A senator on Monday called for the immediate dissolution of the Thai-Cambodian Parliamentary Friendship Group, citing ongoing tensions between the two nations.
Senator Parinya Wongcherdkwan submitted a dissolution petition to House Speaker Sophon Zarum and called for a review of the legislative-level relations between Thailand and Cambodia.
Sen Parinya said the dissolution of the group is necessary due to provocations at the border, which affect national security, national interests and the sentiment among Thais.
He called on nine members of both the lower and upper houses who sit as committee members in the friendship group to resign from their posts.
He also called on Mr Sophon, as the House speaker, to dissolve the group in order to allocate budgets to troops at the border instead.
Moreover, the senator proposed budget cuts to various forms of aid Thailand provides to Cambodia. These include the cuts on education supplies for Cambodian children who are considered illegal migrants in Thailand and who are receiving 15 years of free education in the country.
He also demanded that 541 Cambodian commuting students be prohibited from returning to study in Thailand, citing the prolonged closure of border checkpoints.
Mr Parinya also suggested removing the Cambodian quota from the Thailand Scholarship application for master's and doctoral students and using the resulting surplus scholarships for students from Bhutan or other Asean countries.
The senator also called on Thai universities, private agencies, and businesses to withhold scholarships provided to Cambodian nationals.
Mr Parinya also urged the government to review and postpone other assistance plans along the border until the situation returns to normal.
These include delaying the opening of border hospitals and providing healthcare services to sick Cambodians in border areas, such as vaccines and nutritional supplements, training programmes for Cambodians, and cross-border electricity and water systems.
