’s border, particularly those based in Cambodia. According to a UN report, Cambodia is a hub of illegal scam activities, including human trafficking.

The measures from the Thai side were a part of retaliation against Cambodia’s ban the import of fruits, vegetables, internet services, electricity, and even fuel and natural gas from Thailand.

The measures came after the 28 May border clashes between the Thai and Cambodian military in Chong Bok, Ubon Ratchathani. Tension escalated with the leaked phone call between Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Cambodia’s Senate President Hun Sen, whom Paetongtarn called ‘Uncle’. The leaking of the call considerably worsened relations between both countries and between the Shinawatra and Hun families.

On 26 June, the Burapha Task Force temporarily eased border restrictions for Thais and Cambodians wishing to return to their hometowns or cross the border to purchase daily necessities. The new order applied to five checkpoints in Sa Kaeo province (Ban Khlong Luek, the Thai-Cambodian Friendship Bridge, Ban Khao Din, Ban Ta Phraya and Ban Nong Prue), and was aimed at easing the hardship faced by communities on both sides of the border.

On the same day, the PM made an official visit to Sa Kaeo Province, instructing the Commerce Ministry to provide assistance to three main groups: farmers, small-scale retailers, and exporters.
 

Collateral damage from the conflict

The incident in Chong Bok has had consequences for all seven provinces along the Thai-Cambodian border. After Cambodia banned imports of fruits and vegetables from Thailand in order to counter Thailand’s unilateral border closure, it has become increasingly obvious that the political standoff between the two states is devastating the lives of ordinary people.

A few days ago, Thairath reported that a fruit vendor in Chanthaburi Province took her own life due to debts she had incurred after Thai exporters could no longer export fruits and vegetables to Cambodia in cross border trade that her living and her family depended on.

“The ones you feel pity for are traders at various border posts, particularly in the eastern region, whether Aranyaprathet or Chanthaburi Province or even Trat Province, which are all key trading posts” said Ukrit Wongthongsalee, President of the Chanthaburi Chamber of Commerce.

Ukrit said activity at the border crossings in the province remained normal, and the free movement of goods and across the border, except for fruits and vegetables, which were banned by an earlier order by the Cambodian government.

However, after the 23 June closure imposed by the Thai military, vendors and workers who had previously crossed back and forth between the two countries were suddenly forced to stop. Only those with essential needs, such as students or individuals requiring medical treatment, were allowed to pass.

Ukrit stated that there was no movement at the crossings. The entire local economy was forced to come to a halt. Shops and markets that once thrived on the daily movement of people across the border could no longer operate. In Chanthaburi, border trade ranks after agricultural production and the jewellery industry in terms of economic importance.

He asserted that the hardest hit are small-scale vendors, whose lives depend on transactions between people from the two countries. They cannot move from where they are, as that is their home. But medium- and large-scale businesses can find alternative ways to distribute their goods. They may still be able to reroute their exports through other channels.

Another key issue he raised was Cambodian workers, who businesses, the agricultural sector, and even packing houses in the province rely on heavily . Thai entrepreneurs will be affected by the closure, as the uncertainty has pushed some Cambodian workers to return to their hometowns.

Meanwhile, Bamrung Locharoenwatanachai, President of the Sa Kaeo Chamber of Commerce, stated that for grassroots communities living along the border, the closure was considered a disruption to their everyday life, which depends on exchanges between the Thai and Cambodian sides.

In addition, some Cambodians run shops in Sa Kaeo’s Rong Kluea Market, just as some Thais run shops in Cambodia. When the border was suddenly closed, they were cut off from their businesses, with no access to their shops.

Bamrung asserted that the Thai government should expedite negotiations with Cambodia so that the border could reopen and local people could make a living as usual. He also said no one in Sa Kaeo or Chanthaburi had any idea what was going on. The border closure came out of nowhere, and they are the ones most affected. Speaking out is all they can do, as they are not the ones to decide whether to close or reopen the border.