Thai Forces Kill 38 Cambodians

Thai forces have shot and killed 38 Cambodians in the first half of this year for illegally crossing the border in Phnom Penh to log for timber, according to Cambodian authorities.

A further 10 Cambodians were injured in incidents with Thai border forces and 194 were arrested, thought not all of them on suspicion of illegal logging.

Last year around 11 alleged Cambodian loggers were reported killed, according to statistics by ADHOC.

Nicolas Agostini, a technical assistant at ADHOC, said the spike in deaths is due to a growing number of frontier residents willing to risk their lives to escape poverty.

Cambodian loggers are routinely caught crossing the border into Thailand.  Most are looking for rosewood which fetches thousands of dollars and is in strong demand in China and Vietnam.

Cambodian officials have repeatedly urged Thailand to arrest trespassers instead of firing at them, while Bangkok says its troops are acting in self-defense against armed Cambodians.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has asked Thai authorities to launch “meaningful investigations” into the killings.