Preah Vihear market construction begins

The Phnom Penh Post, Wednesday, 29 July 2009 15:03 Thet Sambath
CAMBODIAN soldiers in Preah Vihear province are taking the first steps towards rebuilding a market near Preah Vihear temple that was destroyed by Thai rocket fire in April.

Cut timber is currently being brought to Preah Vihear temple in pickup trucks, officials said.

Because the roads are poor, soldiers have needed to carry the timber partway to the site where the new market will soon be assembled.

"Everything is cut before it is sent to the construction site," said Hang Soth, general director of the Preah Vihear National Authority. "We will just raise the timber, connect them together and it's fixed."

Prime Minister Hun Sen earlier this month said the market should have been completed by July 19, though Hang Soth said at the time that that deadline was unrealistic.

Due to inclement weather, authorities did not want to predict when the market would be completed.

"I don't know when it will be finished because now it is the rainy season," said Sor Thavy, the deputy governor of Preah Vihear province.

Ros Heng, deputy governor of Preah Vihear's Choam Ksan district, said the market could bolster tourism when the border dispute with Thailand calms down.

"The market will serve all tourists," he said.

Hang Soth said the market would be constructed with wood, zinc and thatch, and that its style would be in keeping with that of Preah Vihear temple itself.