Forest activist and member of the Tampuan indigenous group Chhorn Phalla denounced he had been beaten by a large group of people at a public forum in Ratanakiri province, Cambodia, on July 8, 2020. The beating reportedly occurred after he filed a complaint against some citizens and officials for allowing land-grabbing, illegal logging and deforestation at the Lumphat Wildlife Sanctuary and the Tampuans’ designated land.

In 2019, Phalla was summoned after denouncing forest crimes.