It took Hun Xen almost 3 years since the GW report before sacking Ty Sokhun? How about Hun Xen's relatives?

Ty Sokhun

On Tuesday, June 5, 2007, Everyday.com.kh posted the following report on Ty Sokhun:
"Ty Sokhun, the Director General of the Forestry Administration, who was named in Global Witness (GW) report as being one of the persons involved in illegal logging, had angrily reacted by calling Global Witness’ staff as ‘crazy people.’ Ty Sokhun recognizes that Khun Thong, who is also named by Global Witness, is indeed his father-in-law, but Ty Sokhun said that Khun Thong and his other relatives are not involved in illegal logging. Ty Sokhun told The Cambodia Daily on Monday that Global Witness produced lies in all the pages of its report, and he said that Global Witness issued this report only to attract attention and to obtain financial gain. He said that Global Witness report is laughable."

Hun Sen Sacks Top Forestry Official

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
06 April 2010

Prime Minister Hun Sen publicly fired the head of the government’s forestry administration Tuesday, claiming the official proved unable to stop rampant illegal logging in the country.

Ty Sokhun was “no longer capable” of settling the deforestation issue, Hun Sen said in a speech broadcast nationwide from the annual meeting of the Ministry of Agriculture, which oversees the forestry department.

Hun Sen said Tuesday Ty Sokhun had made “grave mistakes” as head of the forestry administration.

The government is currently in the middle of a crackdown on illegal logging, but environmentalists say the sweep has been too little and too late in coming.

Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said Tuesday authorities were working to “clear out” officials involved in deforestation.

“The action will be taken nationwide,” he said. “If not we cannot resolve [illegal logging].”

In a 2007 report, the environmental watchdog Global Witness singled out Ty Sokhun and other forestry and agriculture officials, as it accused the country’s elites, many of them close to Hun Sen, of exploiting timber resources.

The country lost as much as $2 billion in timber resources between 1993 and 2001, the group said, in report that was later banned by the government.

Meanwhile, the crackdown continues. Chhum Socheat, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, which is heading the campaign, said military forces would first sweep border areas near Thailand and Vietnam, seeking to arrest criminal organizers.

Cambodia to Reach Goal of 60 Pct Forest Coverage: With Hun Sen in Power, Dream On!

Ty Sokhun was pointed out by Global Witness
for his involvement in deforestation in Cambodia

Cambodia to Reach Goal of 60 Pct Forest Coverage

2009-04-27
Xinhua

Cambodia is nearing its Millennium Development Goal of maintaining 60 percent forest coverage of its 180,000 square km of land by 2010, according to official figures received in Phnom Penh on Monday.

From 2004 to 2008, Cambodians planted more than six million trees, and the number will be much higher in the future, according to a report issued by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries.

"We will grow and distribute 10 million trees to people throughout the country... and encourage tree planting on 10,000 hectares of land," said Ty Sokhun, director of the Forestry Department of the ministry.

Meanwhile, the government has also made efforts to curb illegal logging, closing 19 timber processing plants and making 225,477 hectares of forest land state property in 2008, according to the report.

The tropical rainforests of Cambodia are important centers of biodiversity that house at least 862 native tree species and 775 known species of amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles, according to research from the World Conservation Monitoring Center.