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| A map created by the rights group Licadho shows economic land concessions and mining concessions in Cambodia. Map Supplied |
Thursday, 01 March 2012
May Titthara and David Boyle
The Phnom Penh Post
If the government continues to grant economic land and mining concessions at the current rate, there will be no more arable land left in the country to give away within one year, a researcher from the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights said yesterday.
Pointing to the vast increase in economic land concessions granted last year alone, which rights group Adhoc places at about 800,000 hectares, Ouch Leng, the head of the CCHR’s land reform program, said only 300,000 hectares of unclaimed arable land remained.
“The government can grant licenses for one more year because the remaining arable land is only 386,294 hectares,” he said.
Exploratory mining concessions had been included in this calculation, he said, because while firms granted these rights did not technically own the land, they acted like it in practice by erecting fences and expelling villagers from the area.
Ouch Leng said increasing outbreaks of civil unrest across the country such as the protests in Kandal, Kratie and Ratanikkiri province were sounding a clear message that Prime Minister Hun Sen had begun to heed.
On Monday, the premier canceled all 35 commercial fishing lots on the Tonle Sap lake, leaving the country’s most fertile fishing ground entirely for small scale fishermen.
Beng Hong Socheat Khnmero, spokesman for the Ministry of Land Management, said ELCs were not the responsibility of his ministry and deferred questions to Ministry of Agriculture officials, who could not be reached for comment.
But figures released by the Ministry of Agriculture on Tuesday showed 1.19 million hectares had now been granted in ELCs, far below findings from rights groups Adhoc and Licadho released late last year, which put the number closer to 2 million.
A map from Licadho obtained by the Post shows that 54.90 per cent of all arable land in Cambodia had been absorbed by ELC’s alone up until November 2011.
Am Sam Ath, senior investigator at Licadho, said that the latest figures show two-thirds of all arable land in Cambodia has now been given away through ELCs.
“We [Cambodians] are dependent on agriculture, but two-thirds of arable land has been granted as economic land concessions,” he said.
“I don’t know if the government is worried, but NGOs are.”
Statistics released by Adhoc last year found that when all types of private concessions were added together, including forest concessions, about 39 per cent of Cambodia’s entire land mass has been granted to private firms.
11 comments:
ការពារព្រៃឡង់គឺការពារសម្បត្តិវប្បធម៌ធម្មជាតិ
ដែលមានរុក្ខជាតិរាប់រយបែបនឹងជាផ្ទះសម្បែងទីលំនៅស្ថានសព្វសត្វព្រៃទាំងឡាយ។
ដូច្នេះការកាប់បំផ្លាញព្រៃឈើមិនគ្រាន់តែសម្លាប់
សព្វសត្វព្រៃតែប៉ុណ្ណោះឡើយ គឺថាឲ្យបាត់បង់
នូវអត្តសញ្ញាណធម្មជាតិខ្មែរថែមទៀត។
អក្សរភាសាខ្មែរថ្កោលទោសនយោបាយ
រាជនិងរដ្ឋអំណាចសព្វថ្ងៃដែលបាននិងកំពង់
កាប់បំផ្លាញព្រៃឈើដែលជាសម្បត្តិជាតិខ្មែរ។
ប៉ារីស៍ថ្ងៃទី១មិនា២០១២
អក្សរភាសាខ្មែរ
They (the Chinky and the YUON) will suck Khmer dry and put Khmer race to rest for good!
You always blame others for every wrong in Cambodia. Have you ever look at youself and who actually commit this "SUCKing" of Khmer? Do you think Hunsen is just a robot? How about many low level cops asking bribe from every bussiness? Look at these cop's faces.
The uneducated person(s) of Ministry of Agriculture is a crook of CPP regime. Money is not everything. We need to know who the person of Ministry of Agriculture Department.
Many farmers are relying on the soil and survives. The farmers lived there for a long times before those CPP crooks of CPP regime expelled the farmers from their own original lands.
The responsible person(s) of Ministry of Agriculture should be arrested and punished. The lands and natural resources are not belonging to them, but the lands and natural resources belong to Khmer people and nation and state of Khmer/Cambodia.
Those crooks of Ministry of Agriculture should have been killed by the original land owners, farmers and the state of Khmer nation.
Those crooks of Ministry of Agriculture will have nothing left when they go to jails for all their lives.
អាហ៊ុន សែនជាចោរ អ្នកធ្វើការ ក្រោមបញ្ជាក៏ជាចោរដែរ។
ពូជចោរនៅតែជាចោរ។
បើចង់ចាប់ចោរ ត្រូវតែយក ចោរចាប់ចោរ.
9:59 PM,
Tacitly, ah Hun Sèn is YUON to the backbone therefore what 8:18 PM said there, is correct. Got it?
Cambodian land is divided like this: 40% for Chinks, 25% for Yuons, 25% for Khmers, and 10% for others.
How could you arrive at that, 3:25 AM? And we are supposed to take your word for it? You're funny!
The shape of dragon tail shows only on the map. the place is long gone.
Vietnam are the worst nation to do the businesses with, especially the Vietnamese private businessmen who are the most scandal in the world. Vietnamese are far worse than Chinese.
Looking at S. Korea, Japan, Thailand, U.S.A, UK, France, Germany, and other democratic countries are far much better to do the businesses with.
There must something wrong with Vietnamese businessmen are the most prime suspects and involve with Cambodian affair politically. This have caused Chinese biz men to be more aggressive to compete with the evil Vietnamese businessmen to exploit in Cambodia.
Give the middle fingers Vietnam!
stop taking advantage of my country, ok! cambodia belongs to all khmer people, not some special interest group, etc, ok! stop violating khmer people's right to housing, to lands, to life, freedom, etc. people did not break the law, so, stop treating them like criminal, ok! and they are not violent, so stop using violent forces on people, instead use the rule of law only, ok!
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