NGO Staffs Assaulted and Intimidated in Kampong Speu

Four staffs of a conservative forest organization, named Natural Resource Watch and Protection in Cambodia, were assaulted, intimidated to knee and say sorry on November 22, 2009 at 10:50 am in an area of Koh Koang village, Tang Samrong commune, Phnom Sruach district, Kampnog Speu province, while they all were trying to ask them for information and taking some photos.

Those four victims included Mr. Luy Van, aged 29, was seriously assaulted unconscious; Mr. Mai Man, aged 30, Mr. Dam Chin, aged 32 and Sok Sophan, aged 35- three of them were forced to knee and say sorry by a group of 8 people in Junior Lieutenant Unit 2. These four men are all the staff of Natural Resource Watch and Protection in Cambodia, living in the same village of Krang Lvay commune, Phnom Sruach district, Kampong Speu province.

Mr. Chea Hean, the president of the local NGOs reported that on November 22, 2009 at 10:50 in the morning those eight people were riding 6 ox-carts, carried with 4 cube meters of luxurious limbers number one, called Beng from from Oral Mountain, the conservative area, when his four staffs stopped them to ask whether or not they legally received permission to log such trees. They did not say anything, but called to others. Later on a group of eight people arrived on their four motorbikes; armed with 2 guns and sticks. They immediately hit these four people with the sticks while some of them pointed their guns at them and asked to say sorry.

Out of those 8 people, two were known as Peng and Lim. However they did not know the names of other six people yet, but he said his staffs were trying to search for.

Mr. Chea Hean added that after the event, Mr. Khat Sokhom came to meet to seek for an apology; and also confessed that his subordinates had assaulted his staffs.

Regarding the purpose of logging the trees, Mr. Chea Hean claimed that it was a kind of business action. The timbers were ordered by unidentified businessmen and implemented and backed by the group of Junior Lieutenant Unit 2, of which Mr. Khat Sokhom is the chief. In addition it was far different to what Mr. Chea Hean gave his interviewing with the Radio Free Asia, published on November 23, 2009.

In the interview, Mr. Khat Sokhom said that the timbers were logged and sent to Prey Romeat in order to equip the office.

Mr. Chea Hean said he also informed the Forest Administration officers there, but they did not care for this action at all, because they got benefits from this illegal activity. They hung up his phone when he introduced his occupation to them.

It is seen that what those eight soldiers from Junior Lieutenant Unit 2 did strongly violated the right to life, dignity of humanity and freedom of an access to information.