The Borey Morn Dany development, located in Kampong Speu province, is at the centre of more than 1,000 land ownership disputes. Land management minsitry
A working group from the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, in collaboration with other relevant parties, is continuing to resolve disputes involving around 39 housing projects, including the Borey Morn Dany development, located in Kampong Speu province.
According to the ministry, at least 139 major housing development projects have become embroiled in legal disputes. To date, the ministry’s working group claims to have resolved about 100 of them.
Ministry secretary of state Theng Chan Sangvar noted that many disputes related to borey projects still require coordination and resolution, in line with the guidance of land management minister Say Sam Al and Prime Minister Hun Manet. Despite continuous monitoring of the issues and the pursuit of solutions for the affected citizens, he acknowledged that unresolved cases remain, including those in the Borey Morn Dany project.
“More than 130 projects need resolutions. Of these, we estimate that 100 projects have been largely settled, leaving about 30 to 40 projects still under review. Some are simple matters, but some are extremely complex,” he explained.
Among the most complex cases is Project 29, located in Bor Seth and Kong Pisey districts of Kampong Speu province, part of the Borey Morn Dany development.
He said that Project 29 covers 100 hectares. Of them, 50 are under a single ownership land title, while the remaining 50 involve up to 12 separate land titles.
“We are working on resolving the 50 hectares that are under one title first. The remaining 50 is extremely complicated due to the fact that there are 12 land titles involved. It's difficult to solve because it was developed on land not actually owned by the company. We must negotiate with the original landowners – and when we do, they ask: ‘how much money do you have?’” he added.
He explained that the company entered into legal agreements to purchase the land, with the endorsement of lawyers and agreed fair pricing, but the owners have not yet received payment. This means the 50 hectares cannot legally be divided and transferred to the customers. The land still belongs to the original owners, and fingerprint authentication is needed to transfer ownership.
“The landowners must provide their fingerprints first. That’s what makes this project so complex. But thanks to coordination between the ministry's working group, the landowners and other stakeholders, we’ve made major progress,” he said.
He added that cases involving customers who have paid 100 per cent of the purchase price have already been settled. The government has approved the transfer of ownership to the owners of 1,502 lots. Of them, 1,098 are in the first phase of ownership transfer.
Land management minister Say Sam Al recently emphasised that in order to create a dispute-free environment in Cambodia, the ministry must complete the land registration process and resolve all existing disputes.
He noted that unresolved borey disputes have led to significant job losses. The ministry’s working group has worked day and night, successfully resolving about 100 projects so far, he added.
According to the Real Estate Business and Pawnshop Regulator, thousands of families have been affected by the development projects of Morn Dany Real Estate Co., Ltd. This includes both landowners who sold land to the company and customers who either paid in full or paid instalments.
Morn Dany, the owner of the company, was arrested last January in connection with issuing bad cheques. The Kampong Speu Provincial Court has ordered the forced sale of 79 of her properties.
