Prey Long Forest Protesters Rounded Up, ‘Reeducated’
Authorities in Phnom Penh briefly detained about 100 villagers yesterday who were distributing leaflets to raise awareness of the ongoing destruction of Prey Long, one of Cambodia’s largest remaining primary forests. The leaflet distributors had their materials confiscated and were escorted to six commune offices where they were questioned and “reeducated,” said a statement by rights groups, who condemned the mass detentions…Prey Long is the largest remaining lowland evergreen forest in mainland Southeast Asia. It is threatened by illegal logging, cash crop plantations and mining companies. With a core area of about 135,000 hectares of pristine forest, prey Long stretches across Stung Treng, Preah Vihear, Kratie and Kompong Thom provinces. The majority of the 200,000 people who live in 339 villages in and around Prey Long are members of the Kuy indigenous minority.
