Cambodia arrests senior officer in war against land grabbers

A major colonel from the border unit of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (CRAF) has been arrested, becoming the first senior officer arrested during the government's high-profile campaign against land grabbers.

"We arrested Te Haing in Banteay Mean Chey province according to the warrant from the Phnom Penh Municipal Court" on Saturday, Sao Sokha, military police commander of Cambodia, told Xinhua here on Sunday.

In addition, an official at the court told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that Te Haing was arrested for encroaching state land and cutting forestry to take about 1,567 hectares of land in Banteay Mean Chey province.

"Because he worked there, it was difficult to investigate the case. After checking the case, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court issued the arrest warrant and then transferred his case to Phnom Penh," he said.

Te Haing, also registered as owner of the Te Haing Development Co. Ltd., was accused under Article 97 of the Forestry Law and might be jailed for five to 10 years, he said, adding that all his properties will be confiscated by the state.

On Thursday, Chao Phirun, director general of RCAF's technical and material department, said that he had handed over more than 200 hectares of land to the government after Prime Minister Hun Sen threatened to fire him on Monday in the war on land grabbers.

"I already gave the land to the government (on Tuesday). Hun Sen has written to thank me," said the general, who is from Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP).

"I am not sad. This is a contribution to help the government," he said of the 215 hectares of land in Kampot province's Chhuk district.

He insisted that he was unaware that he was the target of Hun Sen's threat, as the land was bought by his wife in 1999 from 46 families rather than being grabbed from their hands.

Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith told reporters that Chao Phirun will not be fired as he returned the land.

Earlier, a top government official from CPP called Hun Sen to inform about his withdrawal from a land dispute in Koh Sla area in Kandal province.

Hun Sen said on Monday that he will purge perverse land grabbers out of the government and CPP, who might otherwise cause social instability or even trigger off riots.

"The government is going to fight against illegal land grabbing at any cost. The war against land grabbers is starting right now," he told hundreds of diplomats and high-ranking government officials at a national forum.

They should withdraw from land disputes by themselves, and if they don't, they will be fired from the government and expelled from the party, he said.

"I am not going to tolerate anyone any longer on this issue," he added.

Local media have reported recently that military officers and high-ranking government officials used to stand behind land disputes across the kingdom, causing much anger among the people, especially the deprived farmers.

In February, Hun Sen said that illegal land grabbing will destabilize the country.

"Our government has made tremendous efforts to build many roads, but it is sad to see that after the road is built, many people from the city rush in to buy or capture land (beside the road), squeezing the local community out of their property," he said. All provincial governors, district chiefs and commune councils are held responsible for the situation of landlessness and land grabbing in their territories, he said.

"I promise to punish any officials who are found to be involved in land grabbing and clearing of state land for personal use," he added.

Land disputes have been frequent across Cambodia in recent years, resulting in hundreds of death and injury, according to official reports.

Source: Xinhua