Homes Razed to Stop ‘Secession,’ Officials Say

The homes of nearly 200 families living in Pursat province’s Veal Veng district were demolished yesterday and Monday after officials accused the residents of being involved in a secessionist plot, local officials and villagers said. District governor Chhe Chhiv said that authorities had demolished 191 homes belonging to villagers in Krapoeu Pi commune, although villagers claimed as many as 700 houses had been knocked down. He said the villagers were illegally living inside the Phnom Sankos wildlife sanctuary. “We need to prevent them because they live outside of our authority. We worry that they will create a secessionist area like in Kratie province,” Mr. Chhiv said, referring to an alleged insurrection in May. At the time, villagers embroiled in a land dispute with a rubber company in Kratie were violently evicted by authorities while a 14-year-old girl was shot to death by security forces. Mr. Chhiv added that village representative Morn Bol was arrested on Monday for allegedly inciting other villagers to occupy state land. Mr. Bol, 48, was charged yesterday with illegally clearing state forest, according to provincial prosecutor Ton Sihadech. If convicted, Mr. Bol faces up to 10 years in prison. …