KAMPONG CHHNANG: The Prime Minister of Cambodia has ordered the Minister of Land Management, DPM Chea Sophara, to work with the provincial authorities adjacent to the Tonle Sap Lake to clear land in Areas 2 and 3 for residents before the Khmer New Year in 2023.

Speaking at the distribution of food and rice seeds to flood victims in Kampong Chhnang province on Wednesday morning, 26 October, Prime Minister Hun Sen said that some people residing in Areas 2 and 3 of the Tonle Sap Lake have ancestral land in those areas, so authorities must facilitate the work of clearing this land for them as soon as possible. The Prime Minister made this public confirmation to provide residents of the Tonle Sap Lake peace of mind and to affirm their ability to live in their own homeland, which has been an unresolved issue for some time.

However, the Prime Minister also stated that he would not allow criminals to encroach on any more land in this area. The state will leave an additional 10% of land to the people already residing in those areas, however, any land that has been encroached upon by criminals must be taken away as state property.

"Today I would like to send a specific message to the people living near the Tonle Sap Lake, I just want to take back the land that has been encroached upon by powerful and corrupt people who are not [native to the area], we have to replant trees there so that it will be a flooded forest area for the people to use," said the Prime Minister.

He further urged people not to cut down trees to preserve the biodiversity of the area surrounding the Tonle Sap Lake.

^{PHOTO: EAC NEWS}