A major Phnom Penh lake development involving several oknha and senators threatens livelihoods and wetlands, as well as rivers with sewage contamination, and puts 1 million people at risk of flooding, the U.N. said in a letter to the Cambodian government — which in turn responded with seven pages summarizing assessments of the development.
Phnom Penh is expanding, and it is no different from many countries in using landfill to meet the demands of development, Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Friday as he rejected criticism over transferring public lake areas to developers.
A pipe installed under a Phnom Penh pagoda burst on Tuesday while moving dredged sand from barges on the Tonle Bassac river to landfill on Choeng Ek lake, with a pagoda representative saying City Hall had pushed for the pipe to pass through their grounds despite their reluctance.
The businesswoman who received more than 10 hectares of one of Phnom Penh’s “last lakes” Boeng Tamok from the government, raising questions around transparency and accountability, is the daughter of Land Management Minister Chea Sophara.
As he presides over a newly formed Sihanoukville “Master Plan” council, Prime Minister Hun Sen has granted four plots of land in Preah Sihanouk province to seven individuals, plus two more Phnom Penh lake areas to businesswoman Chea Sophamaden and City Hall.
With more heavy rainfall expected this weekend and ongoing flooding that has killed at least 21 people this month, Prime Minister Hun Sen cast doubt that the in-filling of capital lakes had contributed to severe flooding in Phnom Penh.
Justice Ministry officials need more room, so “empty public land” will be used to store court documents by filling in another part of Boeng Tamok, one of Phnom Penh’s “last lakes” that feeds hundreds of families and protects the capital from flooding.
Fifteen more hectares of one of Phnom Penh’s “last lakes” will be filled in to make way for government buildings, according to a decree signed two days before authorities arrested environmental youth activists campaigning for the lake’s preservation.
Hundreds of questions flooded a messaging group set up by Phnom Penh City Hall after the city was put under lockdown, with some answers provided about traveling for vaccines, cycling around neighborhoods, and necessary documentation.
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