The common ditch has been identified, when will it be returned?

An old ditch was filled in and encroached upon by the adjacent landowner. The people complained and the government intervened to resolve the issue, but to date, the illegally encroached land has not been restored to its original state.

The current status of the land that households in Khanh Hoi A hamlet are complaining about was previously a public water ditch.

Ms. Nguyen Thi My Nhung, along with a number of households in Khanh Hoi A hamlet, Dong Thanh commune, all said that before 1990, about 7 households shared a 5m wide, 50m long ditch that drained into Nha Tho canal. The ditch was located next to plot 31 in Khanh Hoi A hamlet, owned by Mr. Phan Ngoc Hai. For a long time, the above households had been using this ditch stably.

In 2018, Mr. Hai transferred the above land plot to Mr. Huynh Van Ly. Immediately after receiving the transfer, Mr. Ly carried out land change procedures, including adding a drainage ditch and being granted a land use rights certificate. According to people's feedback, since the end of 2018, Mr. Ly's family has filled in the drainage ditch, which has blocked the flow, causing the wastewater of the households inside to stagnate and give off a foul smell.

“I grew up in the area since I was a child, so I know the roads and ditches here very well. In the past, the ditch was about 5m wide leading from Nha Tho canal, so you could row a boat into it. However, since Mr. Ly came to buy Mr. Hai’s land, he filled it up, so now this ditch has no way out, causing flooding and pollution,” said Ms. Nguyen Thi My Nhung.

Ms. Nguyen Kim Lan, a resident who was also affected, said: “In the land use right certificates of the households, it is shown that there is a water ditch running through. Here, people are very conscious, when building gates or fence posts, they proactively place drainage pipes along the ditch. However, Mr. Ly filled the drainage ditch with soil. We went to Mr. Ly's house many times to ask for the water flow to be cleared, but he did not agree.”

Angry at Mr. Ly's actions, households in the affected area asked the authorities to intervene. Specifically, in September 2021, the Chau Thanh District People's Court brought the dispute to trial and accepted the plaintiffs' lawsuit. Accordingly, the decision was made to cancel the adjustment of land use rights changes for the actual area of 191 square meters (the common water ditch as reported by households, located on Mr. Ly's land use rights certificate).

At the same time, this land was assigned to the Chau Thanh District People's Committee for management and handling according to its authority. However, the case was later tried by the Provincial People's Court on appeal, annulling the first instance judgment, because according to legal regulations, the above dispute is under the jurisdiction of the District People's Committee.

After being accepted and resolved by the District People's Committee according to procedures, up to March 28, 2023, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment issued a decision to cancel the land use right certificate with an area of 1,088.6 square meters of Mr. Huynh Van Ly, which was granted overlapping for the ditch identified as the land managed by the state.

However, according to the residents, although the authorities have determined that this is a public ditch, and the actual situation has been filled and fenced by Mr. Ly, up to now, Mr. Ly has not yet handed over the land to the State as prescribed. Therefore, the surrounding residents are very upset.

“Mr. Ly claimed that the red book had a ditch, so he filled it up. We complained and the authorities clarified that the land was previously a public ditch managed by the State. Therefore, the authorities canceled the certificate that was incorrectly issued to Mr. Ly. Yet, up to now, Mr. Ly has not returned the original status to us,” Ms. Nguyen Kim Lan said indignantly.

Discussing the people's concerns, Mr. Vo Quoc Su, Chairman of Chau Thanh District People's Committee, said that after the locality determined the actual situation and deployed boundary marking; at the same time, working with Mr. Huynh Van Ly, he agreed with Dong Thanh Commune People's Committee that by the end of June 2024, he would voluntarily dismantle the encroaching fence on the canal. If by that time, Mr. Ly does not fulfill his commitment, the district will request Dong Thanh Commune People's Committee to take the next steps in accordance with the law.

Article and photos: BB

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