Eight members of the Prey Lang forest community network, summonsed to the Kampong Thom provincial court yesterday to answer a 2011 complaint, rejected its accusation that they had caused intentional damage by uprooting cassava plants belonging to Ol Ratha and maintained they had acted only to prevent Ratha clearing community land.

“She came to clear our community forest. and we barred her. I am worried that there are senior police officers behind this [complaint],” summonsed community representative Chheang Vuthy said, adding that a ninth summonsed activist had not appeared yesterday because he was sick.

“I told the court I neither uprooted cassavas nor destroyed her property,” Mao Thea, another summonsed community member, said.