A gorup of police officers, security guards and Prampi Makara district authorities were unsuccessful yesterday in their attempts to demolish the remaining makeshift living quarters that are being inhabited by families in the Borei Keila community.

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Chum Ngann, representative for the evictees living at the site where their houses were bulldozed in January, said a group of about 100 police officers and authorities armed with shields, electric batons and axes descended upon the site yesterday morning.

She added that residents struggled with the forces, who managed to destroy a few of their makeshift shelters before retreating.

“We haven’t had shelter since January 3. Our plastic tents under the roof and stairs are filled with the bad smell of the waste from our last shelters,” the representative said yesterday.

Deputy governor of the Prampi Makara district, who was at the scene yesterday, expressed his concern for maintaining public order in the area.

“This kind of set up is tent anarchy, and will affect the environment in the Borei Keila development area,” he said.

Tim Sakmony, a resident who helped to repel the authorities yesterday, said the evictees would not be is such a dire situation if the Phan Imex company followed through with their promise to construct 10 buildings in which they could be housed.

Phan Imex only constructed eight of the 10 promised housing structures.

“Who could be happy and wants to live in a terrible situation? We have no choice, so we struggle to live and are waiting to receive a fair solution from the authorities who made us this way,” Tim Sakmony said.

Secretariat director for the Housing Rights Task Force Sia Phirum said the authorities are aware of the struggles that the evictees face, but have merely chosen to ignore them.

“Until the residents start to live in houses and have proper businesses, they will live in tents and under stairs. When will the authorities stop this eviction plan and provide additional compensation?” he asked.