Kratié Province

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Kratié
ក្រចេះ
Statistics
Country:  Cambodia
Division: Province
Area: 11,094 km²
Inhabitants: 318,523[1] (2008)
Pop. density: 28.7 inh./km²
ISO 3166-2: KH-10
Map
Map of Cambodia highlighting Kratié Province

Kratié or Kracheh (Khmer: ក្រចេះ} is a province in northeastern Cambodia. It borders Stung Treng Province to the north, Mondulkiri Province to the east, Kampong Cham Province and Vietnam to the south, and Kampong Thom Province to the west. The capital is Kratié town.

Contents

[edit] History

The area near Kratié along the Mekong River was one of the most densely populated regions of pre-Angkorian Cambodia.[2]

Lon Nol was the province's governor in 1945.[3]

During foreign incursions into Cambodia and the civil wars, Kratié saw especially heavy fighting.[4] During Operation Menu, Kratié was heavily bombed by the United States.[4][5] Recovering unexploded ordnance and de-mining has been a major recent initiative.[4]

On December 30, 1978, Vietnamese forces captured Kratié.[6] Civil war continued in Kratie after the defeat of Pol Pot.[5]

[edit] Geography

Sunset in Kratié Province

The Mekong River flows from the north to the south of the province; approximately 140 km of the river is located in Kratié.[7] The river is home to Irrawaddy dolphins, fishes, and birds.[7] The flow of the Mekong River at Kratié town varies greatly.[8][9] There are hundreds of seasonally flooded islands in the river.[7][10] As of 2007, the Cambodian government planned to build a dam on the Mekong River near Kratié town.[11] The province also contains many forests, the Phnom Pram Poan mountain range, Phnom Prech, and rubber plantations.[7] Eastern Kratié is an important bird area.[12]

The province is mostly covered in dense forest.[13] Craters from Operation Menu bombings during the Vietnam War, some of which are filled with water, are still visible in the countryside.[13] Some land in Kratié is used for agriculture, though a smaller percentage than elsewhere in Cambodia.[13]

The province has a monsoonal climate, with a cool season from November to March, a hot season from March to May, and a rainy season from May to October.[14] Flooding is frequent in Kratié; the Mekong may overflow by as much as 4 m during the rainy season.[15]

Kratié is known for its attractive riverside scenery and its green villages and paddies.[16]

Kratié's fisheries are part of the Upper Mekong River Zone, which is important support for migratory species and subsistence fishing but does not play a major role in commercial fishing.[17]

Forests in Kratié tend to be open and less dense than elsewhere in Cambodia; they are generally made up of deciduous trees that lose their leaves during the dry season.[17]

[edit] Government

Kham Phoeun is the governor of Kratié Province.[18] Venn Sokhoy is the deputy governor.[10] In the 2007 commune council elections, the vast majority of seats went to members of the Cambodian People's Party.[19] Women make up 17.4% of commune council members.[20] In 2005, Kratié received 1.69 billion riel from the commune/sangkat fund, of which development funds were 1.20 billion riel and funds for administration were 0.49 billion riel.[21]

[edit] Economy and transportation

Rice cropping plays an important role in the provincial economy

Most Kratié residents are subsistence farmers or fishers.[22] 78% of residents are employed in agriculture.[23] Thirty percent of Kratié households live on less than US$1 per day; the province's poverty rate of 32% is somewhat lower than the national average of 39%.[24][22] Some gold mining occurs in Kratié.[25][26] Most soil in Kratié is poor; the province primarily grows perennial industrial crops like rubber.[27] Illegal logging supervised by provincial officials is a problem.[28] Kratié has the potential to be an ecotourism destination.[29] Kratié's road system is poorly developed.[22] As of 1998, the average household possessed 0.48 hectares of agricultural land, and 37% were landless.[23]

[edit] Social issues

Land concessions often cover land customarily owned or used by people in Kratié Province.[30][31] In 2004, community land organizers were threatened by the military after they confiscated chainsaws used for illegal logging.[32] An indigenous people's organization is active in Kratié Province.[33]

[edit] Health, education, and development

Schistosomiasis is a problem in Kratié province.[34] The incidence of malaria and dengue fever rose sharply in the mid-2000s; this increase has been attributed to changes in climate.[35]

Malaria is hyperendemic in Kratié's forests.[22] The provincial infant mortality rate of 97/1,000 and child mortality rate of 80/1,000 are significantly higher than the national average (68/1,000 and 53/1,000, respectively).[22]

[edit] Demography

There is a substantial Vietnamese minority in Kratié Province.[36] Kratié is home to seven indigenous groups: Phnorng, Kouy, Mil, Khonh, Kraol, Steang, and Thamoun.[7][37] Approximately 70% of the province's residents live along the Mekong River;[7] the area beyond the river is sparsely populated.[38] Approximately 8% of Kratié's population is indigenous; it is one of four provinces with a substantial indigenous population.[37] 70% of the population is rural.[23]

[edit] Districts

It is subdivided into 5 districts.

ISO Code District Romanization
1001 ស្រុកឆ្លូង Chhloung
1002 ស្រុកក្រចេះ Kracheh
1003 ស្រុកព្រែកប្រសព្វ Preaek Prasab
1004 ស្រុកសំបូរ Sambour
1005 ស្រុកស្នួល Snuol

[edit] References

  1. ^ General Population Census of Cambodia 2008 - Provisional population totals, National Institute of Statistics, Ministry of Planning, released 3rd September, 2008
  2. ^ Chandler, David. A History of Cambodia. Westview Press (2007), p. 33. ISBN 0813343631.
  3. ^ Jessup, John E. An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Conflict and Conflict Resolution, 1945-1996. Greenwood Publishing Group (1998), p. 434. ISBN 0313281122.
  4. ^ a b c "Kampi Village Project". MiVAC Trust. Accessed June 30, 2008.
  5. ^ a b Cam Region Prelim Edit
  6. ^ Brune, Lester H. & Richard Dean Burns. Chronological History of U.S. Foreign Relations. Routledge (2002), p. 867. ISBN 041593916X.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Geography". Government of Kratie Province. Accessed June 18, 2008.
  8. ^ Murdiyarso, D. "Water resources management policy responses to land cover change in South East Asian river basins". Forests, Water and People in the Humid Tropics: Past, Present and Future (M. Bonell & L.A. Bruijnzeel, editors). Cambridge University Press (2005), p. 124. ISBN 0521829534.
  9. ^ Dudgeon, David. Tropical Asian Streams: Zoobenthos, Ecology and Conservation. Hong Kong University Press (1999), p. 26. ISBN 9622094694.
  10. ^ a b "Report on World Wetlands Day" (PDF). Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (February 6, 2007). Accessed June 30, 2008.
  11. ^ http://www.terraper.org/articles/Sambor-TERRA%20Sept07.pdf
  12. ^ Mondulkiri / Kratie Lowlands (Important Birds Areas of Cambodia)
  13. ^ a b c "Geography". Tourism of Cambodia (2007). Accessed June 18, 2008.
  14. ^ "Climate". Tourism of Cambodia (2007). Accessed June 18, 2008.
  15. ^ SEA-USER News
  16. ^ "Kratie Province". Travelfish. Accessed June 18, 2008.
  17. ^ a b http://www.cdri.org.kh/webdata/download/wp/wp23e.pdf
  18. ^ http://www.pep-net.org/NEW-PEP/Group/CBMS/Other%20meets/newsletter/CBMS%20Updates%20Issues/Sept_07.pdf
  19. ^ "Official Results of the 2007 Commune Councils Election" (PDF). Cambodia National Election Committee (April 24, 2007). Accessed 2008-05-04.
  20. ^ "Number of Women elected as Communes Councils’ Members for the 2007 Commune Council elections Nationwide" (PDF). Cambodia National Election Committee (May 4, 2007). Accessed 2008-05-04.
  21. ^ http://www.cdri.org.kh/webdata/flashrep/2006/Feb06.pdf
  22. ^ a b c d e PFD Kratie Spien Sokhapheap baseline survey final report
  23. ^ a b c http://www.cdri.org.kh/webdata/download/wp/wp21e.pdf
  24. ^ UPDATE - December 2007: MekongTourism.org
  25. ^ The Mineral Industries of Cambodia and Laos in 2000
  26. ^ http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/country/1997/9307097.pdf
  27. ^ Introduction
  28. ^ Laundering of illegal timber undermines forestry reform in Cambodia - media library - global witness
  29. ^ http://www.cdri.org.kh/webdata/download/caer/caer01e.pdf p70
  30. ^ Stidsen, Stille (editor). The Indigenous World 2007. International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (2007), p. 347. ISBN 8791563232.
  31. ^ Stidsen, The Indigenous World 2007, p. 349.
  32. ^ Human Rights Watch World Report 2005. Human Rights Watch (2005), p. 259. ISBN 1564323315.
  33. ^ Stidsen, The Indigenous World 2007, p. 353.
  34. ^ welcome CNM
  35. ^ Oxfam America: Cambodia: Changing Climate Leads to Increase in Malaria and Other Diseases
  36. ^ Jordens, Jay. "Persecution of Cambodia's ethnic Vietnamese communities during and since the UNTAC period". Propaganda, Politics, and Violence in Cambodia (Steve Heder & Judy Ledgerwood, editors). M.E. Sharpe (1995), p. 136. ISBN 1563246651.
  37. ^ a b http://www.adb.org/Documents/Reports/Indigenous_Peoples/CAM/chapter_2.pdf
  38. ^ "Welcome to Kratie, Cambodia". Tourism of Cambodia (2007). Accessed June 18, 2008.

[edit] External links

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v • d • e
Flag of Cambodia.svg Kratié Province
Capital city: Kratié
Chhloung • Kracheh  • Preaek Prasab  • Sambour  • Snuol
 Cambodia-Kratie.png

Coordinates: 12°29′N 106°1′E / 12.483°N 106.017°E / 12.483; 106.017

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