Rattanakiri Airport Expansion Could Begin This Month

Construction on the expansion and upgrading of the airport in the Ratanakiri captital of Banlung could bgin as early as this month, Deputy Provincial Governor Chey Sayoeurn said Sunday. The $7million expansion project, which is being funded by the Asian Development Bank, had been put on hold last year to develop a new plan that will expand the airport by 4 hectares, Chey Sayoeurn said. However, a local villager representative, Sam palla, 48, said by telephone Sunday that only 10 of the 40 families being relocated because of the airport expansion have been compensated. ?The government offered $25 to $50 per square meter, but about 30 families were denied compensation on the excuse that they began living there after 2002,? said Sam Palla, who claimed to have beed denied compensation for his 2.5hectare cashew farm despite having occupied the land since 1989. Chey Sayoeurn declined to directly address the issue of compensation, saying that it was being handled by the ADB. ?The ADB will compensate the 40 villager families,? he said. ?Construction might be started in the next month [September] if the ADB have already compensated the villagers.?Officials from the ADB could not be reached for comment Sunday. (Neou Vannarin)