More than 1,000 families have drawn lots for land plots at Boeung 75 in Tuol Pongro commune’s O’Ampil village of Banteay Meanchey province’s Malai district after a long-running dispute was resolved.
The drawing of the lots took place on February 14 in coordination with deputy head of Prime Minister Hun Sen’s cabinet Pankhem Bunthan and provincial governor Um Reatrey.
Provincial hall spokesman Ly Sary told The Post on February 21 that the long-standing land dispute at Boeung 75 was originally between Ly Utny, Preap Sarun and Kong Chea but Utny and Sarun passed away in the nearly 20 years since the dispute began and their land was then bought and sold which resulted in a complex situation.
The government undertook a study of the issue and a compromise was made with the provincial administration dividing the land into plots for allocation to individual families or for development.
“They drew the lots already and now they’ve started to move to the new locations at this time and we’re helping them to do so. We will continue to go step by step to turn the land over to them under their legal ownership and the land management specialists are preparing documents to grant them titles,” he said.
Sary added that titles will be issued to more than 1,000 families in mid-2022 after they have resided at their assigned location for five to six months. Each family received a plot of land measuring 8m by 20m.
In a report, the provincial administration said the dispute was now primarily between the family of Ly Utny and 1,200 others over an area of nearly 100ha.
The report said the provincial land management department and its contractors had measured and demarcated boundaries for 47ha of the land conceded to the other families as part of the compromise made with the Utny family.
The land will be improved with roads, an administrative building, a garden, a canal and a pond among the privately owned plots.
Sary said the Utny family has also donated money for the construction of a 10m-wide road about 24km in length to assist with the development of Boeung 75 in advance of the provincial authorities expected application to the government for the establishment of a new village there.
