Opposition lawmaker Keo Remy issued a letter to National Assembly leadership Thursday requesting ID cards be made easier to obtain for members of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom ethnic group.
The group, some of whom held a somber ceremony Wednesday for the loss of their area to Vietnam, faces discrimination in both countries and has difficulty securing identification that would enable them to work, send their children to school and own property.
Keo Ramy addressed his request to Interior Minister Sar Kheng, who is also the deputy prime minister.
"Please your excellencies, the Khmer Kampuchea Krom are also Cambodians," added SRP legislator Yim Sovan. "Please push for them to have ID cards or residency cards, in case they can get the right to live in Cambodia. This is a request."
Sar Kheng said everyone knows the Khmer Krom are different, but there was "no big problem" over ID cards, as long as they showed they were Cambodian.