News

New concession in Botum Sakor National Park handed to Cambodia’s Royal Group

The Cambodian government has awarded another large swath of Botum Sakor National Park to local conglomerate Royal Group, carving out yet more land from this ostensibly protected area to hand over to private developers. ...

Gerald Flynn
https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/new-concession-in-botum-sakor-national-park-handed-to-cambodias-royal-group/

Government gives 9,968 hectares in Botum Sakor National Park to Royal Group

Tycoon Kith Meng’s Royal Group company received 9,968 hectares inside Botum Sakor National park in Koh Kong province, according to a January 25 sub-decree signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen and published earlier this month. ...

Runn Sreydeth and Phon Sothyroth
https://cambojanews.com/government-gives-9968-hectares-in-botum-sakor-national-park-to-royal-group/

Tycoon’s son receives 6,234 hectares in Botum Sakor National Park

A company linked to the son of tycoon Ly Yong Phat received a 6,234 hectare concession inside Botum Sakor National Park, according to a January sub-decree signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen and published on Wednesday. ...

Eung Sea
https://cambojanews.com/tycoons-son-receives-6234-hectares-in-botum-sakor-national-park/

Satellite data shows protected areas faced brunt of deforestation in 2022

New satellite data reveals that Cambodia’s remaining dense forests were further depleted last year, with four major protected areas and national parks registering higher deforestation than in 2021. ...

Andrew Califf
https://cambojanews.com/satellite-data-shows-protected-areas-faced-brunt-of-deforestation-in-2022/

Koh Kong residents ask government to expedite land settlement as authorities accuse them of entering the protected land

Residents in Botum Sakor district, Koh Kong province, ask the government to intervene with the  authorities to expedite the resolution of land disputes as soon as possible and transparently as the authorities accused them of illegally entering the Botum Sakor National Park. ...

Nat Sopheap
https://www.vodkhmer.news/2022/10/18/koh-kong-residents-ask-government-to-expedite-land-settlement/

Development in Botum Sakor National Park

Koh Kong Provincial Administration is examining a request from Anko Ahran Niharan company to invest on 6,145 hectares of land inside Botum Sakor National Park. ...

Son Minea
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50999244/development-in-botum-sakor-national-park/

Royal Group planning 100sq km SEZ in Botum Sakor National Park

The Royal Group of Companies Ltd, a leading local conglomerate, will invest in the construction of a 100sq km special economic zone (SEZ) in Koh Kong province’s Botum Sakor National Park. This is an apparent bid to capitalise on the ongoing inflow of investment to ...

May Kunmakara
https://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/royal-group-planning-100sq-km-sez-botum-sakor-national-park

Koh Kong on hunt for tree planters

Authorities in Koh Kong province are on the hunt for people who illegally planted fruit trees at Botum Sakor National Park in Botum Sakor district. Provincial governor Mithona Phouthorng told The Post on November 17 she had ordered an investigation into the illegal planting of ...

Nov Sivutha
https://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/koh-kong-hunt-tree-planters

New coal-fired power plant in national park commissioned

The Kingdom’s tycoon Kith Meng’s Royal Group has secured 168.8 hectares of land in Koh Kong’s Botum Sakor National Park under a leasing agreement to develop a 700 megawatt (mW)  coal power plant, according to a government sub-decree. ...

Sorn Sarath
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50753768/new-coal-fired-power-plant-in-national-park-commissioned/

Koh Kong authorities issue warning over land grabbing

The Koh Kong provincial administration has warned that it will take legal action against anyone who attempts to grab land in an area that used to belong to the Botum Sakor National Park. The 9,306ha located in Kiri Sakor and Botum Sakor districts has been ...

Soth Koemsoeun
https://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/koh-kong-authorities-issue-warning-over-land-grabbing

Farmers and workers carry on as Chinese transplants drive up land prices

The rural southwestern province of Koh Kong, previously off the international community’s radar screen, has drawn the global spotlight. That’s because a massive runway stretching approximately 3,200 meters appeared suddenly at a resort being developed by a Chinese company in this otherwise out-of-the-way province, about a ...

Tomoya Onishi
https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Cambodia-s-China-built-runway-irks-US-but-locals-have-other-concerns

Koh Kong authorities probe land sale in Botum Sakor National Park

The Koh Kong Provincial Administration is probing a news report that a private company had colluded with the local authorities to buy 40ha in the Botum Sakor National Park. Provincial hall spokesman Sok Sothy said on Sunday that the administration was only aware of one ...

Voun Dara
https://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/koh-kong-authorities-probe-land-sale-botum-sakor-national-park

Village representative arrested in LYP dispute

A villager representing 50 families in a long-running dispute with a company owned by ruling party Senator Ly Yong Phat is in pre-trial detention after his Saturday arrest for allegedly installing boundary markers on disputed company land. Lay Tiro, deputy head of the felonies office at ...

Soth Koemsoeun
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/village-representative-arrested-lyp-dispute

Villagers evicted from national park

Authorities are to force about 40 families in Koh Kong province to relocate from their homes in Botum Sakor National Park. The villagers asked authorities to provide them with social land concessions, because they have no other place to live. ...

Pech Sotheary
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/50102035/villagers-evicted-from-national-park/

Villagers asked to vacate national park

Koh Kong provincial authorities on Monday ordered 40 families living in Botum Sakor district to vacate their land and homes after it was determined they were illegally occupying a national park.​ On Friday, authorities went to inspect Botum Sakor National Park and found 40 families ...

Sen David
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/50101013/villagers-asked-vacate-national-park/

NGO to file report over clearing of forestland

The Natural Resource and Wildlife Preservation Organization, a conservation organisation in Kampong Speu, pledged yesterday to file a letter of complaint to authorities after learning that 6 hectares of protected forestland were cleared illegally. ...

Phak Seangly
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/ngo-file-report-over-clearing-forestland

Meeting between Koh Kong families, development firm fruitless

Representatives for some 200 families in a yearslong land dispute with the Union Development Group (UDG) in Koh Kong province met for the first time with both company and government officials Tuesday but left with little to show. ...

Hul Reaksmey
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/meeting-between-koh-kong-families-development-firm-fruitless-81149/

Cambodia: local people risk everything to defend national park sold off to highest bidders

Botum Sakor national park is one of Cambodia’s biodiversity hotspots, where indigenous tribes have long lived in harmony with the forest and its wildlife, writes Rod Harbinson. But now they are being violently evicted as the park is being sold off piecemeal to developers for ...

Rod Harbinson
http://bit.ly/1NdKSoz

Eviction date draws nearer for Koh Kong villagers

Villagers in Koh Kong province involved in a land dispute with a Chinese company received notice on Saturday that the local government will soon implement a court order kicking them off their land, officials and a villager said. ...

Khuon Narim
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/eviction-date-draws-nearer-for-koh-kong-villagers-80583/

Chinese firm razes homes in Koh Kong

Security guards from a Chinese firm building an airport to serve a planned resort in Koh Kong province Thursday destroyed the homes of 11 families and bulldozed 30 hectares of farmland in an area claimed by both the company and residents. The Union Development Group (UDG) ...

Aun Pheap
https://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/chinese-firm-razes-homes-in-koh-kong-76557/

UDG guards again accused of violent evictions

About 40 security guards armed with axes and AK-47s and working for the Chinese-owned Union Development Group (UDG) on Sunday demolished the homes of three villagers who claim to own land on UDG’s sprawling $3.8-billion beachside tourist development in Koh Kong province, villagers said. ...

Hul Reaksmey
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/udg-guards-again-accused-of-violent-evictions-71628/

Minister meets NGOs over ongoing UDG dispute

Environment Minister Say Sam Al on Thursday met with U.N. and NGO representatives to discuss the ongoing dispute between the powerful Chinese-owned Union Development Group (UDG) and villagers in Koh Kong province who say they were kicked off their land and had their shelters torched. In ...

Khuon Narim
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/minister-meets-ngos-over-ongoing-udg-dispute-64952/

Villagers Claim Soldiers Hired to Prevent Planting

Villagers in Koh Kong’s Botum Sakor district said Friday that Union Development Group (UDG) used military forces to prevent villagers from planting paddy rice on land that is locked in a longstanding dispute, a claim the military denied. Khun Thala, a 40-year-old villager, said Friday that ...

Khuon Narim
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/villagers-claim-soldiers-hired-to-prevent-planting-61420/

Contact us

Contact us

Do you have questions on the content published by Open Development Cambodia (ODC)? We will gladly help you.

Have you found a technical problem or issue on the Open Development Cambodia (ODC) website?

Tell us how we're doing.

Do you have resources that could help expand the Open Development Cambodia (ODC) website? We will review any map data, laws, articles, and documents that we do not yet have and see if we can implement them into our site. Please make sure the resources are in the public domain or fall under a Creative Commons license.

File was deleted
ERROR!

Disclaimer: Open Development Cambodia (ODC) will thoroughly review all submitted resources for integrity and relevancy before the resources are hosted. All hosted resources will be in the public domain, or licensed under Creative Commons. We thank you for your support.

RZXtu
* The idea box couldn't be blank! Something's gone wrong, Please Resubmit the form! Please add the code correctly​ first.

Thank you for taking the time to get in contact!