PHNOM PENH, Nov 28 (Phnom Penh Post/ANN): Phnom Penh has asked Bangkok to allow 3,000 Cambodians to cross the border into Thailand in their daily commute to work, and proposed reopening crossings along their shared frontier.
The request was made by Banteay Meanchey and Battambang provincial governors Um Reatrey and Sok Lou during a meeting with Parinya Phothisat, their counterpart in Thailand’s Sa Kaeo, which borders precisely the two Cambodian provinces.
The meeting was held in Sa Kaeo’s Aranyaprathet district, across from Banteay Meanchey’s Poipet town, in a bid to strengthen cooperation and friendship.
The two sides discussed reopening border crossings such as Poipet, Malai and Boeung Trakuon in Banteay Meanchey and Kilometre 13 in Battambang’s northwesternmost Sampov Loun district, the interior ministry said on November 26.
It noted that Kilometre 13 is across from the Khao Din border checkpoint in Sa Kaeo’s Khlong Hat.
“The Cambodian side requested that 3,000 Cambodians be allowed into Thailand for work and to return home in the evening. They could enter at 6am and return by 10pm.
“A total of 300 cart pullers should be allowed entry once, and all of them obliged to follow health measures. Migrant workers with border passes should be permitted to work on farms in Thailand along the borders for three months,” it said.
The ministry noted that all parties agreed on the proposals but that approval from both prime ministers would be required.
The Ministry of Health on Sunday (Nov 28) reported 23 new Covid-19 cases, four of which were imported. It noted that all the cases were confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests.
The ministry also reported four new deaths and 20 recoveries, noting that two of the deceased had not been vaccinated against Covid-19.
As of November 28, Cambodia had recorded a total of 120,087 Covid-19 cases with 116,466 recoveries and 2,931 fatalities. - Phnom Penh Post/ANN
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