Land Dispute

A 45-year-old man from Takeo province’s Kirivong district was arrested on Sunday by police who accused him of trespassing on state land, though families in the district say the land is disputed and insist they have lived on it since 1986. Kong Kim Ly, the Takeo provincial Forestry Administration director, confirmed that Chhorn Sarith had been arrested, but referred all questions about the case to provincial court officials, who could not be reached for comment. Hor Nead, provincial coordinator for the rights group Adhoc, said 25-year-old Kov Pisey was arrested on the same charge last Thursday. He said 43 families had filed a complaint accusing Forestry Administration officials of trying to evict them from a 150-hectare block of land, but that Adhoc had not been able to conduct a thorough investigation. “We have told the villagers to make a list of all of the families who claim to occupy the land,” Hor Nead said. Kirivong district Governor Tek Tong Lim said Monday that he had not been informed of the arrest. Takeo Police Chief Uk Samnang declined to comment.