About the article "Shady records in Nam Thanh (Yen Thanh): "Turning" public land into private land"

(Baonghean) - On October 4, 2012, Nghe An Newspaper published an article: "Shady matters in the forest records in Nam Thanh (Yen Thanh): "Turning" public land into private land".

After the newspaper was published, Mr. Hoang Van Tao, a citizen of Son Thanh hamlet, Nam Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, filed a complaint to Nghe An Newspaper, claiming that the article distorted the truth. "... The author raised the issue and then accused my forest register issued by the People's Committee of Yen Thanh district in 1995 of having problems in converting public land into private land. In short, the newspaper is siding with Nam Thanh Company Limited to defame my honor through Decision No. 20/QD-UBND.TN dated January 5, 2011 of the Provincial People's Committee granting Nam Thanh Company Limited the right to mine stone on the area granted to me in 1995."

According to Mr. Tao, the nature of the matter is as follows: On February 20, 1992, implementing the policy of land and forest allocation for individual economic sectors and private enterprises in agriculture, forestry and fishery in the spirit of Decrees 170 and 171 of the Council of Ministers, I submitted a petition to the Chairman of the People's Committee of Yen Thanh district requesting forest land in Hop Thanh hamlet (Nam Thanh). The total area requested for grant is 90.1 hectares. Of which, natural forest on limestone mountain (Len Voi) is 20.35 hectares, vacant land for forest planting is 53.8 hectares, garden land is 5.8 hectares, residential land (sedentary farming, settlement is 1 hectare). My petition was signed and sealed by the Chairman of Nam Thanh Agricultural Cooperative at that time, Mr. Phan The Trung. The Chairman of the Commune People's Committee at that time, Mr. Nguyen Duy Hoa, approved it, signed and sealed it and sent it to the District People's Committee.

Nearly 3 years later, on December 20, 1995, the People's Committee of Yen Thanh district issued Decision 01 on allocating land for forestry production and business to my family for at least 50 years. The forest land area was granted as in my request (90.1 ha). The decision was signed by Vice Chairman of the District People's Committee Truong Cong Khanh... However, in the forest land area granted to me, there were 2 households, Mr. Nguyen Duy Thai and Nguyen Cong Duc. I do not know the area of ​​these 2 households, but they have been zoned for production and business, and there has been no dispute since the past. I also consider it their land. The remaining 75 households with forest land and 43 households with residential land as reported in the newspaper are not included in my forest land.

The forest land was granted to me 27 years ago, but I don't understand why the Nam Thanh Commune People's Committee ignored administrative procedures, disregarded citizens' rights, and then asked all levels and sectors to give wrong advice to the Provincial People's Committee, leading to the Provincial People's Committee issuing a decision allowing Nam Thanh Company Limited to exploit Len Voi stone quarry on my land. I have complained to all levels of government about this issue. Assuming that the Provincial People's Committee's decision is correct, why, after receiving the decision, Nam Thanh Company Limited and the Nam Thanh Commune People's Committee did not proceed with compensation and site clearance procedures but arbitrarily cut down trees in my forest land...

The article asserts how I “turned” public land into private land, whether the People’s Committee of Yen Thanh district intentionally granted the wrong land or whether I forged the forest register. I request clarification, and if there is no evidence of irregularities, I will sue the author in civil court.

Nghe An Newspaper responded to the content he mentioned as follows:

The above article originated from a petition by Mr. Dinh Van Lien (Hop Thanh hamlet, Nam Thanh commune) stating: "Mr. Hoang Van Tao, former Chairman of Nam Thanh Cooperative, during his term in office, took advantage of his position and power to appropriate the cooperative's forestry land for his own use."

Reporters from Nghe An Newspaper went directly to Hop Thanh hamlet, Nam Thanh commune to find out the reality. Through meeting with the people and the People's Committee of Nam Thanh commune, reviewing the archives of the above incident, we have collected relevant documents and authentic evidence...

Firstly, the irregularities in Mr. Hoang Van Tao's forest register are shown on the following grounds: his forest register overlaps residential land and forest land of other households (according to the archives at the People's Committee of Nam Thanh commune); Mr. Hoang Van Tao has 2 forest registers with number 01, established on the same day (December 20, 1995) and both signed by the Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Yen Thanh district at that time, Mr. Nguyen Cong Khanh, but they are different in diagrams, handwriting, presentation (photocopy of Mr. Hoang Van Tao's forest register) and in reality, the forest land area in Nam Thanh commune is less than 90.1 hectares.

Second, the reason for saying "converting public land into private land" is based on the following evidence: all minutes, documents, and records kept at the Nam Thanh Commune People's Committee during the settlement of disputes and complaints about forestry land in the Voi Reef area all confirm that "it is the land of the Nam Thanh Agricultural and Forestry Cooperative, not of Mr. Tao personally". Specifically, in the minutes of the case settlement from the petition of 2 citizens Nguyen Duy Thai and Nguyen Cong Duc, the People's Committee of Nam Thanh commune, the Yen Thanh Forest Protection Department and related parties clearly stated: "Based on the document signed with the Cooperative on April 1, 1992, the area of ​​the 2 project owners is 12/27ha, the boundary from the end of Voi hill to the beginning of Thi hill, and from the beginning of Thi hill outwards bordering the land of other members belongs to the collective" (meaning the forest register in the name of Mr. Hoang Van Tao with an area of ​​90.1ha in the archived minutes is "land of the Nam Thanh Agricultural and Forestry Cooperative collective); Feedback from 43 households in Tan Hop hamlet, Nam Thanh commune, Yen Thanh (October 14, 2012); Opinion of Mr. Phan The Trung, Chairman of the People's Committee of Nam Thanh commune, Yen Thanh: "In reality, the land area of ​​Voi hill is only about a few dozen hectares. But before, in order for the commune to benefit from the 4304 forest planting project, they falsely declared in the records that it was over 90.1 hectares, which caused an overlap with residential land and forestry land of other members. As for the fact that the forest land of Nam Thanh Agricultural and Forestry Cooperative suddenly became the personal property of Mr. Hoang Van Tao, we were not aware of it. At that time (in 1993), Mr. Hoang Van Tao, as the Chairman of Nam Thanh Agricultural and Forestry Cooperative, stood up to make a land title for the collective. But unexpectedly, he turned the cooperative's land into his personal property. In Mr. Tao's forest register, the year of issue was 1995, the area granted was 90.1 hectares, but we still thought it belonged to the collective and had never seen that forest register. It was only when the dispute between Nam Thanh Company Limited and Mr. Tao occurred that Mr. Tao presented the forest register and said that it was his personal land.

Third, in the article, we present evidence, proof, raise questions, analyze shortcomings, and point out irregularities in the forest register. How did he turn public land into private land? Did he falsify the forest register or did the Yen Thanh District People's Committee issue the wrong land? This issue will be investigated by the Yen Thanh District authorities and the Yen Thanh District People's Committee.

Nghe An Newspaper