Angkor outlaws drones

18 Nov 2016  2063 | Cambodia Travel News

SIEM REAP Cambodia has issued a directive to ban drones from flying over the famed Angkor archeological park in  Siem Reap.

Apsara Authority, which oversees the Angkor Archaeological Park in Siem Reap province, announced the ban, Wednesday, claiming the ban was in the name of public safety and historic preservation.

It is more likely that the authority has not discovered how to extract revenue from drone owners, who use them to shoot videos of World Heritage park without  permits or permission.

inside no 4Khmer Times quoted the authority spokesperson, Long Kosal, saying that the actual directive was signed, 4 November, but was not made public.

The authority claims the ban will ensure the safety of tourists and prevent any negative impact on the structures of the ancient temples, as well as maintaining security. None of the reasons stand up to scrutiny.

Apsara Authority director general, Sum Mab, wrote to all government ministries and companies and organisations involved in the tourism industry in Cambodia, notifying them of the impending ban, the report said.

The letter noted that permission to use drones would be considered case-by-case, if applications were made in advance with the authority. Illegal use of drones in the park would be investigated by local police.

Drones have been prohibited from flying over Phnom Penh capital’s airspace since February, last year, after a German tourist flew  drone over the Royal Palace and was spotted by Queen Mother Norodom Monineath as she performed her daily exercise routine.

Last November, three Vietnamese tourists were detained by police for flying a drone over the Royal Palace, a week after a tourist from Hong Kong faced arrest.

Thailand’s well known book publisher, Jaffee Yee, had a drone confiscated by police as he attempted to take an aerial video of Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, earlier this year. The drone was confiscated, but Yee left the country without facing charges.

He has since published a book of drone photography shot over Chiang Rai province and intends to publish a series of “from the air” books on tourist destinations around the Mekong Region.

He will probably give Siem Reap a wide berth.

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