PM chides private sector over land

Thursday, 24 April 2008
By Craig Guthrie The Mekong Times

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday warned the country’s buoyant private sector to tread carefully when investing in land – whether privately or state owned.

Speaking at the packed 13th Government-Private Sector Forum, Hun Sen said listening to local radio gave him “headaches” when it reported on land disputes involving private firms, demanding the government’s investment body review controversial investments.

“Companies; please have pity on the people. You cannot force people to sell their land and we cannot let companies abuse their land,” said the premier. “The CDC [Council for the Development of Cambodia] must monitor these companies and revoke their licenses if they encroach on land owned by the people. I will give incentives only to the private sector for investments which benefit the people.”

Hun Sen is Chairman of the CDC.

The prime minister warned he would attend court cases himself with disgruntled villagers in tow should courts erroneously rule in favor of private firms in land
disputes.

State land must also be respected, Hun Sen cautioned. He cited a recent US$400,000 bill the state received from a Thai firm for a collapsed electricity pole – raised as part of a new Asian Development Bank (ADB) project to import Thai electricity – as an example. Such actions were “incomprehensible,” he said.

“I do not understand this. One of the poles collapsed and this company complained to the court in Banteay Meanchey that the state should pay US$400,000. This is public land but they won. The private sector put in the posts, but they complain to the court that the state must pay,” he said.

“[The company] comes to our house, destroys it and then punishes us,” complained Hun Sen.

The premier asked Minister of Justice Ang Vong Vathna to explain why the nation’s courts were deciding in favor of the private sector. “I do not put pressure on the court, but it is now abusing the rights of the Royal Government,” he added.

Ang Vong Vathna said by phone that Hun Sen was not attacking the courts as a whole. “He was defending the people against the companies, and asking that the courts look at these cases two or three times before making any decision.”

“I understand the premier’s sense of dissatisfaction with the court order,” said ADB Country Director Arjun Goswami. He added that a review would have to be carried out among the various government agencies to determine if the electricity poles Hun Sen mentioned are indeed on state land.

Local human rights group Lichado recorded 98 new cases of land encroachment affecting more than 5,242 families in 2007. The group claimed many cases involve “powerful individuals and companies … often acting with the complicity of government and state officials.”

Hun Sen Orders Land Sale Investigation [- Another "All Talk No Action" from Hun Sen]

By Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
23 April 2008

Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday ordered the Council for Development of Cambodia to conduct an investigation into alleged deception of residents in land deals with private companies.

Speaking at a government and private sector forum, the prime minister warned that some investments in the country had worried Cambodians, and said companies who had forced people to sell land for them would lose their development licenses.

“You forced people to sell the land, so [the licenses] must be terminated,” he said. “This measure is to protect people from losing their land due to coercion by the private sector, which has used its name as an investor and forced people to sell the land.”

Hun Sen pointedly ordered the CDC to investigate a land sale in Kandal province’s Vihear Sour commune.

Mu Sochua, Sam Rainsy Party deputy secretary-general, said Wednesday she was skeptical such a measure would lead to any action against the companies.

Many private companies had tricked people into selling their land, or forced them from their land, but they did so with official backing, she said.

“Many senior government officials and local authorities are behind some of those companies,” she said.

The rights group Adhoc reported in 2007 a worrying trend of private companies forcing the sale of land at low prices or taking land after delivering a small deposit for its sale.

Son Chhay lost his appeal [-No surprise there considering the rigged court system in Cambodia]

Monday, February 18, 2008
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

SRP MP Son Chhay lost his land dispute case in Siem Reap in the Appeal Court. On 15 February, the Appeal Court issued a stay on the Siem Reap/Oddar Meanchey provincial court decision forcing Son Chhay to move out of a land property located in Siem Reap city and turn the land over to the Apsara Authority. On 27 July 2006, the Siem Reap/Oddar Meanchey court decided that Son Chhay must move out of the more than 3-hectare land located in the hotel sector and turn the land over to the Apsara Authority, but Son Chhay refused and took his case to the Appeal Court for another decision. However, the Appeal Court maintained the lower court decision.

Hun Sen’s sister denied involvement in forced land sale

02 October 2007
By Ratha Visal
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

Hun Seng Ny, Hun Sen’s younger sister, issued her initial reactions on Tuesday 02 October 2007, to reject the report which claims that she is behind the middlemen who are forcing villagers to provide their thumbprints to sell their lands. Hun Seng Ny said that this report affects her honor and dignity, as well as those of her family.

Hun Seng Ny’s reaction came after ethnic minority people living in Kam village, La’ak commune, Ratanakiri province, claimed that Kdok Reuy, the police inspector of O’Chum district, and An Long, a former soldier in the province, were leading an effort to buy 400-hectare of lands. The villagers accused the pair of threatening them, saying that the land is destined for the development to be made by Hun Seng Ny. The villagers said that the name of Hun Sen’s sister instills fear in them.

Hun Seng Ny said: “Buying lands by having someone threatening and using the privilege and the power, I did not do that. The population must understand this clearly, in the future, don’t let someone uses the name of a high-ranking official, the family name of a high-ranking person to threat people, to discourage them and (force them) sell their land. I want to know, I told the authority to find out this guy [KI-Media note: Hun Seng Ny uses “ah neung,” a derogatory designation] and arrest him. It’s difficult with our family name, when Older Brother (Hun) Sen knows about this, he never believes us. I told him already, I never ask anyone to buy land (for me).”

Kdok Reuy, the accused O’Chum police inspector, confirmed that he led a land purchase deal so that he can resell these lands back, but that he never used the name of Hun Seng Ny.

Kdok Reuy said: “I am only a real estate agent, there are 70 families who provided thumbprints agreeing to it, there is no sale or purchase yet. The accusation that I was ordered by her (Hun Sen Ny), I don’t even know her.”

227 ethnic minority people from Kam village who are representing a total of 90 families provided thumprints to their protest letter seeking protection to end the purchase of community lands which consist of farmlands, forests, and mining areas.

Khun Sanoy, the Kam village chief, said: “At first, they (the land buyers?) told us that the lands belonged to their ancestors, and they don’t fear anyone because the name of new boss is Hun Sen Ny.”

Pen Bonnar, the investigator for the Adhoc organization in Ratanakiri province, said that there is no report which claims the involvement of Hun Seng Ny in this sordid affair. Nevertheless, he said that he will investigate this case anyway.

Pen Bonnar said: “Since ever, we see these lower level officials creating these problems by using the names of others, they even use the name of Samdach Heng Samrin, Samdech Chea Sim, etc…”

Adhoc reports indicated that there are many cases of land disputes with ethnic minority people, starting since 2005, and that the large majority of these land disputes involve local officials and powerful government officials.