Aljazeera - PLUNDERING CAMBODIA'S FORESTS

Meet the man on a mission to take down Cambodia's timber tycoons and expose a rampant illegal cross-border trade. 

How anyone would want to destroy a rainforest for money is beyond me? How do these people get away with it, and why is the world the way it is, where money trumps all other values? You would think that there would be lots of powerful people who would try to put a stop to it, but, sadly, the world doesn't seem to work like that.

Liberals tend to have a lot of empathy, and not only care about poor people, but also about the wildlife, and even the plants.

My hope is that MMT can help all countries in the world to become richer,  which will be good for the environment too. 

The timber feeds an insatiable demand for rare wood in China, where prices for luxury timber furniture have soared. One bed made from Siamese Rosewood - which has been almost eradicated in Cambodia - reportedly was on sale for $1 million.

"Sometimes I cry. I feel disappointed because I'm not able to protect the forest," says Leng. "I see that the destruction is so big, but no one helps to protect it.

With huge profits to be made, Leng's investigations are undertaken at great risk.

Another Cambodian forest activist, Chut Wutty, was murdered in 2012 while investigating a logging company. Several more forest patrollers have been killed since, including three who were shot at the Vietnamese border last year.

Leng himself has received numerous death threats and had his equipment smashed.

"I know that this is dangerous work… No one dares to challenge the companies," says Leng. "Why do I challenge [them]? Because the companies have caused mass destruction to the forest."

In some cases, protected areas have been completely destroyed - such as Snuol Wildlife Sanctuary in eastern Cambodia.

Aljazeera - PLUNDERING CAMBODIA'S FORESTS