The recently-established Preah Vihear National Authority (PVNA) has announced plans to deploy 22 uniformed guards to protect Preah Vihear temple from looters, local media reported Tuesday.
"The guards will consist of 11 men and 11 women. They will be assigned to the temple next month to prevent the theft of temple stones," PVNA General Director Hang Soth was quoted by the Mekong Times, a local newspaper, as saying.
Kong Sophearak, director of the Tourism Ministry's Statistics and Information Department, expressed support for the PVNA's plan, claiming that the guards will not only protect the temples, but also give tourists more confidence to visit the remote site.
Preah Vihear temple perches atop the Dangrek Mountains close to the Thai border, the newspaper said.
No guards have protected the temple since the International Court of Justice handed ownership of the temple to Cambodia in 1962, though troops have regularly been deployed at the contentious site, it said.
The temple was occupied by Thailand 1949-1952, and there is still tension between the two countries over the exact location of the border.
Source:Xinhua
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