Written by DAP NEWS
http://www.dap-news.com
http://www.dap-news.com
Oddar Meanchey provincial governor on Friday strongly warned all district governors not to allow their citizens to cross into to Thailand for logging.
The warning comes in the wake of arrests and killings of Cambodian citizens by Thai provincial authorities bordering Cambodia.
“If any district governors cannot stop citizen’s crossing over to Thailand, those governors should quit the job,” said Pech Sokhen, Oddor Meanchhey’s governor.
The forests along the Cambodia-Thailand border are being exploited illegally by both Cambodian and Thai businessmen. “The offense of logging is often happens in the deep forest and it is very difficult to walk the long distances there because there are many mines buried in the land, so we cannot crack down,” Chhen Sivuth of the Provincial Inspectation Working Group told DAP News Cambodia on Friday. Provincial authorities squarely pointed the finger of blame for alleged illegal logging at “black [corrupt] Thai soldiers who cooperate with some bad Cambodian businessmen.”
The status of a group of Cambo-dian citizens recently convicted by Thai court in U Bon Province is unclear.
The Cambodians were arrested on July 23, 2009 by the Thai provincial authority Thai U Bon Provincial authority and charged with illegal encroachment and deforestation. All the men, who come from Preah Vihear and in Oddor Meanchey provinces bordering Thailand, are very poor.
Deputy Governor of Preah Vihear Sor Thavy on Thursday told DAP News Cambodia that, according to his research and investigations, the 16 Cambodian citizens were just workers hired to clear forest by a Thai businessman.
“We are watching and investigating very carefully in this case,” Sor Thavy stressed. “The Cambodian consular officials for that area are finding independent lawyers for them,” Koy Koung, a spokesman of the Foreign Affair and International Cooperation added.
Recently, Thai provincial authorities bordering Cambodia arrested many Cambodian citizens on separate allegations. Some citizens were allegedly shot to death at the scene of the crime and some were arrested after claimed illegal encroachment and deforestation. Some reports claim that on Wednesday one Cambodian aged 35 living in Tropang Prasat, Preah
Vihear was killed in the forest after Thai police shot at Cambodians who had illegally crossed the border into Thailand.
Locals in Oddar Meanchey province became concerned after Thai authorities aggressively cracked down on deforestation offenses with deadly force. Those who regularly cross the border unofficially, until recently an offense the Thai authorities turned a blind eye to, have become very nervous.
1 comment:
Let's face it, these governors along with their deputy governors, mayors, district chiefs, the way down to the village chiefs are responsible for their constituents in their respective provinces, towns, and villages. They are responsible in somehow and someway to create jobs for their own populations in those areas. Entice and invite tourists to visit the areas because they bring in revenues to the regions. Plant and produce unique products so that outside people are attracted to the areas. These are just a couple of ideas that these elected official can try to do instead sitting around and ordering around like war lords. It seems that in Cambodia, there are more chiefs than Indians or they are incompetent.
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