As Soldiers Leave Kratie Village, Problems Remain
After a three-day blockade, soldiers pulled out over the weekend from the Kratie province village where a teenage girl was shot dead last week by government security forces, officials said yesterday. However, human rights workers denied a report by a provincial official that freedom of movement had been restored to the area. On Wednesday, 14-year-old Heng Chantha was gunned down when 200 soldiers, police and military police swept into Chhlong district’s Broma village with the stated aim of routing a so-called “secessionist movement.” Following the raid, hundreds of families deemed “newcomers” were evicted from the area and told to return to their original homes in Kompong Cham, Prey Veng and Kandal provinces. The area was sealed off by units of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces and military police, who kept human rights workers and journalists from entering the village where the teenager was shot dead. …
