By Pin Sisovann
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
With the harvest approaching, rice has become the latest battlefield in the long struggle for 10,000 contested hectares in Battambang's Bavel district, villagers and rights workers said.
In an attempt to stave off violence this week, local officials told villagers in Ampil Pram Deum commune's Boeng Pram village not to harvest their rice until a crop sharing agreement could be reached with the RCAF soldiers who also claim the land as their own.
"I told both sides to negotiate to share the crop between the land owners and those who planted the rice," said Tim Dareth, the governor of Bavel district. "I am worried they could fight."
Some families, he added, have already reached crop-sharing agreements.
Some, however, have not.
"My neighbor called me saying someone harvested my rice," said Seng Vannak, one of about 60 Boeng Pram villagers who set up a makeshift camp across from the National Assembly last month to protest the land conflict with RCAF.
Villagers said they were first told Oct 9, by loudspeaker, not to harvest their rice crop because it was planted on other people's property.
Yin Mengly, Adhoc's Battambang coordinator, said he welcomed intervention by authorities as long as soldiers were not involved.
Sharing the crop, he said, was a good compromise, but villagers should get a majority cut especially because they planted the rice and it remains unclear who legally owns the land.
"The fair share should not be equal [share]," he said. The peace that has settled in Bavel, he added, is tenuous.
"The crop is their lives," he said. "They could dare to risk danger to fight for the crop."
The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee, an umbrella group of rights organizations, plans to visit the area next week, he said. Nom Vanny and Yorm Moeun, the commander and deputy commander of RCAFs Battalion 2, could not be reached for comment.
In an attempt to stave off violence this week, local officials told villagers in Ampil Pram Deum commune's Boeng Pram village not to harvest their rice until a crop sharing agreement could be reached with the RCAF soldiers who also claim the land as their own.
"I told both sides to negotiate to share the crop between the land owners and those who planted the rice," said Tim Dareth, the governor of Bavel district. "I am worried they could fight."
Some families, he added, have already reached crop-sharing agreements.
Some, however, have not.
"My neighbor called me saying someone harvested my rice," said Seng Vannak, one of about 60 Boeng Pram villagers who set up a makeshift camp across from the National Assembly last month to protest the land conflict with RCAF.
Villagers said they were first told Oct 9, by loudspeaker, not to harvest their rice crop because it was planted on other people's property.
Yin Mengly, Adhoc's Battambang coordinator, said he welcomed intervention by authorities as long as soldiers were not involved.
Sharing the crop, he said, was a good compromise, but villagers should get a majority cut especially because they planted the rice and it remains unclear who legally owns the land.
"The fair share should not be equal [share]," he said. The peace that has settled in Bavel, he added, is tenuous.
"The crop is their lives," he said. "They could dare to risk danger to fight for the crop."
The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee, an umbrella group of rights organizations, plans to visit the area next week, he said. Nom Vanny and Yorm Moeun, the commander and deputy commander of RCAFs Battalion 2, could not be reached for comment.
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