Angkor Wat
Sir, —It is indeed a terrible thing that Angkor Wat should have fallen into the hands of the Communists. Y o u i editorial suggestion that these splendid ruins deserve the status of an “open-city” is a very nice thought. But is there any evidence that the
Viet Cong are likely to observe any such international agreement? In your news columns it is reported that the Cambodians would not fight inside the area of the ancient temples, for fear of destroying the shrines. But the Communists have no such scruples or inhibitions. Far from having any desire to honour these shrines, or to protect these archaeological treasures, they appear to be
using them as a sanctuary from which to attack the nearby airport. If the painstaking labours of modern archaeologists are to be lost, and the marvels of Angkor Wat destroyed, it will be one more proof (to those in the civilised world who still need It) that communism is the new barbarism.—Yours, etc., PRAESES. June 12. 1970.
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Bibliographic details
Press, Volume CX, Issue 32322, 13 June 1970, Page 10
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170Angkor Wat Press, Volume CX, Issue 32322, 13 June 1970, Page 10
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