On 24 May 2012, outside the Municipal Court of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, unidentified men in plain clothes, manhandled and forced Venerable Loun Sovath into a white Land Cruiser with the assistance of Cambodian police, and drove away. The event was caught on camera. The video clearly shows Venerable Loun Sovath resisting the grip of his 5?strong abductors pushing him into the vehicle, whilst men from inside the vehicle were pulling him in. The struggle lasted a couple of minutes. Venerable Loun Sovath, who became renowned for blessing communities involved in land disputes, has been a source of constant support for dispossessed communities in Cambodia. He has continued undeterred despite pressure from the country's Buddhist hierarchy to stop his advocacy activities, violence against his relatives, as well as being banned in 2011 from entering and/ or living in all Siem Reap and Phnom Penh pagodas. He fled Phnom Penh in 2011 for fear that his activism would get him arrested. Upon his return in May 2012, he was threatened with arrest, which forced him to flee the scene of a rally in Prey Lang. On 24 May 2012, Venerable Loun Sovath had joined a gathering in front of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court calling for the release of 13 female community activists from Phnom Penh's Boeung Kak lake area. Boeung Kak lake has been the site of an enormous land grab and forced eviction of over 3000 families. The dispute over land rights in the area has been raging for several years. The women were being questioned inside the court after having been arrest two days earlier during a peaceful protest on the site of some of their community members' now demolished homes. Residents of the area gathered on 22 May 2012 in support of 18 families trying to mark the boundaries of their homes in accordance with a government decree issued in August 2011 granting remaining residents 12.44 hectares of land in the area. The community has been calling for a full demarcation of those 12.44 hectares since the decree was issued. Their requests have gone unanswered. During the protest on 24 May, Venerable Loun Sovath was taking photos of people who had gathered outside the courthouse before he was forced into a car around 10am. He was taken away and held incommunicado at Botum Pagoda in Phnom Penh. He was released around 8pm and immediately informed the public/ media that he had not been defrocked. He soon revealed, however, that he had been shown documents by senior members of the monastic leadership showing that he has been criminally charged by the government. He was also told to endorse a document promising to stop his advocacy activities. Venerable Loun Sovath has since stated that the document he allegedly agreed to, saying that he must not associate with any more protests, was thumb?printed under duress. While being held in Wat Botum, he had been told if he refused to endorse the document, he would be defrocked on the spot. Venerable Loun Sovath also disclosed more details about the criminal charges against him. The documents he was shown at Wat Botum reveal that in February 2012 Judge Duch Kinsan had ordered an investigation into Venerable Loun Sovath's 2011 activities. Venerable Loun Sovath was accused of incitement to commit a felony. These charges were notified, and as of 29 May 2012, approved by the Ministry of Justice: Venerable Loun Sovath is now charged with incitement to felony under Article 495 of the Penal Code of Cambodia. The crime carries a potential sentence of up to two years in prison. According to Buddhist Committee rules, the Committee may only "advise" its disciples of "misconduct"; it is the decision of the supreme patriarch, in this case Venerable Nun Nget, to decide to defrock the disciple. Police or court officials proceed with an arrest once the defrocking order has been given.