Cambodian soldiers accused of land rights abuse in Prey Trolach forest

Land is cleared for new homes in Koh Kong province. Land disputes have surfaced in Prey Trolach, with the alleged clearing of community forest. Photograph: Samrang Pring/Reuters

Sections of community forest allegedly bulldozed despite prime minister Hun Sen forcibly speaking out against land seizures

Friday 3 August 2012

Mark Tran

guardian.co.uk

Cambodian soldiers and police have been clearing undergrowth with pesticides and using bulldozers to bring down trees in an area of community forest, according to local groups. The alleged land seizure at the 1,335 hectare (3,300 acre) Prey Trolach commune forest, a four-hour drive from the capital Phnom Penh, began five to six weeks ago.

"The military simply went into the forest and started chopping down trees," said John Macgregor, a project adviser for After the Flood, a coalition of NGOs working on livelihood projects. "First they poisoned the undergrowth, then brought in bulldozers to knock down trees. They've cleared nearly 200 hectares, which are now wasteland, and the rest is likely to follow."

Macgregor tried to go to the area two weeks ago but was told it was too dangerous. "I didn't get very far. I stood on the hill overlooking the area," he said, adding that attempts at negotiations between the local authorities and the ministry of agriculture with the soldiers failed to stop the tree-cutting. "The gun trumps the law," Macgregor added.

The Prey Trolach forest in Roka Kiri district in Battambang province was established in 2004 and has gained national recognition from the ministry of agriculture, forestry and fisheries.

Khmer prehistory : 5,000 years BC in Battambang province

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuDaGHQxtA4

Battambang battle pits youth vs experience

Sam Rainsy Party candidate Sin Chan Pov Rozeth, 25, campaigns for commune chief in O’Char commune in Battambang town yesterday. At 25, she is the youngest candidate running in next month’s elections. Photograph: Pha Lina/Phnom Penh Post

Friday, 25 May 2012
Meas Sokchea and David Boyle
The Phnom Penh Post

These commune elections mean nothing in terms of real parliamentary muscle, but as a key battleground at next year’s National Assembly elections, they will provide an indication of whether Cambodians are willing to consider change.

At 25, Sin Chan Pov Rozeth is the youngest candidate running for commune chief in the June 3 election and faces a ruling party opponent more than half a century her senior.

The young Sam Rainsy Party hopeful is pitted against the Cambodian People’s Party Kem Chhorng, 78, who has been the chief of O’Char commune in Battambang town since just after the Khmer Rouge were overthrown in 1979.

Sin Chan Pov Rozeth’s former job was selling quails here, where she grew up with only her mother, who sells vegetables for a living and lives in the SRP headquarters.

But for the past week, she has been aggressively selling something more abstract: a campaign message to end alleged corruption in the commune, build a healthcare centre and construct a sewer system to stop continual flooding.

“Even though my competitor is old and has experience, I still hope that I will beat him, because in the 20 years that he has been a commune chief, he has not served people well but thinks about money; there has been no development for people,” she said.

Vote for Hope - Vote for Change - Vot​e Sam Rainsy Party

Sam Rainsy Party youngest candidate: Sourn Rosette.

"I know and I care for my commune"

Watch her firm sense of determination and her commitment for solutions for her commune. her message for youth is clear: Vote.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXRiTOROclI

Fighting Corruption at Local level-Vote for Sam Rainsy Party Candidates

Sam Rainsy Party candidates for the 3 June, 2012 commune election have a very clear message to voters: Vote for Sam Rainsy Party to eliminate corruption from our communes. Keep your money for your children's future.

Corruption in Cambodia is at all levels. At commune level, over-charging villagers who need the most basic but vital documents such as birth and marriage certificates can cost up to US$20-$25. Even to ask permission to hold a wedding can boost the price up to US$50. For most villagers, this means selling chickens and pigs and even cows in order to get their commune chiefs to provide them with these documents. Officially, a birth certificate is free for the first 30 days. A marriage certificate costs US$1.00.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbKUx8iLIN4

Villagers locked in land dispute threaten arson [-The pigs are pushing for Hun Xen's predicted "FARMERS' REVOLUTION"]

Wednesday, 30 November 2011
May Titthara
The Phnom Penh Post

Police and military police stopped about 200 villagers from entering rice fields in Battambang province yesterday, saying they had no right to harvest in the 100-hectare area because it belonged to well-known businessman Song Thon, villagers said.

Chhut Mao, a 64-year-old village representative of Lvea commune, Bavel district, said police had threatened to destroy their crops on land they had farmed for five years. Villagers believed the only way to stand up to authorities was to use violence, he added.

“Villagers plan to burn [Song Thon’s] harvest machine if police dare to burn our rice.”

He said the land was part of 300 hectares the 160 families had used since 2006, and they fear police will stop them from farming the other 200 hectares, most of which Song Thon also claims to own.

Ven. Koeun Ravy ordered to leave the clergy after he was falsely accused of theft

Monks are protesting the order for Ven. Koeun Ravy to leave the clergy (Photo: http://srpchandeth.wordpress.com)

Villagers and monks are protesting in support of Ven, Koeun Ravy (Photo: http://srpchandeth.wordpress.com)

Ven. Koeun Ravy from Banan district, Battambang province, was ordered to leave the clergy after he was falsely accused of theft. However, local villagers claim that he was forced to leave the clergy because he was perceived as not supporting the ruling CPP party. The Sam Rainsy Party and the Norodom Ranariddh Party are defending the right of Ven. Koeun Ravy to remain as monk.

Click the control below to listen to the RFA's audio report:

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COMFREL Release the Result of Workshop on Voter's Voice in Remote Areas; Koh Chhiveang, Ek Phnom, Battambang province

Dear all,

COMFREL is please to release its press release on the result of workshop on voter's voice in remote areas; Koh Chhiveang, Ek Phnom, Battambang province was held on July 15, 2011.

Please see the attached document for details.

FYI : If you need releases or articles related to workshop on voter's voices, elections reforms, democracy/political reforms, decentralisation and governance, please feel free to visit our website :

www.comfrel.org

Best regards,

COMFREL


http://www.box.net/shared/yv65dordokaom1ov3cxu

On the Khmer Rouge crime in Cambodia's Northwest

MY IDEA

Dear Sir

            I want to tell something to KI Media about Khmer Rouge. Everyday I have read KI Media I just see a lot news concerning about Cambodia and foreign but someday ago I am interesting about case 03-04. This case I am agree with the victim that have complaint on this case but for me I want you come to analyze in North-West region of Cambodia because this region where I had lived so I would you know here they governed different other region and I think that this location was the prison to kill people 17^th April 1975.

            I would take one commune that I had lived name Chrap Pomsen commune Rukhakirie district before in Mongreussey District Battambong Province: The number People 17^th April that they came the first time to live here 80 000 (1975) and until 1978 rest 3600 (One person or Angka talk me) and I don’t account they killed after 1979 (from January to early April) more thousands young peoples came from East Region killed by Pol Pot here. Today everybody forget this event here, you has be know in this region get free after Khmer new year, during 3 month and half they had killed a lot a lot people.

They 3 point interesting that you could investigate:

1-     After 1979 M. Heng Teav nick name Ta Pet chief of North-West region (1975-1978) had worked with PPC was a Chief of Center Union now he was dead.

2-     Find out the leader during 1978 to 1979 (April) this time they killed Vietnam and Kampuchea Krom people and after people from East Region and other.

3-     Please investigate the governor of Battambang Province now he is a ex. Khmer Rouge leader (This information I get from somebody are working at Pailin Province).

Thai troops shot 4 Cambodian men and killed one

24 June 2010
By Suon Sophalmony
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Click here to read the article in Khmer

Thai black-clad soldiers shot on 4 Cambodian men, killing one of them in the evening of 23 June, when the men were returning back home from work in Thailand and they were looking for snails in the forest to eat.

The shooting took place in Teak San village in Klonghat district, Sakaew province, Thailand, about 200-meter from the river delimiting the border, next to the Kaun Phnom pass, in front of Trapaing Prolit village, Santepheap commune, Sampov Loun district, Battambang province in Cambodia.

37-year-old Ek Ra who lives in Trapaing Prolit village indicated on Thursday morning: “I returned back from work in Thailand … On our return, I walked with 4 people, then we collected snails in the forest to cook and eat. After we collected a small bagful, about one kilogram, then we continued walking when the Thai soldiers yelled at us to stop and to sit down. The fellow who walked in the front was about to sit down, I did not sit down yet when they shot us, then I ran! I thought we could all escape, but the victim – Dim Doeur – was shot twice: once on his right calf and the other on his right shoulder.”

Another man who was also shot by the Thai black-clad soldiers added: “We were collecting snails to cook. We only left the road by a little bit, and we came out of the stream when we met them! I was in front, they ordered us to sit down. I sat down, when I was on the right hand side, they shot the fellows in the back, so I ran! When we ran, they pursued us and they shot me twice but they missed me.”

44-year-old Dim Doeur was shot and killed by the Thai black-clad soldiers, the other 3 men – 37-year-old Ek Ra, 23-year-old Phon Ravuthea and 39-year-old Yav Yong – escaped death. They all live in Trapaing Prolit village, Santepheap commune, Sampov Loun district, Battambang province.

The Thai side and the group of Thai black-clad soldiers who are accused of the shooting above could not be reached.

An Saray, the Cambodian border liaison official in the region, indicated that the Cambodian authority intervened with the Thai side regarding this shooting, but all that the Thai side did was to express their regret only.

An Saray indicated that Cambodia will complain to the Thai side and will demand that the shooting culprit be apprehended and brought to face justice according to the law: “On my end, I am telling the victim’s family to prepare a complaint to send to me so I can send to the border liaison office to complain to the Thai side about this shooting and killing.”

Yin Meng Ly, an official of the Adhoc human rights organization, condemned the shooting by Thai troops on Khmer villagers: “This is a very inhumane action that should stop! Even if the Cambodian villagers went there illegally to do something there, they should not be shot at and killed!”

Yin Meng Ly asked the Cambodian ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) and the Cambodian government to intervene with Thailand to bring to justice the Thai black-clad soldiers involved.

Koy Kuong, MoFA spokesman, could not be reached regarding this shooting case.

The body of 44-year-old Dim Doeur was delivered to his family in Trapaing Prolit villagers for his final rite, after the Sa Kaew hospital was not able to save his life.

On the Campaign Trail-Cambodia’s Last Frontier

The majority of Cambodian people are still today facing an array of daily obstacles and challenges. Economic, social, and justice issues affect Cambodians all over the country; these include problems of land grabbing, unemployment, lack of social safety nets (including healthcare and pensions), gender violence and lack of government and political support for these issues. And for all of these, women are especially and deeply impacted. Nonetheless, despite this long-standing reality, the needs of women everywhere in Cambodia remain largely unnoticed and unvoiced.


Recognizing the need to confront these issues, the Sam Rainsy Party has continued to address the problems of men, women and children. Within the party, Mu Sochua remains vigilant and dedicated as ever to the lack of opportunities for women. Recently, she has taken up the role of Battambang's provincial leader for the party. Regardless of her recent court hearing on 2 June, which has the potential threat of imprisonment, Mu Sochua was back on the campaign trail the next day.

Last week, Mu Sochua continued to reach out to local communities in Pailin, the last frontier in the North West of Cambodia, a former strong hold of the Khmer Rouge and home to the top KR leaders presently being tried for their crime against humanity.


While the size, location, and time of the locations varied greatly, Sochua delivers the same persistent message: the need and potential for a more just and humane democratic society.

Along the way, the SRP Women’s Wing has a growing number of followers, with their morale boosted by the message of : Yes We CAN! YES Women Can do It!

Thai spy plane trespassed into Cambodian airspace

19 May 2010
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Chum Sib, district governor of Sampov Loon, Battambang province, told the Koh Santepheap newspaper over the phone in the morning of 18 May that a Thai spy plane flew along the borderline, but 5 km inside Cambodian airspace in the evening of 14 May. Chum Sib said that this Thai spy plane flew along the borderline but inside Cambodian airspace from Malay district, Banteay Meanchey province, up to Sampov Loon and Phnom Preuk districts, then it crossed back into Thai airspace near Phnom Ka-ngak which is facing Phnom Barang Thleak in Phnom Preuk district, Battambang province. Chum Sib said that he reported this incident already. General Uk Khnuot, the deputy commander for the Battambang province military region said that he is not sure about this trespassing of airspace by the Thai plane yet. He said that if there was Cambodian airspace trespassing, it wouldn’t escape the attention of his force. General Por Vannak, the commander of the Battambang military police, said that there was indeed trespass into Cambodian airspace, but the plane flew at high altitude.

Mu Sochua vows to confront the CPP

SRP MP Mu Sochua (Photo: Cambodge Soir Hebdo)

02 March 2010
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

SRP MP Mu Sochua, who was recently transferred from Kampot to Battambang province to replace Mr. Eng Chhay Eang, vowed to lead a political fight against the CPP in order to push for democracy in Cambodia. On Monday, Mrs. Mu Sochua said: “We only have one competitor: the CPP. The SRP knows about this already, therefore, we must strengthen ourselves from the grass root level all the way to the national level. I am very moved that the party is transferring me to the Battambang province, I am determined to dedicate my life to democracy.” Even though Mr. Sam Rainsy, the SRP party leader, is absent from the country due to government lawsuits against him, Mrs. Mu Sochua claimed that the SRP is not weakening, quite to the contrary, the SRP’s popularity is stronger than ever, therefore, the SRP is not afraid of the CPP’s competition in the future.

The CPP troubled?

In response to Mu Sochua’s determination to lead the political fight against the CPP, Chheang Vun, the CPP MP for Battambang province, mocked Mrs. Mu Sochua, saying that she is not stronger than anybody else. Chheang Vun told the Phnom Penh Post that: “Chumteav Mu Sochua is not stronger than others, how many people in Battambang know her? If Mu Sochua is strong, she could attract more votes in Kampot province, and there is no need for her to come to Battambang.” Chheang Vun added: “There is nothing to fear or to be concerned about the replacement of H.E. Eng Chhay Eang by Chumteav Mu Sochua in Battambang.” He added that from one mandate to another, the CPP keeps on increasing its number of seats because it is helping the people (sic!).

Cambodian border troops facing food shortage

16 November 2008
By Zackaria
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Click here to read the article in Khmer

While Cambodian border troops along the province of Koh Kong and along Battambang’s Samlot district appeal for additional food supply, government officials and CPP MPs said that, in general, the budget to support the army is short, however, the government plans to increase the military budget, but this will not happen until 2009.

Khieu Kanharith, minister of Information and government spokesman, indicated that the government is preparing shelters for mobile army units along the border, as well as providing with additional equipments. “The salary for our soldiers is not enough for them. When there was full peace, it was not an issue, we focused on building villages for disabled soldiers, but with the current situation, maybe everybody already forgot that Lok Chumteav Bun Rany Hun Sen went to built the shelters on deserted islands and all the way to the Thai border, we built many of these shelters already,” Khieu Kanharith said.

Cheam Yieb, CPP MP and chairman of the National Assembly economy, finance, banking and auditing committee, said that the economy in Cambodia is still limited, therefore budget for soldiers is still short. He indicated that the government is already thinking about this problem. “It's unavoidable for a poor country like ours, we just get out of war, our economy barely makes it, so we can’t avoid the shortage. That’s why in the past, soldiers take their wife and children with them to the front, this is regrettable,” Cheam Yieb said.

Cheam Yieb added: “The planned budget for national disasters, for security and order protection for our society, we approved about $300 million for Samdach (Hun Sen) to prepare for emergency, then he can spend this budget.”

SRP MP Son Chhay said that the budget for soldiers for 2008 is sufficient, however, it was not properly spent: “… they (soldiers) don’t have the courage to go to war to defend our lands when their chiefs are full of money and nice cars, but for the soldiers, they don’t even have enough rice to feed their family. How can you expect them to go to war for their chiefs?”

Nevertheless, soldiers patrolling along the provinces of Koh Kong and Battambang still appeal for food to be provided to soldiers along the frontline.

A soldier from border unit 502 who refused to provide his name, and stationed at the Khmer-Thai border near Sen Chao area, Bor Turen and Ta Ngol Mountains, Samlot district, Battambang province, said that, up to now, soldiers still face food and equipment shortage. “Each month, we receive 65,000 to 67,000 riels ($16.25 to $16.75), this (salary?) includes all the food stipend. We appeal to the Royal Government to resolve this problem also, and most importantly, those who lead the government should think hard about it. Furthermore, we ask that the government thinks about food stipend, and helps provide some food each month, for example: decent amount of packaged noodle, sardines, other food or 4-10 cans of condensed milk. With us being at the top of the mountain, we can’t go anywhere to find food.”

Another soldier who also refused to provide his name, and stationed on the frontline in Koh Kong Mountain, also known as 100 Mountains in Koh Kong province, said the same thing as his colleague from Battambang. Because of food shortage, soldiers in Koh Kong protested and demanded that they can take turn between staying at the border and returning to their base. But, the soldier appealed to the government to help provide more food to all the soldiers, in particular, those soldiers who are patrolling along the frontline who cannot afford to go look for food by themselves.

The soldier from Koh kong said: “They gave us one kilo of salted fish, as for condiments, there is only green onion, oil, MSG and sugar only. This is not enough for us to eat, we must buy additional food by ourselves. Even with food problem, they cut our (salary?) money to 45,000 riels ($11.25) a month, and they gave us about 20 kilos of rice.”

RFA could not reach the army commander in Koh Kong province to provide clarifications on this issue yet. However, Bun Seng, the commander of army Unit 5 in Battambang province, said that frontline soldiers stationed in Samlot province do not face shortage.

General Srey Doeuk, Commander of the intervention army Unit 12 stationed in Preah Vihear temple, said that Cambodian soldiers along the border do not face shortage.

Cambodian and Thai troops along the border have confronted each other in Preah Vihear temple area. This armed confrontation started after UNESCO decided to list Preah Vihear temple as a World Heritage Site.

Besides government supply, Cambodian soldiers also receive donations from local and overseas Cambodians for their expense and food.

Nevertheless, RFA could not obtain any clarifications from General Neang Phat, the high ranking official from the ministry of Defense, because he was busy in a meeting. But, he used to provide RFA with about the same answer as what Khieu Kanharith said above, while recognizing that salary for Cambodian soldiers is limited and that there are currently about 100,000 Cambodian soldiers.

Nevertheless, for the 2009 national budget, the government plans to double the military budget, this will amount to $500 million.

Eng Chhay Eang resigns from SRP Secretary-General position but will remain with the party

Opposition Party Secretary-General Resigns

By Seng Ratana, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
19 August 2008

Eng Chhay Ieng, who had been the secretary-general of the Sam Rainsy Party, has chosen to resign, following disappointing results in July's election
Eng Chhay Ieng, who had campaigned in Battambang province, said that the election had only resulted in two seats for the party there, the same number of seats as in the previous government.

The resignation comes as the Sam Rainsy Party continues to boycott July's election results.

Eng Chhay Ieng said he was stepping aside to make room for others, but he would not leave the party. He did not know who would replace him, but he said the party has many people capable of doing the job.

Eng Chhay Ieng had been criticized within the party and publicly by Prime Minister Hun Sen for excessive gambling. However, he said Tuesday the gambling accusations were not a reason for his resignation, and that he had now stopped the habit.

Eng Chhay Ieng resigned from his position in 2005, following gambling accusations, but he took up the position again in 2006.

Chea Vannath, former director of the Center for Social Development, said the resignation would bring two positive developments to the opposition party.

Firstly, it will reduce internal tensions within the party, she said. Secondly, Eng Chhay Ieng's willingness to resign rather than struggle for power would set a good example for others in the party.

Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said Tuesday the Sam Rainsy Party had suffered weakened support because of its election strategy, not because of Eng Chhay Ieng.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy could not be reached for comment.

SRP election campaign in Battambang province

On July 13-14, 2008, the SRP held its election campaign in Battambang province.

Sokun Nisa’s car hit a truck transporting dirt

Monday, July 14, 2008
Everyday.com.kh
Translation from Khmer by Socheata

A Lexus Mini car belonging to Star Singer Sokun Nisa and driven by the actress herself hit a truck transporting dirt in the opposite direction. During the accident, Sokun Nisa’s car was also carrying three other passengers. The accident was serious enough for the car water tank to explode and it pushed the truck back by about 4-meter before it came to a stop. The Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper reported that this incident took place on 10 July 2008 at 2:45 PM, to the west of the Noreay (Shiva) round about, located in Kab Ko Thmei village, O’Cha commune, Battambang district, Battambang province. No one was seriously injured during this traffic accident, but Sokun Nisa and the 3 passengers immediately abandoned the Lexus car, and took off in another car while saying that they are in a hurry to go to a show in Banteay Meanchey province. Regarding this accident, some said that the star was talking over her phone while driving, and the phone may have slipped out of her hand. While trying to reach for her phone, she swerved to the right (left?) of the truck coming from the opposite direction. Ker Yean, the deputy police commissioner for the province of Battambang said that Sokun Nisa apologized to the truck and asked to pay for its repair. Ker Yean added this case was resolved in the morning of 12 July 2008.

One man helps Cambodia rebuild trust

Solutions: Buar Sramum (l.) and Son Rony (r.), a couple, sought help from a Buddhism for Development conflict-resolution team. (Photo: David Montero)
Monychenda heng: He aids fellow Cambodians (Photo: David Montero)

A former monk trains volunteers to resolve disputes that might otherwise turn violent.

June 16, 2008
By David Montero
Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

BATTAMBANG, Cambodia - A timeless problem nearly ruined the Buar Sramum's marriage: Her husband, a fish seller, doesn't make enough money, and the money he makes he often mismanages, making it even harder in this impoverished village to feed the couple's three children. When Mrs. Sramum berated her husband, things got heated, and they argued bitterly for weeks.

Disputes like this are rarely discussed publicly in Cambodia, but they are a common cause of domestic abuse. They are also one strand in a larger set of village conflicts contributing to human rights violations and violence in Cambodia's countryside, including land disputes, petty crimes, and conflicts over resources such as water and cattle.

Central to the problem is that there is often nowhere to go for help: Decades of war and poverty have left Cambodia's legal system in disarray. Courts are often too far away or too expensive for the rural poor.

But the Sramums – like thousands of others – didn't become another statistic, thanks to Monychenda Heng, a former Buddhist monk who is helping to restore two of the most precious resources Cambodia lost in the devastating years of the Khmer Rouge: trust and hope.

Since 2002, Mr. Heng's organization, Buddhism for Development, has pioneered the concept of dispute resolution committees in seven northwestern provinces. The committees – which include five to nine members culled from the community, including two seats mandated for women – listen to both sides of a dispute. Then they offer advice, usually free of charge, sometimes at a nominal fee of about 50 cents.

The results are radical – not necessarily for the advice given, but for the fact that poor people like Mrs. Sramum can seek mediation at all.

Today she and her husband are not fighting any more. "The committee gave advice to my husband that he should change his attitude, because he always gets angry when he comes from the field after work," she says, prompting a sheepish grin from her husband, and laughter from the people sitting around her.

In the couple's Norea commune, a village of 991 families in Battambang Province, about 1,000 community leaders have been trained in conflict resolution. Of 33 complaints referred last year to the local conflict resolution committee, 30 were resolved, with two others referred to a local court and one to provincial authorities.

Local authorities praise the committees for reducing violence and filling holes in Cambodia's legal system. "The number of domestic violence cases has decreased according to yearly statistics. People believe the system works," says Sok Sambath, Norea's chief.

The success rate is just one of the many small victories that Buddhism for Development, founded in 1995, believes can add up to a better future for Cambodia.

Mr. Heng knows from personal experience that hope is an incremental enterprise. When he was young, his aspirations of becoming a monk were seemingly derailed when the Khmer Rouge swept to power. Like thousands of others, Heng and his family fled to a refugee camp near the border of Thailand in the late 1970s. It was there that he met the Venerable Pin Sem, his spiritual master, and incubated his Buddhist approach to social development.

Under Pin Sem, he saw that the principles of Buddhism – physical development, emotional development, and compassion – could be a tool to inspire the economic and social development Cambodia needed to get back on its feet. And as he educated himself, he began teaching children about Cambodia's history, so that they wouldn't forget what their country was and what it could be again.

Ten years later, in the late 1990s, Heng not only returned home to his native Battambang Province, but won a scholarship to Harvard University – no small feat for a poor refugee with no formal education.

Heng says the practical necessities of life at Harvard compelled him to give up the monkhood, but that the Buddhist principles continue to underpin his group's work. With donations from the US and Denmark, Buddhism for Development has trained an army of facilitators, youths, and volunteers, including many monks and nuns, to undo the Khmer Rouge's painful social and economic legacies. They teach farmers to plant better seeds, dispense microloans, and care for patients.

Heng is careful to point out that his organization is not trying to spread Buddhism, and highlights that many of his beneficiaries are Muslim communities – as in Norea commune, where almost half the families are Muslim.

Perhaps Buddhism for Development's most important work is that of its small-scale dispute-resolution committees. "Trust among Cambodian citizens has broken apart.... Low education and illiteracy – especially at the grass-roots level, where the majority citizens are living – make people more vulnerable to conflicts," Preap Kol, a community development activist who has worked with Heng, writes in an e-mail. "In this context, a project to provide [a] mechanism [for] conflict resolution at the village level is important."

Land protesters from Battambang are converging to Phnom Penh by foot

25 May 2008
By Mom Sophon
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by KI-Media

About 200 poor Cambodian villagers, including young and old, men and women, have traveled by foot for the past 3 days from Battambang province to Phnom Penh city, to demand that Hun Sen helps resolve the confiscation of their lands by crooked businessmen and the provincial authority.

These villagers came from various villages in Bavel and Thmor Kaul districts, Battambang province, they just arrived in Pursat province yesterday.

Mrs. Chhoeun Ny, a representative of villagers from Bavel and Thmor Kaul districts, said on Saturday that the villagers have traveled 6 to 7 kilometers only because the children, aged between 8 months and 10 years old, are too exhausted.

Chhoeun Ny indicated: “I want to let you know that the old folks are very exhausted by the march, and the children have blisters and they cannot walk anymore, they are very exhausted when they arrived at this third stop, they are getting weaker and some are coming down with fever. Children when they walk too far, they get blisters on their feet, the young children must be breastfed and carried on the mother’s hip, then they have to carry 4-5 cups of rice and a change of clothes, they are becoming more and more exhausted, so we are facing a serious problem. Those who are fighting for a resolution demand, the situation is becoming a heavier burden for them.”

Chhoeun Ny indicated also that, last night, the villagers stayed at the Snam Preah pagoda, located in Snam Preah commune, Bakan district, Pursat.

Mrs. Chim Sarom, a representative of the villagers from the region of O’Voar Preng, Thmor Kaul district, indicated that the problem they are currently facing is the health condition for the children and the older people, because they have traveled for a long distance under the scorching sun and rain. Nevertheless, regardless of the obstacles they face, they are determined to continue their trip to Phnom Penh, they will never back down.

Ieng Chhun Han, a coordinator for the Licadho human rights group in Pursat province, indicated that among the 200 villagers, Licadho was able to provide health care to 80 of them who sought doctor’s help.

Ieng Chhun Han indicated also that Licadho officials are following up on this march, as well as the lodging situation. The organization is also providing food to the villagers, such as rice, sardines, clean water, and packaged noodle.

The representatives of the 200 villagers are insistently demanding the government to provide a resolution and to return as soon as possible their farmlands grabbed by the businessmen and the powerful officials because the rice planting season is already here. If there is no resolution to their cases, they will face food shortage next year.