Senator to sue Phnom Penh governor [-Another case of CPP "Peal Si Peal"?]

Wednesday, 17 December 2008
Written by Kay Kimsong
The Phnom Penh Post

CPP senator to file suit over 44 'stolen' hectares on Koh Pich

CPP Senator Peou Sithik has announced plans to sue Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema and Pung Kheav Se, president of Canadia Bank and head of the Overseas Cambodia Investment Corp (OCIC), for US$100 million over 44 hectares of land on Koh Pich that Peou Sithik claims the pair stole from him.

Peou Sithik said that he and his wife had owned 44 hectares of land on Koh Pich from 1994 to 2005, when Kep Chuktema issued a decree that voided all official land titles. According to Peou Sithik, Kep Chuktema proceeded to lease the land to the OCIC for 99 years at a price of $47.5 million.

"If he had done that in other countries, he would already be in prison," said Peou Sithik. "He robbed my land from me and sold it."

Peou Sithik said he filed complaints to various embassies, the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank to discourage foreign investors from buying land at Koh Pich.

Rein Sambath, the manager of OCIC, told the Post on Tuesday that this matter had already been resolved by Peou Sithik's brother-in-law, Suor Pheng, who negotiated the terms of the agreement with Kep Chuktema.

"It is an internal family dispute," Rein Sambath said. "Kep Chuktema did not rob the land. He cleared the decision with Suor Pheng, and compensation was paid. Peou Sithik simply did not accept the money that was distributed to family members."

He added that the lawsuit will not affect the Koh Pich development project unless the court issues a warrant.

A relative of Suor Pheng who wished to remain anonymous claimed that the land was owned by Suor Srun Enterprises, and each family member was offered US$700,000 when the land was declared government property.

Charles Vann, deputy general manager for Canadia Bank, declined to comment on the dispute, while Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema was in France and was unable to be reached for comment Tuesday.

Aid Money Urged for Development

Kuoy minority community representatives, from left: Sok Heng, of Oddar Meanchey, and Ruos Han, of Kratie province

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original from Washigton
16 December 2008

The $1 billion in foreign aid promised to Cambodia earlier this month should go into the hands of the people and their communities, addressing government policies, a community leader said Monday.

“Poverty reduction is not what the government’s policy is,” said Sok Heng, a minority representative from Oddar Meanchey province, as a guest on “Hello VOA.”

Joined by Ruos Han, a Kuoy minority from Kratie province, Sok Heng urged the government to undertake better studies of land and forest concessions before handing them over to private businesses.

Land theft and disputes have emerged as a continuous problem in Cambodia in recent years, with minority groups especially hard hit, and both men urged the government Monday to use the foreign aid to develop communities to help alleviate it.

“Where more development occurs, that’s where people are facing difficulties,” Sok Heng said.

“Without the preservation of our natural resources, our minority community cannot survive,” Ruos Han said. Without such resources, minorities have a very difficult time surviving, because they don’t engage in typical businesses, he said.

After nearly 15 years of development, Cambodia remains heavily reliant on foreign aid for its operations, and donor countries and agencies were especially forthcoming with funding this year.

Both men said Tuesday that money does not reach its targets and is often hard to track. Money for infrastructure, schools, clinics, seed, canals and other agriculture was needed, they said.

Samlot Families Complain of Land Theft

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
04 June 2008

Click here to listen to the program in Khmer

Four representatives from 73 families of the former Khmer Rouge stronghold of Samlot district, Battambang province, arrived in Phnom Penh Wednesday to complain of land-grabbing to National Assembly Chairman Heng Samrin.

In a letter delivered Wednesday afternoon, the families, from Chamlong Romeang Luer village, O'Samrol commune, claim military police and police took 12 square kilometers of land and sold it to a private company from Australia.

One of the villagers who came to Phnom Penh Wednesday said he lost 5 hectares of land to police and military police. Samlot authorities threatened to kill him and anyone who complained about the land, the villager said.

Samlot District Governor Hem Sophal said no one had complained to him of a land grab. He questioned why villagers would complain to the National Assembly and the media and not him.

Failure on Land Could Hamper Voters

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
04 June 2008

Click here to listen to the program in Khmer

The failure of Prime Minister Hun Sen and other government officials to solve a rash of recent land disputes could deter voters from heading to the polls in July, observers said.

About 200 villagers marched from Battambang last week and were promised resolution to a long-standing land dispute.

As with many such disputes, no solution has come, including recent outcries from villagers in Pailin, Banteay Meanchey, Kampot and the capital itself.

With no resolution, voting becomes hard, a rights worker said.

"How can they vote if their land has not been resolved?" said Chan Saveth, an investigator for the rights group Adhoc.

Despite the difficulties, election observers say the election is an important time for people to make their land woes known.

Meanwhile, national land authority officials say the election period could lead to the "politicization" of land disputes.

CPP MP Bou Thang involved in land-grabbing?

05 May 2008
By Ratha Visal
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Click here to read the article in Khmer

Villagers from La Ban Siek commune, Ratanakiri province, all claimed that an official from the Military Police (PM) unit, and another official from the provincial police force used the name of CPP MP Bou Thang to grab lands belonging to villagers who have proper land titles. The officials are putting fence around public roads belonging to the state and turn them into their private properties.

Yan Neat, a villager from village No. 7, indicated that lands in the provincial development zone were divided into lots and sold to the villagers, and land titles were also issued to the villagers. However, Yan Vin, a bodyguard of CPP MP Bou Thang, ordered workers and tractors to tear down the property fences, and he also ordered the land clearing to be made for Bou Thang.

Yan Neat said: “I ask him: ‘Uncle, who hired you to do all this?’ He said that he is Ta (grandpa) Bou Thang’s bodyguard.”

Em Koy from Village No. 3 indicated also that Yin Saroeun, a provincial police official, hired workers to set fence posts to grab provincial public roads extending 5-meter-width-by-215-meter-long, and he also grabbed portion of lands belonging to 2 villagers, (claiming that he is doing this) to enlarge nearby lands belonging to Bou Thang: “He violated my land and land belonging to Brother Thy. He also grabbed public road and this affects many families. Yin Saroeun said that what he was doing was an order from Ta Bou Thang.”

On 05 May 2008, RFA could not reach Yan Vin, Bou Thang’s bodyguard, over the phone.

As for Yin Saroeun who is accused of the same charge, refused to comment, claiming that he was too busy in a meeting, however, he revealed that: “Before there was no road, later on Ta (Bou Thang) allowed (this road to be build) for the villagers to cross.”

Nhean Tay Sy, the La Ban Siek commune chief, indicated that he received the claim from the villagers in these two cases already, and that last week, the commune council held a meeting and agreed to issue an order for Yin Saroeun to stop building fences on Road No. 420, which is prescribed in the provincial master plan, and the commune also sent a letter to ask the provincial authority to intervene in these issues as well: “Yin Saroeun built his fence 5-meter from Brother Bou Thang’s fence. For Bou Thang’s land, he has new concrete fences built for himself. I reported to the provincial authority to end the construction and the violation of public properties.”

RFA could not reach Muong Poy, the Ratanakiri provincial govewrnor, about this issue yet because he was caught in the meeting room, however CPP MP Bou Thang said that all the dispute lands were his for many years already.

Bou Thang said: “… They are my lands from long ago, I didn’t build the fence because I didn’t have money, I had wood fence … starting since 82-83 on.”

Bou Thang was accused of ordering the cutting of several hundreds of rubber trees belonging to the state in Ratanakiri, (on behalf of) the Vietnamese company Hang Thang. In this case, the Tai Seng Company which received the right to invest in rubber trees plantation in Ratanakiri brought a lawsuit (against Bou Thang) at the provincial court many months back, but the court has yet to take any action in this lawsuit case against Bou Thang.

Mondolkiri Minorities to Protest Land Grab

By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
02 May 2008

The rights group Adhoc will lead a demonstration on the behalf of thousands of ethnic minorities who blame government officials and businessmen for the alleged theft of land in Mondolkiri province.

More than 10,000 hectares of land have been taken in at least 15 different cases, leading to the arrests of at least two men, the group said.

Pen Bunna, an Adhoc coordinator in Mondolkiri, told VOA Khmer that the demonstration, to be held May 20, will include 200 participants representing the victims of alleged land theft.

The demonstrators plan “to ask the government for help in retaking their community and state land,” he said.

“Now the powerful men and businessmen are happy for their land grabbing, but the minorities are suffering from the lose of their land,” he said. “As the government carries out the law to retake the minority and state land, the powerful men and businessmen will see suffering replacing that satisfaction.”

Chhouk Savath, 48, a representative of hill tribesmen living in O’Chum village, in Mondolkiri’s O’Chum district, called the demonstration “a very important sign” in reflecting the need for a resolution to the crisis.

“I want to participate in the demonstration against the powerful men who pressured us into selling our land to them and then cut most of the forest,” Chhouk Savath said. “The minorities have no land to crop and to hunt. I and my fellow minorities who don’t understand the law suffer from land-grabbing.”

Mondolkiri Governor Moung Poy declined to comment on the demonstration, saying Friday he had not received a request from the protesters.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy visit Kampong Chhnang province

16 April 2008
Source: SRP

Sam Rainsy's visit to Kompong Chhnang province, Kompong Leng district. The SRP President met with villagers in 5 communes: Kompong Hav, Pau, Chronauk, Da and Svay Ropear. The photos below showing nearly 1,000 people taking part in the SRP meeting in a pagoda on the top of a hill, are from Chronauk commune where the corrupt CPP authorities have recently sold to unscrupulous businessmen 180 lakes (boengs) as well as 300 hectares of rice fields belonging to poor farmers. The commune's whole population now support the SRP in order to get their lands and their lakes back.

Sam Rainsy talking with a seller in the local market (All photos: SRP)
Sam Rainsy is greeted by the villagers
Sam Rainsy giving a speech to the villagers


Large group of villagers are accompanying Sam Rainsy during his displacement from one localities to another
Sam Rainsy discussing issues with the villagers inside a pagoda
Standing room only
A large group of villagers were waiting for Sam Rainsy outside the pagoda

Comfrel: Between Oct 2006 and Sept 2007, SRP lawmakers stepped in to resolve constituent issues 38 times, CPP 15 times, and Funcinpec twice

SRP MPs stand in line to defend Dey Kraham villagers from being evicted (Photo: SRP)

In Land Grabs, Political Opportunity

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
09 April 2008

"Wealthy people and high-ranking officers dare not grab anyone's land for fear of losing their reputation and government jobs" -sic!- - Chum Bun Rong, spokesman for the National Authority for the Resolution of Land Disputes and advisor to the Council of Ministers

[Editor's note: In the weeks leading into national polls, VOA Khmer will explore a wide number of election issues. The "Election Issues 2008" series will air stories on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by a related "Hello VOA" guest on Thursday. This is the second in a two-part series examining land grabs in Cambodia.]

Anyone who has lost land knows what kind of sorrow high land prices can bring. With land thefts continuing, political parties are hoping they can convince people that they understand.

The issue is complex, though, and not every party has a solution, even if they do plan to make land thefts a top issue in this year's general election.

"We must raise [measures to solve the land dispute] because many people are also of the Cambodian People's Party," said Chiem Yeap, a CPP lawmaker. "We want them to know about the activities and measures of the government, especially Samdech Prime Minister and the National Land Dispute Authority."

The issue was complicated and aroused a lot of emotion, he said, claiming that the CPP would continue to seek measures to help at the local level as a way to earn votes in July.

The land issue is in main principle for Funcinpec, said lawmaker Monh Saphan.

"First we should let [people] know that [land disputes] is an important issue," he said. "We will check: how much land concession remains, and how much land is kept for investment, and if no activity remains. We will review all."

Monh Saphan said he himself would work the issue because it affected voters in his area of Kampong Cham province.

Opposition lawmaker Ho Vann said he had visited some provinces, such as Kampong Chhnang and Batteay Meanchey and Phnom Penh, and the cases of land grabbing were serious.

"Regarding our policy for the electoral campaign, we will resolve land disputes for the people fairly," he said. "If the land of the people is given to the people, and the land of company is given to the company, and if a company wants to buy land from the people, it must offer the people the fair and acceptable price."

Muth Chantha, spokesman for the Norodom Ranariddh Party, which took the third-highest number of seats in the 2007 commune elections, said land disputes were the top priority for the party.

The party hoped to initiate a system of ownership certificates it would distribute in hopes of preventing land grabs, he said.

"We would also take measures to confiscate state lands that have been illegally occupied by businessmen, 'Okhnas' or high-ranking officers," he added.

Chum Bun Rong, spokesman for the Land Dispute Authority and advisor to the Council of Ministers, said wealthy people and high-ranking officers dare not grab anyone's land for fear of losing their reputation and government jobs.

Many people have grabbed the land of the investors, he added.

"We must help [the investors] because they possess the lands legally and develop our country," he said.

The government is working to take care of the landless, he said, and is prepared to give up state land to some, though he did not elaborate.

Land thefts are not the only issue to gain votes, said Kim Chhorn, Comfrel's senior program coordinator.

Comfrel reported recently that SRP lawmakers stepped in to resolve constituent issues 38 times between October 2006 and September 2007. CPP lawmakers stepped in 15 times, and Funcinpec parliamentarians twice.

Families Fear Loss of Land, Loved Ones [-The making of Hun Sen's predicted "farmers revolution"]

Land, liberty and sometimes life are at stake as Cambodia's land-grabbing persists.

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
08 April 2008

"[T]here is no serious land dispute in the country" - Chum Bun Rong, spokesman of the government National Authority for the Resolution of Land Disputes

[Editor's note: In the weeks leading into national polls, VOA Khmer will explore a wide number of election issues. The "Election Issues 2008" series will air stories on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by a related "Hello VOA" guest on Thursday. This is the first in a two-part series examining land grabs in Cambodia.]

Sitting in front of her thatched-roof home in Kampong Chhnang province, about 1 kilometer off National Road 5, Sar Saing sat with a group of eight people. One woman carried a baby, and others sat on bicycles. At times, Sar Saing would seem happy, but then her face would darken.

Her father, Sar Song, has been incarcerated since Feb. 28, one of nearly 40 people rights groups say are currently being held in land disputes.

"Everyday, even though people do not sell their land, their land is grabbed," Sar Saing said. "The grabbers probably bribe the court officials to legally own the land of the people."

Rights groups say the trend of land-grabbing is continuing, at a high cost to many rural villagers, not only in land, but in the seizure of loved ones.

Victims say they fear corruption by courts, police, military and other government officials.

A spokesman for Cambodia's land dispute authority told VOA Khmer accusations of land grabs are being inflated ahead of July's general elections.

Numbers tell one story.

The price of land in Sar Saing's village, Lor Peang, has gone from $100 per hectare five years ago to $10,000 per hectare today, part of a nationwide land boom that has led to the increase in land theft.

The villagers here say they are in a fight for their land with a local company, known here by its initials, KDC.

Sar Saing's father was arrested with one other man and sentenced to eight months in jail by the Kampong Chhnang provincial court. A third man was charged in absentia but remains at large.

All three were charged with a violation of KDC's land ownership.

But villagers here, echoing the worries of many across the country, say they have had their land stolen.

A representative of KDC named Thai Hy brought in workers "who looked like gangsters" to remove villagers from the land, Sar Saing said.

A man claiming to be Thai Hy's brother denied the claims by phone recently, referring questions to the court.

Veng Hut, the provincial court's investigating judge, told VOA Khmer he had judged in accordance with the law and was not involved with corruption.

Lor Peang Village Chief Toch Ly said the government and provincial leaders must work to ensure the people are not removed from their land without proper compensation, though she acknowledged many of her residents felt victimized.

Chum Bun Rong, spokesman of the National Land Dispute Authority, defended the judicial and relevant institutions, saying officials were "almost getting sick" from hard work on many cases.

Nearly 700 land dispute cases were under review at the agency, he said.

But, he said, "there is no serious land dispute in the country."

"It is only a political issue being raised prior to the election," he said.

With elections to be held in July, Sar Pek, brother of Sar Saing and son of Sar Song, said he planned to vote, even if his father was in prison.

More numbers; another story.

A 2007 report by the aid agency Oxfam says about 63.7 percent of Cambodians are either landless or own less than half a hectare.

Of those who owned more land than that, about 30 percent were businessmen, 23 percent were high-ranking military officers and 23 percent were a special class of wealthy, known by the honorary title "Oknha," according to the report.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has pushed for land grabs to cease, but his warnings have apparently gone unheeded, as land grabs have continued across the country, including in Phnom Penh.

In February this year at least 10 families in the Prek Leab commune of the capital's Russei Keo district lodged a complaint to Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema, fighting against the proposed widening of a road through the village.

Residents said they suspected a commune chief had sold the land to a private company, a claim the chief, Preab Mony, denied.

Land grabbing shot up between 2003 and 2006, the rights group Licadho reported.

The group had been monitoring 25 land-grab cases in 2003, but that number jumped to 112 in 2006.

More than 5,000 families lost their homes in land grabs in 2007, said Am Sam Ath, Licadho’s technical supervisor.

Land grabs have also turned more violent; two people were killed in Preah Vihear province in 2007, and six other people across the country were injured, Am Sam Ath said.

Ny Chakriya, head of Adhoc’s monitoring unit, said institutions like the Land Dispute Authority must resolve such disputes. The judicial system needs to take a strong position, he said.

Otherwise, he said, land disputes will become a more serious issue, leading to more deaths.

Residents in Land Dispute Take on Courts

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
07 February 2008

Villagers in a remote northwestern province are taking their concerns over an alleged land theft to the highest justice offices in Cambodia.

The villagers have filed a suit against their own provincial courts with the Ministry of Justice and the oversight body for the courts, the Supreme Council of Magistracy.

Thiem Chenda, 30, filed a suit Tuesday against provincial prosecutor So Vath and judge Nov Yaroath.

The rare move comes as Cambodians face increasing pressures from potentially destabilizing land grabs.

Seng Sokkhim, Thiem Chenda’s laywer, said the court officials had canceled a warrant to protect the land.

So Vath said the judge had been “careless,” and the suit should proceed. Nov Yaroath said he had visited a piece of disputed land, but he did not bring security forces with him, as alleged.

Amid Landgrabbing, Attack On Lawmaker Unsurprising

Letter sent by Dr. Lao Mong Hay
to The Cambodia Daily

Attacking a person is indeed a crime, and the attacker must be punished for it, subject of course to the state of his mental health.

However, Ros Sovann's attack on lawmaker Chin Kim Sreng, brutal as it was, should not be treated as a crime like any other. It should be taken very seriously as a loud call for justice for himself and for other victims of the injustices of land grabbing, which the system of justice of the country is either unable, unwilling or not allowed to correct and prevent.

One can only imagine how strongly such injustices might have affected a young man like Ros. In Cambodia there are many people, including youths like Ros, who are victims of land grabbing. These acts have been going on for years and have forced, at times brutally, many families out of their homes and lands without fair compensation. Many of those victims may have the same hatred for the country's rulers and may be as revengeful as him.

The time is overdue for the government to put a halt to land grabbing and for the institutions of the rule of law, especially the courts, to correct the injustices that land grabbing has created. This must be done before the situation creates more people like Ros with hatred for their rulers in their hearts.

In this incident, Ros Sovann has beaten one person in vengeance. What could other people with similar hatred do next?

Lao Mong Hay
Hong Kong

Cambodia: Call for justice for victims of land grabbing

Ros Sovann (Photo: Rasmei Kampuchea)

16/1/2008
Posted on Mynews India

On 13 January 2008 at around 11:30 pm a lawmaker named Chin Kim Sreng, 70, from the ruling party, was brutally beaten on the head in front of his house in Boeung Kang Kang commune, Chamcar Mon district, Phnom Penh. Chin was knocked unconscious in the attack which caused open wounds to his head. He was rushed to the hospital for treatment.

Chin’s attacker was a man named Ros Sovann, 28, a security guard from a private security firm who is living with his mother in Russey Sros village, Niroth commune, Meanchey district, Phnom Penh. That night he was on duty to guard a French-owned restaurant located in the rented part of Chin’s house.

He beat Chin with a steel pipe when Chin returned home and was about to open the front gate of his own house. Ros then got into Chin’s luxury car and rammed it into the house gate. Chin’s wife who was in the house cried out for help, and Ros was immediately apprehended and handed over to the police.

In his statement to the police, Ros said his attack on Chin was his revenge against the powerful officials who had grabbed his land in Russey Sros village and deprived him of the only means that would have allowed his mother to pay for his wedding. He said he had had no personal grudges against Chin.

However, since the loss of his land he harbored strong resentment for all powerful officials, so much so that, on becoming a security guard, he had requested his firm to assign him to guard their houses so that he could have opportunities to take revenge on them.

Ros’s mother named Noeu Yeap, 54, said that she used to have a 15m by 200m plot of land, but this land was now reduced to 15m by 40m. The rest had been grabbed from her when she had lent it to the village chief named Khlauk Dul for building the village office. Later on, this village chief sold her land without her knowledge. She filed a lawsuit in court against this sale in 1994, but so far no justice has been offered to her.

Noeu said that because of this unsettled land grabbing case, she had had no means to pay for the wedding of her son as he had requested. Ros had been badly affected by this event and her inability to pay for his wedding. It is reported that there are many land disputes in the area where the mother and son are living.

While in police custody, Ros made several suicide attempts, and the police have said experts may be needed to examine his mental health. Attacking a person is indeed a crime, and the attacker must be punished for it, subject of course to the state of his mental health.

However, Ros’s attack on lawmaker Chin Kim Sreng, brutal as it was, should not be treated as a crime like many others. It should be taken very seriously as it was a cry for justice for himself and for other victims of the injustices of land grabbing which the system of justice of the country is either unable, unwilling, or not allowed to correct and prevent. One can only imagine how strongly such injustices can have affected a young man like Ros, then a teenager.

In Cambodia there are many people, including youths like Ros who are victims of land grabbing, when this act has been going on for years and has forced and continues to force, at times brutally, many families out of their homes and lands without fair compensation. Many of those victims may have the same hatred for the country’s rulers and be as revengeful as him.

The Asian Human Rights Commission said that the time is now long overdue for the government to put a halt to land grabbing and for the institutions of the rule of law, especially the courts, to correct the injustices that land grabbing has created.

This must be done before the situation creates more people like Ros with hatred for their rulers in their hearts. In this incident Ros has beaten one person in vengeance. One can only guess what will happen in future if the government fails to stop the eviction and needless poverty of their people due to land grabbing.

CPP MP pays the price for land-grabbing prepetrated by other high-ranking government officials

Ros Sovann, the alleged beater of CPP MP Chin Kim Sreng (Photo: Rasmei Kampuchea)

Man beat up and seriously injured CPP MP

Tuesday, January 15, 2007
Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

In the evening of Sunday 13 January 2008, a man used a steel tube to beat up a CPP MP on his head, and seriously injured the MP who passed out during the incident.

The incident took place at around 11:30 PM in front of house No. 17, Street No. 71, Boeng Keng Kang 1 commune, Chamcar Mon district, Phnom Penh city. 70-year-old Chin Kim Sreng, a CPP MP from Kampong Cham province, was beaten and seriously injured. The perpetrator was 28-year-old Ros Sovann, a security guard for the private company Protect. The culprit lives in Russei Sros village, Niroth commune, Meanchey district, and he was sent by the Protect company to guard Chin Kim Sreng’s house.

This is the very first time that an ordinary person beat up and seriously injured a MP. Based on Ros Sovann’s confession to the police, the reason he beat up Chin Kim Sreng was because of his grudge against high ranking officials who grabbed his lands in Russei Sros village, and it was because of this land theft that he could not get married.

Ros Sovann told the police that his mother told him that only after the land is sold that he can get married. Since then on, he held a grudge against all high ranking officials, irrespective of the high-ranking officials, and he even asked the Protect company to send him to guard houses of high-ranking officials so that he can take revenge against them. Later on, the Protect company sent Ros Sovann to protect Chin Kim Sreng’s house which was rented out for a French restaurant also.

Ros Sovann said that, on the night of the incident, he saw Chin Kim Sreng driving his Lexus car and parked it in front of the house. Ros Sovann then took a steel pipe to hit Chin Kim Sreng several times until his head had a bleeding gash and passed out on the spot. Next, he climbed in Chin Kim Sreng’s car, and hit the gate in order to destroy it. Ros Sovann said that he held no grudge against Chin Kim Sreng in the past.

The police indicated that Ros Sovann was arrested and temporarily detained in Chamcar Mon district. He attempted suicide 2-3 times, but he was not successful because the police saved him on time. Chin Kim Sreng was urgently transported to the Calmette hospital, and he is currently awake but his face is still swollen.

54-year-old Nov Yieb, Ros Sovann’s mother, said that her son does not feel well since she refused to allow him to get married because of the ongoing land dispute. She said that she owned a 15-meter-by-200-meter piece of land in Russei Sros village. However, currently, her property shrunk to 15-meter-by-40-meter only, the remainder has been grabbed.

Nov Yeib added that Khlok Dul, the village chief, asked to borrow her land to build the village office, later on, the villager chief sold the land to another person. She complained to the court in 1994, but, up until now, nobody can deliver justice for her.

Pursat Demonstrators Angered at Temple Destruction

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
07 January 2008

More than 100 demonstrators gathered in Pursat province Monday to protest the destruction of a local temple for the alleged development plan of a private company, opposition officials and rights workers said.

Heng Chanthuon, head of the Sam Rainsy Party in Pursat, said about 30 families were going to have a temple torn down they'd built in 2002.

Authorities told them the land had environmental problems, he said.

A local rights worker, Nhoung Samoeun, of Adhoc, said the ouster of the families from their land was done with "no talk or legal solution."

Local government officials could not be reached for comment.

The protest comes on the heels of an outcry last week by Pursat teachers that local school land had been handed to the Cambodian People's Party for a political headquarters. Land theft is a political destabilizer in Cambodia, as economic improvement drives land prices upward.

UN human rights envoy Yash Ghai warned in December that land theft could cause Cambodians to "rise up" against the government.

Rights Worker Scuffles With Ratanakkiri Police

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
19 December 2007

A human rights worker said he clashed with police Wednesday in Ratanakkiri province, following protests over land.

No one was injured or arrested in the small scuffle, which came after a peaceful march of about 150 people from nine communes, who say their land was stolen from them, said Pen Bunna, a rights investigator for Adhoc.

The northeastern province has seen increasing unrest due to land theft, with local police blocking several attempts at open public meetings between residents and rights workers.

Pen Bunna said his march was in support of recent directives by Prime Minister Hun Sen aimed at halting land theft by local authorities.

"A number of individuals in the authorities or the government officials in charge" were likely connected to police crackdowns in defiance of the prime minister, Pen Bunna said.

"He warned them many times, so those people are afraid," Pen Bunna said. "Every time there is a workshop on land issues, they look for means to stop us from doing what we want to do."

Civic Groups Call on UN Rights Envoy for Help

By Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
03 December 2007

Members of the opposition party and human rights groups launched an appeal Monday to the UN’s special human rights envoy to Cambodia to help them end abuses here, especially the theft of land from the poor and corruption and political influence in the courts.

The envoy, Yash Ghai, an outspoken critic of Prime Minister Hun Sen, is in Cambodia for a 10-day visit and is expected to meet with government officials and human rights groups.

Human Rights Party President Kem Sokha said groups were worried over human rights abuses, especially ahead of national elections.

“With the election getting close, we see concerns [and are] afraid that the situation will be tenser, with serious threats,” he said. While there was no clear measure on the number of “political rights violations,” such threats, harassment, assaults and murders were concerning, he said.

“There is impunity, and the authority in charge violates political issues, and the government never punishes it,” he said.

Koul Panha, director of the election watchdog Comfrel, said Ghai shoudl try to encourage the government to maintain a stable political environment, “and secure the upcoming election to proceed smoothly.”

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy welcomed the arrival of the envoy, who in the past has said too much power resides in Hun Sen.

Ghai comes as land grabbing from the poor and corruption in the courts remain looming issues, Sam Rainsy said.

Stronger laws could ensure judges were insulated from political pressure, said Sok Samoeun, executive director of the Cambodian Defenders Project.

Arrest of Woman in Land Dispute Sparks Worries

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
30 November 2007

The arrest of a woman in Battambang province following her arrest by authorities in a land dispute has sent other villagers into jungle hiding, a rights official said Friday.

Chan Hoeur, who is in her 40s and a resident of Koy Veng village, was arrested Thursday following a confrontation with police over land and a private company, said Yin Meng Ly, a Battambang rights investigator for Adhoc.

The villagers saw their land stolen this year after occupying it since the fall of the Khmer Rouge, Yin Meng Ly said, adding that the land legally belonged to the villagers under Cambodia's land law.

Some villagers have gone into the jungle to hide, fearing they will be arrested too, he said.

"It's a bit unjust because the company plowed over the villagers' land. Hectares of mango and banana trees were damaged, and no one is talking about this," said Sun Seouy, of the Village Development Council. "The villagers seem to be more vulnerable; we're all human beings."

"Land theft and local government malfeasance" are not allowed to be discussed in Ratanakiri

Police Blockade Village to Prevent Rights Meeting, Witnesses Say

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
27 November 2007

Armed police prevented a public forum in Ratanakkiri province Tuesday that was intended to address land theft and local government malfeasance, witnesses said.

Police used vehicles and motorcycles to block the road to a village where a group of ethnic minorities were to meet officials from the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, said Chhim Savuth, a rights worker with the agency.

About 200 people who came out to meet the rights workers 2 kilometers from the site where they originally planned to hold the meeting, he said.

Some of the crowd offered to "remove the police vehicles from the road," Chhim Savuth said. "But we told them not to do anything that could lead to violence."

No forum was held and a minority tribe chief called the blockade "a violation of human rights."

Authorities could not be reached for comment.

Land conflict: Cambodia new war front between the rich and powerful and the poor

Sre Ambel (Koh Kong province) land-grabbing: After land dispute negociations fail, military police hired by CPP Tycoon-senator Ly Yong Phat's company fire shots at villagers resisting clearing of the land, injuring 2 villagers (Photo: Licadho)

Tonle Bassac (Phnom Penh) Sambk Chap eviction: Police forces are deployed on the site to monitor the destruction of the remaining houses on the biggest area of the site. (Photo: Licadho)

Land Conflict Erupting Across Cambodia, Monitor Says

By Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Washington
19 November 2007

Unsolved land theft, poverty, migration, unemployment and corruption are causing an eruption of land conflicts across Cambodia, a leading expert said Monday.

As land prices rise in a developing economy, the courts have shown themselves incapable of arbitrating, exacerbating the problem, said Latt Ky, a land monitor for the rights organization Adhoc.

"There's been a land management ministry, a committee to solve land conflicts and later in 2006 the land authority," he said.

All three agencies have tried to deal with land issues, with the help of a new land law, but land grabbing "still occurs more and more," he said, as a guest on "Hello VOA."

"It's still a hot issue still hot and irreducible," he said.

Two people were killed in a demonstration over the alleged theft of land in Preah Vihear province, in a bloody conflict that has been one of many over the past few years.

Latt Ky said his unit was continually monitoring such situations, despite an order from Prime Minister Hun Sen last year for the illegal seizure of land to stop.

"An order is order, but for the people to implement it, that is different," Latt Ky said.

Courts are hard-pressed to prosecute the crime, despite Hun Sen's order, and even though the land authority has seized 220,000 hectares, some of it has ended up in the hands of government officials.

After land-grabbing, land eviction, now comes land theft

New Village Will Mean Less Land, Locals Say

Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
04 October 2007

Villagers in Kampong Thom province say they've had land stolen by local authorities with plans to erect a new village.

Once the new village is built, near Sandan town, the land will be returned to the people, but instead of owning five to seven hectares, they will have two or three, villagers said.

Commune Chief Chhim Khon said the land was the property of a forestry concession company, not the people. He was seeking a way to have the people live on the land "lawfully," Chhim Khon said.

Villagers told VOA Khmer they worried local authorities were in cahoots with the concession company "to cede the land" from them.

"The land that belongs to the people is lawful, and it should not be divided equally like in the Pol Pot era," said villager Sau Tak.