Sam Rainsy and the villagers are pulling out the border markes planted on their rice fields27 October 2009
Rasmei Kampuchea
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
On 25 October 2009, Sam Rainsy led several dozens of villagers to the border with Vietnam in Svay Rieng province, and the group pulled out wooden border post markers that were installed there.
The location where the villagers informed Sam Rainsy that Vietnam planted border posts in violation of rice land fields belonging to Cambodian villagers, and the location where these border posts were pulled out are in Koh Kban Kandal village, Samrong commune, Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province. Sam Rainsy also led a Kathen procession to Wat Ang Romdenh Pagoda located in this village on that same day.
On 26 October, during his meeting with a group of reporters at the SRP party headquarters, Sam Rainsy indicated that, during his meeting with border villagers, the issue of the expropriation of Cambodian-owned rice field lands by the Yuon (Viet) authority was raised. A few months earlier, the Yuon and Khmer authorities came to take measurements and survey the land, then they planted the border posts in the rice fields belonging to Cambodian farmers. Some of the villagers indicated that the border markers were set between 100 and 300-meter into their fields. Furthermore, 2-hectare of lands were set aside as a “white zone” [No man’s land] and rice plantation is not allowed anymore.
Sam Rainsy added that these wooden border posts were installed there to test the feelings of the Cambodian people to see if they are willing to protest or not. “Therefore, we protest and we pulled them out,” Sam Rainsy said. He also indicated that he wanted to see these Viets to be mindful so that they do not come into Cambodian territories so easily.
Regarding the loss of rice field lands to Vietnam, Sam Rainsy added that some of the villagers lost large chunks of their rice fields as Vietnam continue to move the borders into the Cambodian territories. Furthermore, several Cambodian villages and pagodas were absorbed into the Vietnamese territories, and even Samdach Heng Samrin, the CPP honorary president and president of the National Assembly, told the NA that in Kak commune, Ponhea Krek district, Kampong Cham province, the Vietnamese border has been pushed all the way to the staircase of his home there.
However, Svar Kim Hong, the chairman of the government border committee, indicated that Sam Rainsy’s action is a violation of the government’s work in the border delimitation with Vietnam, and he also accused Sam Rainsy of destroying public property.
Svar Kim Hong indicated that Sam Rainsy led a force to violate the work accomplished by the border committee to install border post No. 185 located in Samrong commune, Chantrea district, Svay Rieng province. He said that this is a violation of public property consisting of the border post between Cambodia and Vietnam.
Svar Kim Hong, who leads the border marker installation work, accused Sam Rainsy of using political propaganda without knowing the technique to delimitate the border. Svar Kim Hong said that, prior to the installation of the permanent border marker, these [temporary] posts are installed all over the place to test the region where there are disputes.
The Cambodian and Vietnamese governments agreed to install 370 border markers made out of granitic rock [produced by Vietnam] along their 1,270-km common border. Among these border markers, seven are located at border crossing gates.
On 27 September 2007, the border marker located at the Bavet-Moc Bai international crossing gate in Svay Rieng province was inaugurated by Hun Xen and his Viet counterpart. That was the initiation of the border demarcation between the two countries, using markers made out of granitic rock costing $15 million and paid for by Vietnam.
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