Villagers accused of illegally occupying state land in Kompong Thom province protested outside Santuk district hall yesterday to ask for land titles, residents and authorities said.
Sue Nhaunh, a villager and representative of 160 families in Kraya commune, said that more than 100 residents had gathered in the morning to appeal a pending eviction and demand land titles for their part of approximately 1,000 hectares of farmland in the Thma Samleang area of Santuk district.
“We ask district and provincial officials to solve the land conflict for the villagers,” Mr. Nhaunh said. “We have submitted the proposal letter to the district governor for land ownership and legal land title.”
Last month, authorities announced that residents living on the land would have to inform officials by Dec 15 about information such as the size of their plots and the crops they grow.
If villagers fail to provide the correct paperwork then the land can be used to give to the victims of a separate land dispute, who lost their land to a rubber plantation in 2009.
Santuk district governor Pich Sothea said the villagers would need to bring documentation proving ownership of the land to the provincial hall. A committee would then determine how much of the land can be used by the state to resettle other families.
“We want to find out how much land not owned by the villagers so we can solve this and give the land to [the displaced families],” Mr. Sothea said.
Villagers say that the process is not being carried out fairly.
Lim Leak, one of the affected villagers, said authorities told him the 3-hectare plot he has lived on since 2000 belonged to Se Sokha, a businessman.
“When they came to mark the plots with red paint, I felt afraid that I will lose my farmland,” Mr. Leak said. “If someone takes our land we will protest, file complaints and demand our land back.”
