PHNOM PENH —
With a Cambodian delegation in Geneva defending its human rights efforts, a minority group in Preah Vihear province is calling for the cancelation of two licenses for Chinese companies accused of grabbing thousands of hectares of land.
Members of the Kuoy hill tribe say they want the companies, Rui Feng and Lan Feng, to relinquish some 7,000 hectares of land that where granted by the government as part of 18,000 hectares in concessions.
Those 7,000 hectares overlap with Kuoy traditional land, representatives say.
“They are grabbing our rice fields and farms, our sacred forests and forest products,” Louth Saing, a Kuoy representative, told reporters Tuesday.
However, Peung Trida, the head of the Preah Vihear provincial agriculture office, dismissed the claims.
“There is no impact on their land,” he said. “They claim the land because there is now investment there.”
Members of the Kuoy hill tribe say they want the companies, Rui Feng and Lan Feng, to relinquish some 7,000 hectares of land that where granted by the government as part of 18,000 hectares in concessions.
Those 7,000 hectares overlap with Kuoy traditional land, representatives say.
“They are grabbing our rice fields and farms, our sacred forests and forest products,” Louth Saing, a Kuoy representative, told reporters Tuesday.
However, Peung Trida, the head of the Preah Vihear provincial agriculture office, dismissed the claims.
“There is no impact on their land,” he said. “They claim the land because there is now investment there.”
