Soldiers Assault Villagers in Disputed Kampong Speu Forest, Says Rights Group

On Tuesday, members of the elite Brigade 70 military unit fired warning shots and physically assaulted villagers as the soldiers attempted to clear a section of disputed forest in the Aoral district of Kampong Speu, according to local witnesses and a rights organization. 

Phon Thoch, 60, was among a group of locals who gathered on Tuesday to confront the soldiers outside the rural Po Meas village. Thoch estimated that 20 villagers had approached the troops, who came as part of a mixed group with environmental officials and a crew of four hired workers. The workers were using chainsaws to cut and clear trees under the soldiers’ protection, she said.

“We tried to stop them from cutting down trees,” Thoch recounted, describing the verbal altercation that followed. “They did not listen to us and said the forest belongs to them, [and asked] why we came to cause trouble.” From there, Thoch said the conflict escalated to the point where soldiers assaulted three of the villagers including herself and two men.

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