Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Land for sale: Even Bangladesh wants its share of Cambodia and Cambodians, you may be out of your land soon

Bangladesh foreign minister Dipu Moni shakes hands with Cambodia's foreign minister Hor Namhong in Phnom Penh on Monday. (Photo by: Pha Lina)
Bangladesh wants rice and land concessions

Monday, 27 December 2010
Cheang Sokha
The Phnom Penh Post

Bangladesh is seeking to purchase 200,000 tonnes of Cambodia’s rice and has requested economic land concessions, according to Foreign Minister Hor Namhong.

After the meeting with his Bangladesh counterpart Dipu Moni on Monday, Hor Namhong told reporters the government of Bangladesh saw its food shortage problem as a first priority. Consequently, it has asked to purchase roughly 200,000 tonnes of rice as soon as possible.

In turn, Cambodia requested more investment from Bangladesh to process rice domestically.

“We have a rice surplus although Cambodia does not have the rice mills [to process it] so we want Bangladesh to invest in rice mills. Because we do not have the rice mills our farmers sell their rice to Vietnam and Thailand,” he said.


Thailand and Vietnam are the world’s two largest rice exporters.

Last week the Bangladesh Directorate General of Food released a tender on its website seeking to import 50,000 tonnes of white rice to help its domestic shortage. It gave bidders until January 3 to submit offers.

Hor Namhong said Bangladesh wanted to invest in growing rice in Cambodia for future exports back to Bangladesh, requested long-term land leases for up to 99 years, such as Cambodia had already granted to other countries.

The two countries would work towards an agreement to improve the bilateral trade and investment relationship which was now quite small, he said.

Dipu Moni’s two-day visit, which ends Tuesday, is the first state visit from Bangladesh since 2001.

She has also met Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Minister of Agriculture, Chan Sarun, for further discussions about agricultural projects.

Cambodia’s national rice policy includes an aim to reach 1 million tonnes of milled rice exports by 2015.

Hun Sen said recently that Cambodia’s rice yield this year would be the biggest since the Khmer Rouge regime, with farmers harvesting up to eight million tonnes of rice, of which 3.7 million tonnes has been earmarked as surplus for export.

Countries from the Gulf States such as Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have made similar requests to purchase farmland to grow food for sale in their domestic markets.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

bangladesh must be crazy to demand land concession from cambodia! the last i read bangladesh is so poor and overpopulated already! give me a break, bangladesh! all of bangladesh is a huge delta that flooded every year with thousands of people died for disease and malnutritiion, etc... what can bangladesh do for cambodia? probably nothing, i believe. prove me wrong, though! god bless cambodia.

Anonymous said...

យើងត្រូវតែនាំគ្នានិយាយពីអំពើក្បត់ជាតិនឹងអំពើអាក្រក់
របស់មេដឹកនាំកម្ពុជា ទាំងយប់ ទាំងថ្ងៃ មានដូចជា ៖
ពួកអាឆ្កែកញ្ជះយួន ហ៊ុន សែន, ហេងសំ រិន, ជាស៊ីម,
សុខ អាន, ហោ ណាំហុង, ឱម យិនទៀង, ចៀម យីប,
វ៉ា គិម ហុង, ស ខេង, ងួន ញ៉ឹល ។ល។ និង ។ល។
និយាយហើយនិយាយទៀតដើម្បីអោយជាតិ និងអន្តរជាតិ
ដឹងឮ ទូទាំងពិភពលោក។
អោយពួកវាស្អុយឈ្មោះ ស្អុយត្រកូលរាប់ម៉ឺនសែន ឆ្នាំ...!

Anonymous said...

វាខួចអាពួកប្រឆាំងវិញទេដែលចេះតែនិយាយហើយ
គ្មានធ្វើទាល់តែសោះនោះ។

Anonymous said...

ក្រោកឡើងខ្មែរគ្រប់គ្នាដល់ពេលវេលាហើយត្រូវប្រើកាំបិត, ពូថៅ, ដាវ , ខ្វែវ, ផ្គាក់, ព្រួញ, សរ, ច្បូក, លំពែង, ធ្នូ, ដំបង, ព្រនង់, កាំភ្លើង, គ្រាប់បែក, បេសែសិប, បេសែមួយ, មីន, មីនកន្ត្រាក់, មីនបង្កប់, មីនក្លេម័រ, មីនតោន, កាំភ្លើងធំ, កាំភ្លើងត្បាល់, ក្រោកឡើងជាមួយយុទ្ធភ័ណទាំងអស់នេះ បាញ់និងកាប់ក្បាលអាឆ្កែកញ្ជះយួនសងសិក
អោយខ្មែរស្នេហាជាតិនិងដើម្បីការពារមរតកជាតិ
របស់យើង។

Anonymous said...

Is always the same face in the government!!
Ah Hor 5 Hong is the youn criminal in Cambodia and he works with every regime since 1960 until now!!!!
This dog is the Khmer Rouge prison chief in Bang Trobek!!
He is the murder.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Hor Nam Hong,

If you and your colleagues in the government slows down just a little bit with your corruption and continuous draining of state money for your own self gratification and pleasures, then Cambodia can start at least to build a few rice mills to process Her own rice.

Why don't you all work for a few year without sucking on public money through corruption in order to help the country and the people you claim to love and defend?

All my life as a Cambodian, I only hear about poverty in Cambodia and richness among the elites through corruption.

The KR government is very bad, but there is one thing good about that government. Their leaders didn't store money for themselves so there is one thing you can imitate the KR, which is working for your country without storing wealth for yourself and your relatives.

The legacy of the KR is obviously bad except that fact I mentioned above.

So I challenge you to stop your corruption and not to spend the state money lavishly.

Anet Khmer

ជនពាល said...

តើគោលនយោបាយរបស់រដ្ឋាភិបាលកម្ពុជាយើង ដែលតែងតែ ផ្ដល់ដីធ្លី
ឬ ផ្ដល់ច្បាប់អនុញ្ញាត អោយទៅក្រុមហ៊ុនបរទេស ដើម្បីធ្វើការអភិវឌ្ឍន៍ និង ជីករករ៉ែធម្មជាតិជាដើម តើគម្រោងការណ៍
ទាំងនេះ នឹងអាចកាត់បន្ថយ ភាពក្រីក្រនៅកម្ពុជាយើងបានដែរឬទេ ?
ខ្ញុំយល់ថា ស្ថានភាណប្រទេសកម្ពុជាយើងសព្វថ្ងៃ គឺមិនខុសអ្នកដែលប្រកបរបររកស៊ីអត់ដើមឡើយ ។ព្រោះថា មុខរបររកស៊ីអត់ដើមនេះ គឺ គេមិនចាំបាច់ធ្វើអ្វីទាំងអស់​ក្រៅតែពីអង្គុយរងចាំតែអតិថិជនតែប៉ុណ្ណោះ ៕

Khmer Circle said...

I'm not surprised by Bangladesh's request for land concessions. It's in Bangladesh's interest to find arable land needed to grow food to support or feed its huge growing and hungry population.

It is perfectly logical and not at all crazy, just as Vietnam has been regaining a foothold inside Cambodia's economy and geography by demanding and getting land concessions.

In the longer run neither Bangladesh nor Vietnam (the latter, no stranger to usurping Khmer lands through similar schemes in history) will be there for the good of the Khmer people. There is a strong possibility of a violent revolution in the foreseeable future as more and more lands have been sold to foreign and domestic interests without due or fair compensation for the indigenous inhabitants. The elite and the middlemen pocket the revenues from land sales and concessions, and even if they didn't, I doubt it if people in Kompong Thom, Mondulkiri and elsewhere are happy to swap their forests and farm lands for the life of waged labourers. It is not the kind of existence they are accustomed to.

I have yet to be convinced that such foreign investments in a country that still retains a huge rural population are conducive to the needs of the people or the national economy. Throughout history, the Khmer people had always been well fed; the average Khmer farmer working more or less alone in the paddy field had been able to support a large nuclear family of up to a dozen members, more often than not with some surplus of rice left for bartering.

The only times of food scarcity had normally been associated with man-made conflicts or unfavourable climate change.

I think it is preferable for the sake of the country's long term stability and security to strike a balance between pursuing private commercial investment and maintaining a sound agrarian sector. At the very least, no one should be made landless or be evicted from their farms or plots without their consent or fair recompense for the inconvenience.

Land is still the basis of most Khmer people's economic independence and freedom, and also the most important foundation of Cambodia's sovereignty and independence from corporate and foreign enslavement.

We have seen how the nation had been plunged into the dark age under Pol Pot, and, presently, we are seeing it being pushed in the same direction. The common denominator between these two regimes is that Pol Pot was on an extreme 'radical' agrarian path, and the current regime is on another extreme radical path, albeit in reverse direction: extreme Marxism and extreme capitalism respectively.

The difference between them being that of ideology and greed.


Happy New Year!

Anonymous said...

":bangladesh must be crazy to demand land concession from cambodia! the last i read bangladesh is so poor and overpopulated already! give me a break, bangladesh! all of bangladesh is a huge delta that flooded every year with thousands of people died for disease and malnutritiion, etc... what can bangladesh do for cambodia? probably nothing, i believe. prove me wrong, though! god bless cambodia.

1:24 AM"(SIC!)
___________________________________


1:24AM!!!! Banglades is NOT crazy! You are stupid!!!

they have poor land that why they need a good land of Cambodia that a Youn Vietnamese matherfucker wante it for 100's of years!

Are you poor or stupid not to crab the cheap easy money that a sure win???

Ah hor Nam Hon Youn Vietnamese mother fucker try to confuse Cambodian of leasins land to everybody so the MOTHERFUCKER VIETNAMESE SON OF AH HO CHIMINH EVIL can steal our land!!!

May ligtning strike ah Youn Vietnamese Choymaray and ah traitor son of a mokey ah Hun Xen!!!

Anonymous said...

here is Sam rainsy,He is agay weakness, He don't have burning desire to victory, he do not have passion, he do not have mentor, he not work well with other, his team works are very very, weak, now, we clearly see sam rainsy, are geting deeper, deeper, and deeper to nothings, He surounding himself with bizare, wierds and low,lowe, and low attitud peoples, how he claim himself a leader?. Rainsy show up some disciplinary, mental toughness and organize as vissonary to your supporter. You may too weak to lift people up or to rise to the top maximum perfoment for success. Son chay are better, better and better than Rainsy let Son chay lead the RSP he much better with people skile than you.

Anonymous said...

11:35am! you stupid toad! why you make your mother shame like that!
People born with the same thing you jughead! no body low than you stupid shithead!

Rainsy has no burning desire to be avictory like you fools! Rainsy have desire to help all Cambodian to live in freedom, peacefull, democratic society!

As and adult why you stupid head need mentor! Becuse yourfukinghead have PhD with no education that why you need ah Youn Kantop Vietnamese motherfucker to mentoring youu all the time!

Rainsy can not work with you evil corruptors but Rainsy party make you so fucking worry and lost sleep!

Do not try to use cheap trick to break up Rainsy party! your style is too shalow and stupid! GO back to real school you Hanoi's monky!

land for sale said...

My friend want to invest a land in your place. Hope the price is negotiable.

Arrielle P