Rural Voices
Illegal Wood Confiscated in Samlout District
by Savang Min, MJP Rural Planning Coordinator
01 July 2010
The Cambodian government is becoming increasingly more concerned with deforestation and illegal logging activities countrywide. The recommendation of the Prime Minister on law enforcement is to confiscate all illegal wood and dismantle illegal wood processing shops in the cities and countryside. Forestry Administration (FA) officers now play a very strong role in stopping illegal logging.
Samlout district in Battambang Province is also a hot zone of illegal wood logging and processing. From April 1st to April 3rd, 2010, officers from the Forestry Administration line departments, courts officers from Battambang, Samlout police officers and local authorities cracked down on the illegal wood processing shops in Samlout district. One big wood processing shop in O Tontoem Village, Tasanh commune, Samlout district was destroyed and about 10 trucks worth of illegal wood found at the site was confiscated.
The confiscated wood was sent to the Forestry Administration Battambang office, where officers prepared all relevant documents about the case and sent them to a Battambang court. FA officers closed down the illegal wood shops and shop owners were told they were not allowed to continue their business of selling and buying illegal wood anymore.
FA officers continue to look for any illegal places hidden somewhere in remote Samlout. Local authorities at district and commune levels are paying close attention to this critical issue.