By Thet Sambath and John Maloy
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
A commune chief in Banteay Meanchey province's O'Chrou district has given artifact hunters permission to dig up what they believe to be ancient burial mounds in search of decorative beads.
Chhit Soch, chief of Sophy commune, said Wednesday that the hunters came to him seeking permission to scour for artifacts, which he granted, partly because the area in question was on private property.
"If it was a temple, I would not have allowed them to dig," he said. "But the landowner agreed to let them do it."
Chhit Soch said that the site is just farmland and doesn't have any artifacts. However, he believes the hunters' real aim is to unearth gold buried during the Khmer Rouge regime.
"I ordered the police to investigate," he said. "If the men find [Khmer Rouge] gold, we will take some for commune development." He added that the digging stopped recently after a reporter from a local newspaper visited the artifact hunters.
District deputy police chief Sorm Sophin denied that the excavation was a hunt for antiquities, claiming that the men were simply digging an artificial pond.
Prak Bireak, a staffer for the NGO Heritage Watch, said that, regardless of the men's intent, digging for ancient beads—which villagers can sell for $25 to $50 apiece—is a major problem in the province.
Chuch Phoeun, secretary of state at the Ministry of Culture, said that the permission of the commune chief was not sufficient to allow the men to excavate for artifacts. By law, nobody can lay claim to items found in the soil more than 50 centimeter below the surface, even if found on private property, he added.
Chhit Soch, chief of Sophy commune, said Wednesday that the hunters came to him seeking permission to scour for artifacts, which he granted, partly because the area in question was on private property.
"If it was a temple, I would not have allowed them to dig," he said. "But the landowner agreed to let them do it."
Chhit Soch said that the site is just farmland and doesn't have any artifacts. However, he believes the hunters' real aim is to unearth gold buried during the Khmer Rouge regime.
"I ordered the police to investigate," he said. "If the men find [Khmer Rouge] gold, we will take some for commune development." He added that the digging stopped recently after a reporter from a local newspaper visited the artifact hunters.
District deputy police chief Sorm Sophin denied that the excavation was a hunt for antiquities, claiming that the men were simply digging an artificial pond.
Prak Bireak, a staffer for the NGO Heritage Watch, said that, regardless of the men's intent, digging for ancient beads—which villagers can sell for $25 to $50 apiece—is a major problem in the province.
Chuch Phoeun, secretary of state at the Ministry of Culture, said that the permission of the commune chief was not sufficient to allow the men to excavate for artifacts. By law, nobody can lay claim to items found in the soil more than 50 centimeter below the surface, even if found on private property, he added.
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