Fire families wait for relocation, new land

phnompenhpost

TUESDAY, 08 JUNE 2010 15:03

By :KHOUTH SOPHAKCHAKRYA

A Tuol Kork resident helps rebuild his family’s home, which was destroyed in a March 8 fire. On Monday, 68 families that want to rebuild in Boeung Kak 2 commune asked officials to begin distributing plots of land, and a group of 170 families that have agreed to relocate to Dangkor district learned they may move before the end of the month.

TUOL Kork district officials on Monday told a group of 170 families made homeless by a March 8 fire in Boeung Kak 2 commune that they could be relocated to an undeveloped site in Dangkor district’s Choam Chao commune at the end of the month.

Also Monday, 68 other families that have continued to resist relocation protested in front of City Hall, calling on local officials to grant them land to build new homes at the site of the fire.

At a meeting with the first group of families, held at Neak Von pagoda, Tuol Kork deputy governor Thim Sam An said infrastructure at the Choam Chao district relocation site would not be fully in place before families arrive.

“We cannot connect the electricity and water line, including the drainage system, by the end of this month. We will have to do these things step-by-step after the relocation,” he said. “But if you agree to go, we will relocate you this month.”

Boeung Kak 2 residents and housing rights advocates have criticised the Choam Chao site for its propensity to flood, but Thim Sam An said that the authorities were “making an effort” to fill in flood-prone areas.

Some residents said Monday that they were willing to wait up to two months to be relocated, provided that officials gave them tarpaulins so they could build roofs over temporary shelters in Boeung Kak 2.

Lim Kim Eng, 68, attends a protest Monday at which residents of Tuol Kork district’s Boeung Kak 2 commune demanded permission to rebuild homes destroyed in a March 8 fire. Her sign reads: “Commune and district authorities have delayed us from rebuilding our homes for three months.”

“Right now, our roofs are ruined, and we have no money to buy new tarpaulins,” said Sam Sam Ang, a representative of the families. “We ask that the authorities distribute some tarpaulins to us … while we wait for relocation.”

Meanwhile, 68 families that have continued to resist pressure from the authorities to relocate demonstrated in front of City Hall on Monday morning, demanding that local authorities begin allocating plots of land promised to them at the fire site.

Kong Saly, a resident who participated in the protest, said that villagers want officials to distribute 3.92-by-5.5-metre plots of land to each family.

“For three months we’ve waited for the authorities to distribute plots of land to us, but now it’s the rainy season, and our roofs are ruined,” she said.

In the fire’s immediate aftermath, officials told residents they could rebuild in the commune provided that they accepted 3.92-by-5.5-metre plots – a downgrade for many of the families – and left sufficient space for new access roads.

They Are Not Khmer Members of Parliament

KI.Media

Monday, June 07, 2010
Op-Ed by Khmer Borann
Phnom Penh

Cambidia

After the villagers in Anh Chanh Village, Chey Chork Commune, Borey Chulsa District of Takeo province complained that the new Cambodia-Vietnam border post 270 was planted on the middle of their rice field, SRP members of parliament have requested President of National Assembly Heng Samrin to visit the place. Heng Samin did not allow the SRP members of parliament to visit the place where the encroachment by the planting border post is alleged.

Until now, nobody knows the demarcation post 270 was planted on the real border of inside Cambodia’s territory. The visit, although was unsuccessful, by SRP members of parliament and Khmer border activists has shown that, as the elected representative of Cambodian people, these SRP members of parliament are responsible before the voters. Moreover, if we look at the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia, these SRP members of parliament have followed the constitution. How about the CPP members of parliament, especially Heng Samrin? Are they following the constitution of Cambodia, especially the Oath before they took the office as Member of Parliament?

To see if the CPP members of parliament are Khmer Member of Parliament or not, I would like to invite the readers of KI Media to look at The Oath before the Constitution of Cambodia.

The Oath

WE

THE PRESIDENT, DEPUTY PRESIDENT AND MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA, WOULD LIKE TO SWEAR BEFORE HIS MAJESTY THE KING’S FACE, BEFORE SAMDACH SANGKHAREACH’S FACE, AND THE DIVINES GURDING THE THRONE’S PARASOL, AS FOLLOWS:

During the operations of their functions and fulfillment of the missions that are conferred by the Cambodian citizens to everyone of us, we determine to respect for the Constitution, serve at all time both at present and in future, the interests of the people, nation and Cambodian motherland. We would like to swear that we will not exploit the national interests for our own or for our family or for our groups or for our respective party.

We would like to swear that we dare sacrificing our lives for always protecting, at
present as well as in the future:

• the total independence of Cambodian motherland,
• the full national sovereignty
• the legitimate territorial integrity within the land and sea boundaries which Cambodia used to have in periods between 1963 to 1969,
• the national unity, and will not allow to have any segregation or secession.

We would like to determine to always retain, now and in the future, the neutrality and the non-alignment for Cambodia, and will never allow any person, whoever wishes to interfere the internal affairs of Cambodia or give order over the national and international policies of Cambodia. We will absolutely not serve the foreign interests and cause harms to the interest of the people, nation and Cambodian motherland.

When solving any issues on the national and international arena, we will totally eliminate all kinds of violence.
However, the Kingdom of Cambodia shall reserve its rights to hold weapons and smuggle against any aggression from the outside, in order to defend its own nation and motherland.

We would like to determine to always respect for, at present as well as in the future, the Liberal Democracy which has a parliamentary regime and multi-party system, and will strictly respect for the Human Rights as stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

We determine to fight against of all sorts of corruption, social injustice and will strive for the national reconciliation, national unity, social and national peace, and for the abundance of the Cambodian citizens and for the prosperity and glory of the Cambodian motherland, the sacred and beloved ones of all of us.

Hun Xen And Chan Sarun are Yuon Slave

May 16,2010 at 11:55 pm