Preah Vihear Provincial Court dismissed a legal case against four Kuy indigenous residents of M’lou Prey II commune, Chheb district in April this year, rendering it “null and void” and “not necessary” due to lack of compelling evidence. However, problems have cropped up with outsiders trying to assert authority on the land again.
On February 27, Preah Vihear provincial court questioned them to hear their testimonies about the dispute with the company on the concession land which appeared to have stalled its development.
It stemmed from an incident on February 11 when Preus Ka’ak community residents clashed with company representatives to prevent three tractors from plowing the land which had been cultivated by the indigenous community for generations. Four days after the incident, a Chinese firm sued the residents for allegedly obstructing the company’s development and encouraging individuals to occupy state land illegally on January 16, 2024.
A letter by the provincial court viewed by CamboJA News stated that upon review of the case and questioning of the defendants, the court decided to dismiss the case, citing it “null and void” due to “lack of compelling evidence” and the disputed land did not have a “clear ownership claim”. The plaintiff also “did not appear in court” when called to give his testimony.
Although Kuy defendant, Preus Ka’ak community representative Seourn Tha expressed jubilance at the court decision, he was concerned about the long term land insecurity and conflict on the concession land which resulted in confusion over the community’s entitled access crop cultivation.
“The court’s decision to dismiss the case is just. However, our community is still facing conflict with outsiders who claim to have rights on the land,” Tha lamented. “There is still no intervention by the authorities for a solution.”
A 20,179-hectare economic land concession was awarded to Hengfu Group Sugar Industry in 2011 which was said to overlap indigenous Kuy customary land. The company got a concession four times larger than what was allowed by allegedly circumventing Cambodian laws, a 2019 investigation by VOD showed.
Community members have clashed with Hengfu Group over the years and faced threats of legal action and lawsuits by the company and its subsidiaries and contractors. By early 2020, the company which shuttered its operations in 2019, saw community members returning to farming the land again, Tha said.
But recently, a group of men led by a man named Chheang Kong Nov, who acted as a company representative, started bringing tractors to plow the land and allegedly abused villagers and harvested people’s rice crops.
Kong Nov prohibited people from harvesting rice if they did not sign the agreement and pay $100 per hectare for using the land. The negotiation was mediated by soldiers, Tha said. However, their identity or which brigade they are from was unknown. They were dressed in army fatigues with AK-47 slung on their shoulders, he added.
“They just showed up this month. They facilitate the negotiation where residents are compelled to pay up in order to harvest their rice. However, this is only for this year. Residents are not permitted to use the land thereafter,” he told CamboJA News, citing a letter sent to them.
Preah Vihear Provincial Court prosecutor Thol Keom Heom did not respond to request for comment but he told CamboJA News in February that he planned to collaborate with relevant authorities to ascertain the disputed land’s status, whether it belonged to the company and if legal action which could be taken in future. The community claimed that they have not seen any interventions in the deputed land since.
Another Kuy resident in Preus Ka’ak community, who spoke on conditions of anonymity for fear of reprisals by the authorities and company, said residents were allowed to access the land for cultivation by the commune authorities.
But despite this, the community faces threats and abuse from outsiders attempting to take over community land while the authorities appear to have no legal jurisdiction to seek a solution and crack down on encroachment.
“People have sought solutions from commune authorities, but to no avail. I’ve a plot of land owned by my father long before the company arrived,” he said. No cadastral commission or other relevant authorities measured the land or found a fair solution in spite of their promises, he added.
People have to pay around 400,000 riel to harvest their rice crop, although the agreement does not stipulate it. Some people are willing to pay the sum so that they can harvest their rice crops. In addition, residents are allegedly threatened with guns.
“If the rice is ready for harvest, the owners stay in their farm huts to protect their field until it’s time. If they see outsiders entering surreptitiously to harvest their crops, they will call their neighbors to gather in the field and chase them,” he explained. He said commune and provincial authorities are also aware of the problems.
He shared that the outsiders who came did not have a permit or a letter to prove that they had permission on the land. This claim was confirmed by the commune chief.
Chief of M’lou Prey II commune Kan Sovankea told CamboJA News that the local authority was aware of the matter, adding that it would be transferred to the district authorities for intervention. Asked if the commune gave permission to outsiders and if further action would be taken to end the conflict, Sovankea simply replied “we are working on it”.
Preah Vihear deputy provincial governor Nop Vuthy told CamboJA News via Telegram that the mediation of the rice dispute between more than 100 people and Hengfu Group in M’lou Prey II commune, saw the handing back of rice that was harvested to the people.
“However, there are nearly 700 hectares which are awaiting settlement at the provincial level as both parties claim to own the land,” he said, adding that the people are only asking for rice cultivation this year.
Next year, he said, “they will not ask for it as it (farming) was on state land”. The statement contradicts the right to community customary land where Kuy residents have cultivated for generations.
According to Article 25 of the Land Law, indigenous community land are lands where communities have established settlements and engaged in traditional agriculture. They also include lands which are reserved for seasonal farming and recognized by the administrative authorities.
In Cambodia, communal land titling for indigenous communities is often delayed and long-drawn out, thus communities fear that their land would be granted as ELCs to outsiders or “powerful people”. The National Assembly adopted a new environmental code in June 2023, which indigenous rights activists believe would undermine their long-standing land rights claims and allow outsiders to illegally grab their customary land.
Under the 2001 Land Law, land concessions responding to an economic purpose allow the beneficiaries to clear the land for industrial agricultural exploitation of land in Cambodia. However, the Cambodian government has full jurisdiction to cancel concessions if they remain inactive for more than 12 months.
