By Ratha Visal
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
About 300 ethnic minority families from Tin village, Kaun Mom district, Ratanakiri province, complained about Ros Vanna, the deputy commander of the district military police, for grabbing 28-hectare of lands belonging to the collective community and turning them into his private property so that he can plant rubber trees.
The protest by the ethnic villagers was made on Sunday 11 November 2007 through 8 village representatives who brought the complaint over to the office of Adhoc human rights organization, to ask for their intervention and protest to the authorities involved in order to provide justice for them.
Chum Sophal, one of the villagers’ representatives said: “Mr. Ros Vanna and the district governor borrowed this land for a one year period, but later on, we saw Ros Vanna building a fence and planting rubber trees, when we, the community representatives, went to ask him, he said that he didn’t borrow it from the community.”
Tou Chuon, one of the complainers, added: “He grabbed lands belonging to ethnic monitory people to plant rubber trees, he cleared the land, built a fence surrounding them. Would the government please help us, we are poor people.”
Sab Vong, Tin village chief, indicated that the villagers’ protest was not resolved by the authority even though the latter knows that the lands are the property of the collective community, and the district governor himself borrowed these lands to plant potatoes in 2005 also.
Sab Vong said: “We sent a report already, we sent complaints to the provincial governor, the district governor, they wouldn’t resolve the issue for us. This seems like they want to grab lands belonging to ethnic minority people.”
RFA could not get an answer yet about the accusations made against Ros Vanna, (the person answering his phone) claimed that he traveled to a faraway forest and he did not take a phone with him.
Chamoeung Phang, the Tin commune chief, indicated that the commune authority did not hear about and agree to the occupation of community lands by (Ros Vanna,) the deputy commander of the military police. He said that this is a violation.
Nou The, the Kaun Mom deputy district governor, said that the disputed lands were occupied by a forestry official once already, but he decided to return them back to the community after the latter protested just as it is doing now. He said that he is doing a research on the officials involved in the occupation of the community lands.
Nou The said: “I am asking the community to research from where they took (the land), who sold it to them … Right now, I am also preparing to do a search just in case this involves district officials and (military police) forces.
According to an Adhoc report from Ratanakiri province, this is the second time that the community complained about the violation and grabbing of the collective lands which are considered state properties. The ethnic community association calls for an immediate investigation into this case, and the confiscation of these lands back and leaving them to the care of ethnic minority people, according to their traditions.
The protest by the ethnic villagers was made on Sunday 11 November 2007 through 8 village representatives who brought the complaint over to the office of Adhoc human rights organization, to ask for their intervention and protest to the authorities involved in order to provide justice for them.
Chum Sophal, one of the villagers’ representatives said: “Mr. Ros Vanna and the district governor borrowed this land for a one year period, but later on, we saw Ros Vanna building a fence and planting rubber trees, when we, the community representatives, went to ask him, he said that he didn’t borrow it from the community.”
Tou Chuon, one of the complainers, added: “He grabbed lands belonging to ethnic monitory people to plant rubber trees, he cleared the land, built a fence surrounding them. Would the government please help us, we are poor people.”
Sab Vong, Tin village chief, indicated that the villagers’ protest was not resolved by the authority even though the latter knows that the lands are the property of the collective community, and the district governor himself borrowed these lands to plant potatoes in 2005 also.
Sab Vong said: “We sent a report already, we sent complaints to the provincial governor, the district governor, they wouldn’t resolve the issue for us. This seems like they want to grab lands belonging to ethnic minority people.”
RFA could not get an answer yet about the accusations made against Ros Vanna, (the person answering his phone) claimed that he traveled to a faraway forest and he did not take a phone with him.
Chamoeung Phang, the Tin commune chief, indicated that the commune authority did not hear about and agree to the occupation of community lands by (Ros Vanna,) the deputy commander of the military police. He said that this is a violation.
Nou The, the Kaun Mom deputy district governor, said that the disputed lands were occupied by a forestry official once already, but he decided to return them back to the community after the latter protested just as it is doing now. He said that he is doing a research on the officials involved in the occupation of the community lands.
Nou The said: “I am asking the community to research from where they took (the land), who sold it to them … Right now, I am also preparing to do a search just in case this involves district officials and (military police) forces.
According to an Adhoc report from Ratanakiri province, this is the second time that the community complained about the violation and grabbing of the collective lands which are considered state properties. The ethnic community association calls for an immediate investigation into this case, and the confiscation of these lands back and leaving them to the care of ethnic minority people, according to their traditions.
5 comments:
Who the hell in charge in this country that would allow this lawlessness to contintue incessantly?
If you're unable to perform you duty and responsility -- then have someone else take over.
Importantly, we need to understand that Hun Sen is also afraid, too.
No surprise here, just deport all Ah Khmer-Yuon in the area back to south Vietnam and problem solved.
The country is ruled by thugs. Hun Sen and his cronies will continues to share this kind of activities until there is nothing left to grasp. Then, they will go after each other.
His name sounds like real Khmer but actually he is a Hanoi scumbag.
It doesn't matter. Ah illegal Khmer-Yuons have no right to Khmers' lands. We (Khmer) needed it for development to get us our of poverty.
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