Tonnes of Illegal Yellow Vine Found in National Park
Four tonnes of illegal yellow vine have been found at Veun Sai-Siem Pang National Park. Photo: Ministry of Environment
- By Lay Sopheavotey
- February 28, 2024 4:00 PM
PHNOM PENH — Four tonnes of illegal yellow vine have been found at Veun Sai-Siem Pang National Park.
The plant can be processed into drugs, especially ecstasy or MDMA, as well as cosmetics, dyes and medicines.
Acid released from the waste damages the environment and the lives of the people living around it.
“Four tones of yellow vine were found in Samor village, Sekong commune, Siem Pang district on Feb. 21,” the Environment Ministry said.
Law enforcement officers collected 65 bags, equivalent to 4,000 kilograms, on Feb. 22.
“This yellow vine was anonymously hidden in the forest for sale to Laos,” the ministry said.
“The yellow vine collected by the authoritie, and kept at the office of Virachey National Park.
“The Ministry of the Environment, working with the relevant authorities, will take strict measures to search for the suspects and send them to court.”.
Yellow vines are generally grown in mountainous areas with cooler climates. Yellow-vine-rich provinces include Koh Kong, Kampot, Kampong Speu, and Pursat. The yellow vine smells bad and has a sweet and sour taste, like sulfur mixed with palm sugar.
According to Cambodia's Forest Law, which went into effect in 2002, those convicted of processing yellow vine can be jailed for up to 10 years.
Originally written in Khmer for ThmeyThmey, this article was translated by Nhor Sokhoeurn for Cambodianess.
