Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Chroy Changvar residents petition city over OCIC land dispute

Chroy Changvar residents petition city over OCIC land dispute

Content image - Phnom Penh Post
People from Chroy Changvar protest a land grab by OCIC in front of Phnom Penh City Hall yesterday. Pech Sotheary

Chroy Changvar residents petition city over OCIC land dispute

Outraged families yesterday petitioned Phnom Penh City Hall in a bid to resolve a bitter land-grabbing dispute with tycoon Pung Khieu Se’s Overseas Cambodia Investment Corporation (OCIC).

About 70 people, representing 359 families living in Chroy Changvar district, urged the government to halt the alleged housing rights violations they suffered due to OCIC’s project.

The petition calls for one of two options – that residents be given $400 per square metre of land, as opposed to OCIC’s offer of $15, or that residents be given back half of their land, rather than 10 per cent.

OCIC project coordinator, Sok Sil Phanha, said he could not anticipate how the company would respond. Phnom Penh City Hall spokesperson Long Dimanche said yesterday that “we are solving this problem”, but would not elaborate.

The protesters said hundreds of families had lived and depended on the 185.7 hectares of land for years, with recognition from the local authorities, but their land had since been flooded with sand by OCIC.

Community representative Chea Sophat, 63, said the group had also presented the petition, along with a map proposing land divisions, to the Canadian diplomatic office and the World Bank, as Pung Khieu Se is also a Canadian citizen and because Sophat believed the World Bank had given funds to OCIC.

However, both the World Bank and OCIC denied having a financial relationship. The Canadian diplomatic office in Phnom Penh could not be reached for comment. Adhoc investigator Yi Soksan urged the government to compensate victims according to the land’s market price.

MOST VIEWED

  • Wing Bank opens new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004

    Wing Bank celebrates first anniversary as commercial bank with launch of brand-new branch. One year since officially launching with a commercial banking licence, Wing Bank on March 14 launched a new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004. The launch was presided over by

  • Girl from Stung Meanchey dump now college grad living in Australia

    After finishing her foundational studies at Trinity College and earning a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Melbourne in 2022, Ron Sophy, a girl who once lived at the Stung Meanchey garbage dump and scavenged for things to sell, is now working at a private

  • Ministry orders all schools, public and private, to close for SEA Games

    From April 20 to May 18, all public and private educational institutions will be closed to maintain order and support Cambodia's hosting of the 32nd SEA Games and 12th ASEAN Para Games, said a directive from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport. Cambodia will host the

  • Wat Phnom hornbills attract tourists, locals

    Thanks to the arrival of a friendly flock of great hornbills, Hour Rithy, a former aviculturist – or raiser of birds – in Kratie province turned Phnom Penh tuk tuk driver, has seen a partial return to his former profession. He has become something of a guide

  • Almost 9K tourists see equinox sunrise at Angkor Wat

    Nearly 9,000 visitors – including 2,226 international tourists – gathered at Angkor Wat on March 21 to view the spring equinox sunrise, according to a senior official of the Siem Reap provinical tourism department. Ngov Seng Kak, director of the department, said a total of 8,726 people visited Angkor Wat to

  • Angkor Beer strengthens national pride with golden new look and fresher taste

    Angkor Beer – the "Gold of Angkor" – has a new look, one that is more stylish and carries a premium appeal, as well as a fresher taste and smoother flavour, making it the perfect choice for any gathering. Angkor Beer recently launched its new design, one