The Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology has urged legal action against “stubborn individuals” who are encroaching on the Stung Prek Tnaot River and its surrounds. 

The ministry called on citizens who are living within 30 metres of the river to voluntarily dismantle any structures they have erected and move on.

The appeal follows observations by the ministry that groups of individuals have been encroaching on the river in Kanpong Speu and Kandal provinces, as well as Phnom Penh, by seizing its banks and filling parts of the waterway.

In an August 29 notice, the ministry called on relevant authorities, particularly the administrations of Kampong Speu, Kandal provinces, and Phnom Penh, “to cooperate in preventing and taking legal measures against 'stubborn individuals' who refuse to cooperate with authorities and continue their activities that infringe on public state property along Stung Prek Tnaot”.

The ministry explained that the river, as well as its banks and all land within 30 metres of it, is state land, and protected by the Constitution and the law. Such property is meant for public use and cannot be privately owned, regardless of how long someone has occupied it.

Article 81 of the Law on the Management, Use, and Administration of State Property, promulgated by Royal Decree in November 2020, states: "Any illegal occupation of state immovable property is punishable by imprisonment from two to five years and a fine of four million to 10 million riel ($1,000 to $2,500)."

The ministry called on the public to participate in preserving state property, particularly the Prek Tnaot, which is a crucial water source for humans, animals and plants.

It appealed to those who may have unknowingly occupied its banks and the land within 30 metres to "cooperate by voluntarily dismantling their structures and removing them", to support the flood prevention project that is currently under construction. 

Kong Chhunly, acting administration director of Kampong Speu province, explained briefly that the provincial authorities would address this issue, in accordance with the ministry's request.

Chy Sivutha, Kandal provincial administration director and Chap Vanny, director of the Provincial Information Department and spokesperson for the administration, claimed that they had not yet received information on this matter. 

Dim Bora, deputy governor of Kandal Province, was unable to comment, claiming that he was in a meeting.

Ouk Vuthy, undersecretary of state at the water resources ministry, led a working group, including lawyers, to inspect the land along the Stung Prek Tnaot in Kandal province’s Kandal Stung district and Phnom Penh’s Kamboul District on June 26.

The working group investigated the history of the construction of residences, examined the placement of boundary markers along the river and removed brick walls which had been illegally constructed, said the ministry.

A 260-kilometre Stung Prek Tnaot drainage system is currently under construction to divert floodwaters from Phnom Penh, where water flows down from Phnom Oral in Kampong Speu Province.