Away from Angkor temples, historical sites in Cambodia are being neglected in its ‘scramble for development’, with tourism potentially a loser
- Despite government assurances, ancient sites across Cambodia are under threat from developers, just as the country is restarting its important tourism sector
- At Srok Chek near Phnom Penh, pottery and other items were found dating back to around 100BC, but the area is now disappearing under a housing project
When archaeologists arrived in the village of Srok Chek – within sight of the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh – more than 20 years ago, they sought help to excavate parts of the strange circular area that encased the community’s dry-season rice fields.
Ek Dara (not his real name) was eager to assist; not only did he want to learn more about something that had long confused him and fellow villagers, but the small income would supplement his subsistence existence as a fisherman and farmer.
“We found old pots, pottery and other items that [the archaeologists] took with them to the National Museum [in Phnom Penh],” says Ek Dara, who fears his comments would have negative consequences for his family if he were to use his real name.
Radiocarbon analysis of the items dated the site to around 100BC, yet it appears to have been neglected until the 1990s.
Now, however, the whole area is disappearing under a housing project. The farmland is buried under metres of river sand, the first step in the preparation of land for construction in Cambodia. Half of what remained of the circular village is already a building site, rows of identical detached houses now occupying what was the main source of sustenance and income for the villagers.
