The Eagle, the Vultures, the Crocodile . . . and the Khmer people

Ref: Cambodian government objects to American-backed radio content

Not news worthy enough for the Hun Sen regime? A young girl plays by an open stagnant sewer at one of the many growing slums in and outside of the capital Phnom Penh. The existence of and extreme social neglect endured by so many of the country's urban slum dwellers have been one of the unspoken motivations behind the on-going waves of violently forced mass evictions initiated by the Phnom Penh authorities in recent years, prominent among the targeted sites are Boeung Kak Lake which situates within full view of the Government's 'prestigious' Chinese funded and built Council of Ministers palace and Borei Keila settlement, which also locates in the heart of the capital, both of which are an eye sore and living sources of shame and embarrassment for a regime actively promoting itself - through its near monopoly of the mass media - as the party of "development"? The latest summons issued by the Phnom Penh regime to the two US funded radio stations demanding a change in focus from one of 'negative' to 'positive' on news coverage is perfectly in line and character with an orthodox, unreformed police-state mentality and Communist style governing without representation. But, at least the summons indicates that formal warning of some kind is necessary, that is, until that formality becomes redundant and the  issue of assassins becomes imperative. And when that happens it is not through any fault of the reporters themselves who risk their own precious lives and limbs to keep the public audience informed of the truth - whatever that truth entails - but it will be the hitherto self-evident reluctance [and de facto complicity even] on the part of their employers to grab the bull by the horns that will stand out like the filthy odour from those untreated sewers. The regime itself is in no doubt of this dubious stance taken by the US government [her public condemnations are never backed by any concrete or hurting punitive measures despite the fact that she has the power to do so if she would have possessed the political will and moral courage to that end] and hence the audacious summons against the ultimately expendable reporters. So the US Government hasn't changed much since 1975 then? Well, not a great deal in substance in my view - School of Vice.

The 'Pyramid' inside of the new Council of Ministers building maybe casting its expected ominous spell over the capital's poorest residents including those of Boeung Kak lake instead of its immediate privileged occupants? - School of Vice

Borei Keila residents held a press conference to reject Suy Sophan's claim

ពលរដ្ឋបុរីកីឡា ធ្វើការតវ៉ាមុខសាលាដំបូងរាជធានីភ្នំពេញ សុំ​ឲ្យ​តុលាការ​ជួយ​រក​យុត្តិធម៌។​រូបថតម៉ៃ វិរៈ

ពលរដ្ឋ​​បុរី​កីឡាធ្វើ​សន្និសីទ​កាសែត​បដិសេធ​សំដី​របស់​លោក​ស្រីស៊ុយ​ សុផាន

Friday, 17 August 2012
ឆាយ ច័ន្ទនីដា
The Phnom Penh Post

ភ្នំពេញៈពលរដ្ឋ​សហគមន៍​បុរី​កីឡា​ ដែល​រង​ការ​បណ្តេញ​ចេញ​ពី​លំនៅ​ដ្ឋាន​គ្មាន​ផ្ទះ​សម្បែង​សមរម្យ​រស់​នៅ បាន​ធ្វើ​សន្និសីទ​កាសែត​​កាល​ពី​ព្រឹក​ថ្ងៃ​សុក្រ​នេះ​ បដិសេធ​សំដី​របស់​លោក​ស្រី ស៊ុយ​ សុផាន ប្រធាន​ក្រុមហ៊ុន​ផាន​អ៊ីម៉ិច ចុះ​ផ្សាយ​ក្នុង​ទំព័រ​សារព័ត៌មាន​កាល​ពី​សប្តាហ៍​មុន។

អ្នក​ស្រី​ ជុំ​ ង៉ាន់ តំណាង​សហគមន៍​បុរី​កីឡា និង​ពលរដ្ឋ​១១៧​គ្រួសារ​ដែល​បាន​ប្តឹង​ក្រុមហ៊ុន​ផានអ៊ីម៉ិច​ឲ្យ​គោរព​កិច្ច​សន្យា​សង់​អគារ​ឲ្យគ្រប់​១០​ល្វែង​ជូន​អ្នក​បុរី​កីឡា ​ក្នុង​ខណ្ឌ​៧​មករា​ ដើម្បី​បាន​រស់​នៅ​អភិវឌ្ឍន៍​នៅ​នឹង​កន្លែង ថ្លែង​ប្រាប់​ភ្នំពេញ​ប៉ុស្តិ៍​ថា លោក​ស្រី ស៊ុយ​ សុផាន បាន​និយាយ​តាម​កាសែត​ភ្នំពេញ​ប៉ុស្តិ៍​ចុះ​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​១០ សីហា​ថា លោក​ស្រី​នឹង​មិន​គិត​គូរ​ផ្តល់​ផ្ទះ​ឲ្យ​អ្នក​ដែល​ត្រូវ​បាន​បណ្តេញ​ចេញ​នេះ​ទេ ព្រោះ​អ្នក​ទាំង​នេះ​បាន​ផ្ទះ​ពី​ក្រុម​ហ៊ុន​រួច​ហើយ​និង​លក់​ផ្ទះ​ឲ្យ​គេ​បន្ត​ ដោយ​សារ​ជីវ​ភាព។

Cambodia's Current Tragedy: a Government Led by Greed

USA must immediately suspend military aid to the government of Cambodia. Remember other dictatorships aided by USA and others. How many more lives wasted before the killing stops?

----

Heng Chantha, 14-yr-old killed in Chhlong, Kratie (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)

Senseless Kratie killing reflects a bitter truth

Letter to The Phnom Penh Post

Dear Editor,

The savage killing in Kratie seven days ago of Heng Chantha, a 14-year-old girl, by soldiers and police comes three weeks after the murder of Chut Wutty, Cambodia’s most respected environmentalist.

Her killing comes less than two weeks after Prime Minister Hun Sen ordered an immediate suspension of economic land concessions.

More than two million hectares of Cambodia’s arable land and one million hectares of our national forests and parks are part of these concessions, signed by the hand of the Prime Minister.

The military-style operation in Kratie was aided by a helicopter.

The authorities’ version of the operation was justified by deputy prime minister Sar Kheng as necessary to crack down on an association for a democratic movement and for the arrest of its ringleaders.

The order from the top is clear: aim to kill.

Police beat reporters at land eviction in Vietnam [-Same beating style as Hun Xen's dogs in Nambodia]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2I9_lBGKXPo

05/08/2012

"There was a close coordination between the hostile elements from both inside and outside the country ... fake video clips were created to slander and smear the government"

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Police and security guards beat two Vietnamese state radio reporters who were watching them evict farmers from their land to make way for a privately built housing development, state media reported Tuesday.

A video posted on YouTube showed police and guards beating and kicking two men who wore helmets and hitting them with sticks during the high-profile eviction last month. Nguyen Ngoc Nam, head of the political and economic news division of the Radio Voice of Vietnam and staff reporter Han Phi Long confirmed to Thanh Nien newspaper that they were the two men in the video clip.

The newspaper said Nam was handcuffed and taken in a car to a district prosecutor's office while Long presented himself to local police to report the beating.

The two reporters have sent a petition and the national radio station has sent a letter to Hung Yen provincial authority asking for clarification, it said. The local government has yet to respond.

A land revolution that will rid Asia of the commie regimes?

Doan Van Vuon (L) and Doan Van Quy are charged with murder

Doan Van Vuon, Vietnam Farmer, A National Hero After Shootout With Police

02/10/12
By MIKE IVES
Huffington Post

HANOI, Vietnam -- When local police arrived in riot gear to evict the Vuon clan, family members were ready with homemade land mines and improvised shotguns. In a guerrilla-style ambush reminiscent of a Vietnam War battle, they wounded six officers.

But instead of drawing public condemnation, last month's rare violence by fish farmers trying to hold onto leased land in the northern port city of Hai Phong has made a national hero of family ringleader Doan Van Vuon and ripped open a debate about heavy-handed seizures by local governments.

Though Vuon and three of his kin remain under arrest for their role in the attack, retired military generals and a former president have weighed in on his behalf.

The case has attracted so much attention that Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung ordered an investigation, ruling Friday that the eviction was illegal and those who ordered it should be punished. He also encouraged local authorities to renew the family's land lease.

Many Vietnamese see Vuon as a symbol of the country's millions of farmers, many of whom are fed up with losing property or anxious about how new land rights laws will affect them as the government debates 20-year land grants that are due to expire next year.

Cambodia: Land cleared for rubber & Rights bulldozed

The impact of rubber plantations by Socfin-KCD on indigenous communities in Bousra, Mondulkiri

Socfin-KCD: who is behind the joint venture?

Socfin-KCD is a joint venture registered as a company in Cambodia and owned 80% by Socfinasia and 20%77 by KCD (Khaou Chuly Development). Socfinasia is a holding company created in 1972 and headquartered in Luxembourg. Socfinasia’s main activity is to manage portfolio holdings focused on the exploitation of over 50 000 ha of tropical palm and rubber plantations located in South-East Asia. Socfinasia has 12000 employees and had a turnover of 280 million euros in 2010. 55% of Socfinasia is owned by Socfin (Societé Financière des Caoutchoucs), previously Société Financière Luxembourgeoise (Socfinal).

Socfin is a company created in 1959 and headquartered in Luxembourg. Both Socfin and Socfinasia are listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. Some of the group’s holdings in Africa have been targeted for alleged human rights abuses on plantations. The table below indicates Socfin’s shareholders. Amongst them, Bolloré Group (France) holds 38,75%, in addition to Belgian families Fabri and de Ribes. The Fabri family owns one third of what is referred to as the “Empire Rivaud”, a financial power which owns millions of hectares in plantations in Africa and Asia and which is led by Jean de Beaumont and Edouard de Ribes (the latter being on Socfinasia and Socfin’s boards of directors).

In addition to Socfin SA (53,96%), Bolloré Group (France) holds 21,75% of Socfinasia SA. Other shareholders (24,29% unidentified shareholders) are front companies located in tax havens which would be linked to the Fabri and Ribes families, themselves sitting on the board of Bolloré Group. Listed on the Paris Stock Exchange, Bolloré is a French investment and industrial holding group headquartered in Puteaux, France, and its principal activities are in sectors such as logistics, energy distribution, plantation, and media and communications.

With the exception of Mr. Luc Boedt and Mr. André Balot (on Socfin’s board), Mr. Hubert Fabri, Mr. Vincent Bolloré, Mr. Robert de Tehux de Meylandt et Montjardin (represented by Mr. Cédric de Bailliencourt), Mr. Eoudard de Ribes, and Mr. Philippe de Traux de Wardin all sit on both Socfin’s and Socfinasia’s boards of directors.

In addition, Mr. Hubert Fabri is President of Palmeraies de Mopoli (owning 4,49% of Socfin) and also represent TwoSun Fin Establishment (owning 11, 24% of Socfin) on Socfin’s board of directors. Edouard de Ribes has the authority to represent Geselfina (owning 23,05% of Socfin) as well as holdings and companies pertaining to Bolloré’s group on Socfin’s board.

In 2010, Socfinasia realized a net profit of 137,28 million euros (on a turnover of 280 million euros).

Due to the complex and multi-layered structure of holding companies owning 80% of Socfin-KCD’s joint venture, it is difficult to assess the degree of control exercised by Bolloré’s group on Socfin-KCD. However, available information tend to confirm that the company is exercising significant operational (Vincent Bolloré, Chief Executive Officer of Bolloré Group sits on both Socfin and Socfinasia’s boards) and financial control over the joint venture (Bolloré’s group directly detain 21,75% of Socfinasia and owns 54% of Socfin, in turn detained at nearly 40% by Bolloré’s group. See table above on the shareholders’ structure).

Khaou Chuly Group is registered in Cambodia and is said to be the largest Cambodian construction company. Founded in 1955, Khaou Chuly Company was, after the Khmer Rouges regime, rebuilt after the Khmer Rouges regime under the name of Khaou Chuly MKK, in partnership with the Japanese company MAEDA. According to the company’s website, “many of the company’s current projects are internationally funded by overseas agencies including the EU, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), SCA, US Agency for International Development (USAID), Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), etc.” The activities of the group include construction (engineering, buildings and public work, schools, universities, railways, dams, airports..), holdings (in agribusiness, consulting strategy, building materials, cement factory and fashion and accessories through Dhammarangsi Holding), surveillance services and pool construction and maintenance (with French company Piscines Desjoyaux). Mr. Khaou Chuly, a Sino-Cambodian tycoon, is the Chairman of Khaou Chuly Group and also a private adviser to Prime Minister Hun Sen. His son, Khaou Phallaboth is co-founder and President of the Group. Khaou Phallaboth and his relatives maintain close relationships with governmental figures. Khaou Phallaboth is also the former son-in-law of Chea Xim, brother-in-law of CPP minister Sun Chanthol.

The Khaou Chuly connection map (Chart by KI-Media)

In 2007, Khaou Chuly Group and Socfin announced a joint venture representing US$20 million. In February 2009, the operational management was transferred from KCD to Socfin. This was confirmed by the mission team during its mission.

http://www.box.net/shared/kttb1urvym0mhcxktg1q

Sinatoon: "Dare to die for our rice fields and to survive"

Cartoon by V. Sina

HRW World Report Chapter on Cambodia

Source: Human Rights Watch

Cambodia
Events of 2010

Click here to download the World Report Chapter on Cambodia in English (PDF)

Click here to download the World Report Chapter on Cambodia in Khmer (PDF)

The Cambodian government increased its repression of freedoms of expression, assembly, and association in 2010, tightening the space for civil society to operate.

Prime Minister Hun Sen's ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) used the judiciary, new laws, and threats of arrest or legal action to restrict free speech, jail government critics, disperse workers and farmers peacefully protesting, and silence opposition party members.

Cambodia also regressed in respecting international rights treaties. In December 2009 the government deported 20 Uighur asylum seekers at risk of torture and mistreatment to China, violating Cambodia's obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention. The controversial refoulement took place on the eve of a visit by senior Chinese officials that finalized a massive aid package to Cambodia.

Freedoms of Expression, Association, and Assembly

Journalists who criticize the government face biased legal action, imprisonment, and violence. At least 10 opposition journalists have been killed in the past 15 years.

Under a new penal code that came into force in November 2009, government critics who peacefully express views about individuals and government institutions risk criminal prosecution for defamation and disinformation. These include the editor of Khmer Amatak newspaper who was charged in March with defamation and disinformation for a feature on governmental corruption, and the editor of Prey Nokor newspaper, which covers Khmer Krom affairs, who was forced to resign in August. In May authorities banned a public screening in Phnom Penh of a documentary about the 2004 assassination of labor leader Chea Vichea. There was no progress in his murder investigation or that of two other union leaders murdered in 2004.

Croc Tears Cheated Koh Khloong (កោះឃ្លង់) Tragedy

29/11/2010
Comment by Kok Sap
Originally posted at: http://khamerlogue.wordpress.com

Following the 1991 Paris Peace Agreements and the UN administered national elections; a free-market economy was introduced. The 1992 Land Law first introduced the concept of legal possession. Legal recognition of possession rights was updated by the 2001 Land Law.

According to this law, anyone who settled on, or began using their land at any time before the 2001 Land Law was passed, is a legal possessor as long as they meet the five conditions set out in the Land Law. These five conditions are that the possession must be continuous, peaceful, in good faith, unambiguous and known to the public. In addition, at the time that the possession commenced, the land could not have been State public property, privately owned by someone else, indigenous land or monastery land.

If all conditions are met, legal possessors have the right to request a title of ownership. The possession constitutes a right in rem meaning that while the possessor is waiting for the possession to be converted to ownership he/she has the right to live on and use the land, exclude others from the land, and transfer it to others. The procedure for issuing title to legitimate possessors is in theory straight forward. It can be done through systematic registration, initiated and conducted by the Government, or through sporadic registration initiated on the application of the land-holder. Upon proving that they meet the conditions of legal possession, all legal possessors should be issued with titles.

However, there is repeated evidence of the Government denying land titles to those with valid possession rights. In many instances, households that have strong possession rights claims are unable to engage Government in any dialogue as to the legitimacy of those claims. Instead, households seeking to advance their possession rights claims and obtain title are simply told they have no rights, with no underlying explanation, no process of examining evidence or presenting a justification for the denial of title, or any other mechanism that might allow for a standardized and transparent process.

Possession rights were formalized by the Land Law in recognition of the fact that many millions of Kampuchean do not have legal title to their land and as such should provide a means of tenure security to these households until formal titling is conducted in their area. The arbitrary and non-transparent manner in which possession rights are recognized or denied renders this legislative attempt to provide security meaningless.”

Due to past history Koh Pich is not the original name. Under the French rule, it said one of the Kings had the lepers rounded up from across the kingdom then sent them to an isolated tiny isle across from his palace compound in Phnom Penh. The lepers were banished from mainland, Kampuchea. No outside contact allowed. The visitor must bribe the officials to visit the leper relatives lived on the isle. The king’s order was absolute and placed upon the lepers not to leave but to live and die on the isle. Any one attempted to leave, if caught, the offender would be charged with lèse- majesté offense and summarily execution. Thereafter, it has come to be known as Koh Khloong (កោះឃ្លង់).

After going through Hanoi perpetuated wars and incursions, 1979 Yuon occupied Kampuchea. During the interim, Koh Khloong was a home to hundreds of poor since 1982. The 1991 Paris Peace Agreements and the UN administered national elections; a free-market economy was introduced. Then in 1992 Land Law was first introduced the concept of legal possession.

But for Koh Khloong‘s 302 families, land law seems ambiguous and ludicrous in defending their rights. Per USAID project PILAP,” When they received an eviction order (from Angkar Leu)in 2004, residents of a lush 68-hectare river island minutes from downtown Phnom Penh, Cambodia had no idea their plight would become a symbol for a larger struggle. The order came shortly after local officials and a major financial institution began pressing residents to leave the island to make way for its redevelopment as a “satellite city,” complete with luxury villas and hotels. The residents, many of whom are illiterate farmers, were easily intimidated by threats and misinformation. Many accepted a paltry sum of less than $2 per square meter of their land to relocate to a crude resettlement site outside the city, far from the farms that sustained them. The project seeks out cases that generate public debate and demand accountability and respect for legal norms. In an environment where illegal land-grabbing occurs with impunity, the Koh Pich island dispute presented an opportunity to uphold and publicize important legal principles. The Cambodian Constitution and the Land Law grant rights to people residing on unregistered land. The law also establishes the principle of “fair and just compensation” prior to any government “taking” of land for a public interest. Armed with a clear understanding of these principles, the lawyers analyzed the residents’ claims. To strengthen their position, they conducted an appraisal of land values on different parts of the island. The highly publicized, high-impact approach has enabled a community to assert its legal rights in one of the first collective legal actions in Cambodia. In the process, the case has laid a foundation for the principle of “fair and just compensation” for the increasing number of victims of land-grabbing throughout the country.

To avoid public scrutiny a so called Overseas Cambodia Investment Company (OCIC) belongs to a Chinese born 1946 in Phnom Penh but lives in Canada was fronted for the whole deal.

” In 2006, OCIC signed a $50 million 99-year lease with the city of Phnom Penh to develop and manage Koh Pich. Sales of apartments, villas and houses began in late 2008. At the same time the developers also began building a bridge to the island. With units priced at $1,500 per square metre initial sales were poor and OCIC offered various promotions, including discounts of up to 35 per cent on villas and houses in the first phase of the project, and payment period incentives. Units are available from $200,000 to $1 million. When completed in 2017, Diamond Island City will occupy 75-hectares of the island overlooking Phnom Penh. The project was originally planned to be completed by 2016, but work was delayed because of the downturn in the economy.”In term of the stampede incident, the OCIC owner donated $1,000 for the dead and $200 for the injured.

To fool the potential voters for next election, on 25/11/2010 Comrade Xen put on a spectacular show for the public and press corps. But today he insulted the nation, “no one is responsible for the fatal stampede. This incident could be preventable with proper management. It is the poor management and negligence that had cost hundreds of death. No one is to be punished.” Not bad politic for a flunk out eighth grader proletarian foot soldier from Yuon supported Khmer Rouge regime turned five diamond star general who rules country likes his own rice paddy.

The weeping prime minister daughter and owner of Bayon TV appeared to be one of the owners. Instead of expending her own money for the victims, she has collected large sum of donation via her television station from the public to pay for her own liability and responsibility. Following by Comrade Sok An, the chief operator of the council of ministers and the apparent co-owner of the isle too, used his most powerful position in Kampuchea to hastingly announce and conclude the investigation. The death toll was reduced from over 400 to 351. Meanwhile Comrade Kong Sam Ol, the minister of Royal Palace and head of the festival committee offered to resign but he was assured no one knew the incident would happen and the number of spectator was larger than expected. Comrade Xen did not apologize to the nation. Also he did not accept Kong Sam Ol resignation and insinuated each dead receives $12,000 that‘s enormous amount as opposed to $700 annual income per family. Other word no one was fired for the incident including the insensitive and insolent governor of Phnom Penh, Kept Chuy Taemae.

In all, the head of government is too incompetent to raise issues with his subordinates. Clearly his and relatives interest is above the laws. To his concern it’s all about who owns what, where and how much can be collected from. Now it is an outrage for Kampucheans to have faced fat crocodiles and starved hyenas in government when comes to law enforcement and responsibility.

Former residents of Koh Pich remind of their eviction

24 Nov 2010
By Den Ayuthyea
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Soch
Click here to read the article in Khmer

Former residents who were evicted from Koh Pich claimed that they used to put a curse on the Phnom Penh city authority and the development company which evicted them out by ignoring their tears and without providing them with a decent resolution.

The Koh Pich entertainment center where almost one thousand people were killed and injured in the evening of 22 Nov was known as Koh Klung (Leper Island). The residents claimed that they settled there since 1982 and more than 300 families lived there. Between 2002 and 2005, the Phnom Penh city authority evicted them by force and moved them to a new location under the pretext that the land is earmarked by the government for development.

An aging woman, who was a former resident in Koh Pich and who declined to provide her name to RFA, indicated on 24 Nov that, between 2002 and 2005, the residents suffered constantly and they shed their tears almost on a daily basis because the authority forced them out of their homes where they used to live without providing them with a reasonable explanation.

The same lady added that when the eviction started, the residents put a curse on the authority and the development company, wishing that they cannot progress their work smoothly because the development of Koh Pich brought hardship on several hundreds of families.

Hun Samnang, another former resident, said that he settled on family’s land and farm in 1982, but he lost everything when the city forced him to dismantle his home and it also prevented him from protesting to ask for compensation. He said that because his family had no choice, he accepted the $8,000 compensation imposed by the city.

Hun Samnang added that when reminiscing about the house he used to live in on Koh Pich, he regrets very much that the authority forced the Koh Pich residents to dismantle their houses and move out under the pretext of providing the island as a concession to a private company for development.

He also said that during the eviction, his family, as well as other residents on Koh Pich, used to pray to the magic spirits and the land guardian spirit to punish those who evicted the residents, and they also prayed to God to provide them with justice. However, he said that he never prayed for the death of innocent people just because they came to Koh Pich for leisure.

Sao Hak, a former Koh Pich resident, told RFA on 24 Nov. that his house and 2-hectare of land in Koh Pich were dismantled and confiscated under the pretext of development, and the city did not provide proper compensation to his family. He said that he brought his complaint to the court, but the Supreme court decided on 06 August 2010 that he would receive $6 of compensation per square meter only whereas the actual market in 2004 was already at $20 per square-meter.

Sao Hak said that this extreme injustice for the former residents in this community who were evicted, and then the authority gave the ownership of this land to a private company while evicting by force the former island residents.

Morn Vuthy, an official for the Community Legal Education Center (CLEC) which provided help to the residents who were evicted from Koh Pich, said that the eviction of the Koh Pich residents by the government was very unfair for the resident because the government compensated them with $1.50 per square-meter only, but after the residents protested, the development company and the authority raised the compensation to $6.75 per square-meter.

RFA could not reach Pung Kheav Se, the CEO of the Overseas Cambodian Investment Corp. (OCIC) which received the right to develop the Koh Pich entertainment center, in the afternoon of 24 Nov as his aide told us that he was busy in a meeting. Nevertheless, his aid said that Koh Pech is currently developed to become an exposition center to sell local and foreign products, as well as an entertainment center. However, there is no high rise building or hotel in the island yet.

Regarding this development, Hun Xen used to ask developers to plan for the construction of a 555-m high rise building, the tallest of its kind in Asia. The construction of this building is planned to take place on Koh Pich.

On 25 June 2004, the Cambodian Development Council (CDC) gave the right to the partnership of Canadia Bank and the OCIC to develop and change Koh Pich island and turn into a satellite city. Koh Pick is located next to the Tonle Bassac, in Bassac commune, Chamcar Mon district, Phnom Penh city.

Eviction by drowning: It only happens in Hun Xen’s lawless Cambodia

Sand pumping operation by the Shukaku Inc. led to the drowning of about 30 houses in Boeung Kak Lake area (Photo: Den Ayuthyea, RFA)

Shukaku Inc. pumps in sand to drown houses in Boeung Kak

03 Nov. 2010
By Den Ayuthyea
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Soy
Click here to read the article in Khmer

“Our country has good laws, but the government has only one will, i.e. it does not respect the law at all, it rejected the fact that people are living there, it wants the residents to move out far away from the city. All that the government does is to allow the plan set up 100% by the [Shukaku] company” - Ouch Leng, Adhoc official

Residents in Boeung Kak area claimed that at least 30 of the houses there were drowned out by the sand pumping operation performed by the Shukaku Inc. Co. to fill the lake. The house drowning took place even though there is no resolution given yet as to the development of that area.

Boeung Kak residents, who were victimized, told RFA on 03 November with choking voice about their concerns over the loss of their houses. They indicated that neither the Phnom Penh city hall nor Hun Xen would look into their numerous pleas for intervention, nor did they offer any help to the residents. Nevertheless, Boeung Kak residents are still confident that Hun Xen can help them.

Ty Pisey, a woman living in Village No. 24 and whose house was drowned out by the Shukaku Inc. on 03 November, issued a new plea to Hun Xen, asking him to help stop the sand pumping operation immediately and to force the company to return to the negotiation table to provide a reasonable solution to the residents: “The three Samdachs [Hun Xen, Heng Xamrin and Chea Xim], please help resolve the hardship faced by the residents of Boeung Kak area because the residents are currently being drowned out.”

Chhim Navy, an elderly woman, indicated her concerns and issued this plea: “Samdach Hun Xen please help your children and grandchildren and find a reasonable resolution for the residents. The residents are willing to move out, we will not stay, but give us a decent [compensation] so we can buy another house to live in.”

The victimized residents added: “There must be a commission to resolve this problem, the [Shukaku] company should not be allowed to do whatever it wants. In the past, they said that there will be separate resolution for those who live on the lake, and those who live on land. But, now, irrespective of where you live, the resolution is the same, this cannot be.”

The residents indicated that during the Shukaku company’s sand pumping operation to drown out the houses in Beoung Kak on 03 November, there was no government official who came to meet the residents or came to stop this sand pumping operation at all. The residents said that all that they can do is to watch their houses being drowned out because they were helpless and the Shukaku Inc. also brought in numerous armed guards for its protection.

On 03 November, RFA could not reach the city hall to clarify on this pumping operation.

Regarding this problem, Kong Chamroeun, the representative of Hun Xen’s office, said on 15 September 2008 that Hun Xen decided to let the city hall and the Shukaku Inc. Co. resolve the problem for the residents who actually live in the Boeung Kak area, the resolutions would provide three alternative choices for the residents.

Kong Chamroeun said: “The three options are: (1) accept an already built house, (2) accept $8,000 and 2 million riels (~ $500) [in compensation], or (3) remain there so that they will receive another house at the same location. For the sand pumping, if there is no pumping, they will not be able to do anything, i.e. they cannot change this area.”

Ouch Leng, a land dispute official for the Adhoc human rights organization who visited and observed the sand pumping operation by the Shukaku Inc. Co., said that the operation is a serious violation of the residents’ rights.

Ouch Leng added: “Our country has good laws, but the government has only one will, i.e. it does not respect the law at all, it rejected the fact that people are living there, it wants the residents to move out far away from the city. All that the government does is to allow the plan set up 100% by the [Shukaku] company.”

In 2007, the Cambodian government, through the city hall, signed an agreement to lease 133 hectares of land to the Shukaku Inc. Co. for a duration of 99 years. That development plan led to 3,000 families losing their house and they have to be evicted and taken out far away from that area.

Svay Rieng: Adhoc demands the release a villager

Monday 24 May 2010
By Pen Bona
Cambodge Soir Hebdo
Translated from French by Luch Ky-Luch
Click here to read the article in French

As part of a land dispute, the Adhoc human rights organization demands that the Svay Rieng justice release the representative of families who are threatened with eviction.

In a communiqué issued on Monday 24 May, Adhoc deplores the arrest of the representative of the Peam Chaing families who are opposed to a rubber plantation company. Adhoc demands for an immediate release of the arrested villager and it also denounces the attempt by the Svay Rieng provincial court to arrest fifteen other farmers.

According to Adhoc, the conflict should not be brought to court yet at this point because the government was trying to solve the problem. However, Adhoc reminds that the villagers’ protest is legal: “According to the 2001 land law, they own these lands that this private company tries to clear since 2007,” the Adhoc communiqué indicated.

Adhoc also noted that the authorities were in a hurry to take care of this matter whereas the private company involved in the land dispute did not even fill the paperwork needed to obtain a land concession.

Public Forum on Human Rights and Development for communities affected by economic land concessions in Kampong Speu

Cambodian Center for Human Rights

MEDIA ALERT
For immediate release – Phnom Penh, May 17, 2010

Public Forum on Human Rights and Development for communities affected by economic land concessions in Kampung Speu

Parliamentarians, authorities, civil societies, community members, and other stakeholders will participate in a Public Forum on “Human Rights and Development” in Kampung Speu Province. The Public Forum will consider the issues and disputes faced by the local community relating to economic land concession.

The issues and disputes arose out of an Economic Land Concession granted by the Government of 9052 hectares in February 2010 to the Phnom Penh Sugar company; owned by CPP Senator Ly Yong Phat. The company wishes to use the land as a sugar cane plantation. The concession has affected around 11 villages in the Thpong district; they have raised their concerns over the granted land concession and have yet to find a peaceful resolution. A hundred families have protested about the company starting to clear their land for commercial use.

The Public Forum on Human Rights and Development will provide community members with an opportunity to voice their concerns, ask questions and express their opinions to parliamentarians, local authorities, national and international organizations; as well other stakeholders who are concerned about the conflict and who desire a peaceful resolution.

The Public Forum will take place on May 20, 2010, from 8.a.m. to 11.30 a.m. in Thnol Bambek Village, Amleang Commune, Thpong District, Kamung Speu Province.

For further information, please contact :

Chhim Savuth
Project Coordinator, CCHR
Tel: +588 89 98 58
email: savuth@cchrcambodia.org

SRP MP Men Sothavarin listen to Santouk villagers protest against the dismantling of KR era dam

May 10, 2010: MP Men Sothavarin, SRP provincial chief for Kampong Thom, and Mr. Sun Chanthy, provincial working group with more than 500 villagers from 4 communes in Santouk district, Kampong Thom province gather to protest the dismantling of a Khmer Rouge-era dam. The villagers complain that their lands were confiscated without any compensation from the government.

Officials accused of pillaging villa [-A case of the rich robbing the rich?]

Sok Kong

Authorities carry out an eviction on a Russey Keo district villa in compliance with a Supreme Court warrant on Friday. (Photo supplied)

Tuesday, 11 May 2010
Thet Sambath
The Phnom Penh Post

A FORMERLY well-heeled resident of Russey Keo district says that local authorities robbed her of hundreds of thousands of dollars in jewellery and removed US$2 million worth of property last week while serving a Supreme Court warrant to evict her from her villa.

Hang Borey said $60,000 in cash and $260,000 worth of jewellery were removed from her home during the raid on Friday, along with $2 million worth of other property.

“They removed all my property – I’ve lost everything now,” Hang Borey said. “I was not informed in advance about my removal from the villa.”

Hang Borey said her partner, Yors Sokuntheary, purchased the villa in 2007 from the brother of its Chinese owner, who was serving a jail term overseas. She added, however, that she never received a land title or a deed to the property. Hang Borey says that after the original owner returned to Cambodia, he took her to court in 2008 to get his property back, and that the Supreme Court ruled in his favour earlier this year.

The home’s original owner has since transferred his rights to the property to Sok Kong, president of the Sokimex development company, Hang Borey said. She added that she had filed a complaint against Sok Kong to Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Russey Keo deputy Governor Koub Sleh said district officials were simply following the Supreme Court’s ruling.

“I have no right to talk about the court’s decision. We were just following the court’s warrant,” he said.

Phnom Penh Municipal Court deputy prosecutor Hing Bunchea said he had not seen any money or jewellery lying around the house when local officials entered to serve the warrant.

Sok Kong could not be reached for comment.

Former Khmer Rouge soldiers at the service of a CPP Siamese Senator?

CPP Senator Ly Yong Phat who is also a Siamese citizen by the name of Pad Supa is deploying KR soldiers to oppress Khmer villagers!!!

Former Khmer Rouge battalion deployed in senator's land dispute

Wed, 24 Mar 2010
DPA

Phnom Penh - A Cambodian human rights group on Wednesday condemned the deployment of armed soldiers on behalf of a wealthy ruling party senator in a land dispute with villagers.

A document published last month shows Senator Ly Yong Phat of the Cambodian People's Party is a sponsor of Battalion 313, some of whose soldiers have been sent to his disputed land concession in Kampong Speu province in central Cambodia.

Battalion 313, formerly Khmer Rouge Battalion 37, has in the past been accused of illegal logging in the province.

Naly Pilorge, the director of human rights group Licadho, said the move was one which human rights workers had feared since Prime Minister Hun Sen last month called on local businessmen to partner with military regiments.

"Not a single soldier should be mobilized - whether former Khmer Rouge or not - to defend the interests of businessmen," she said. "Battalion 313 is one of those units that falls into this financial patronage system."

She said around 100 soldiers from three units had been deployed to the area, in addition to police.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence was not available for comment.

The deployment follows last week's protest by hundreds of villagers in Kampong Speu's Omlaing commune after workers from Ly Yong Phat's company tried to clear land for a 10,000-hectare sugar plantation. During the protest villagers burned down the sugar company's makeshift offices in the commune.

A villager told local media that troops had arrived on Tuesday.

"We saw a lot of former Khmer Rouge soldiers and provincial police who have come to protect the company after we burned down the office on Thursday," Suon Ly told the Phnom Penh Post newspaper.

Five villagers are set to appear in the provincial court Wednesday for questioning over the incident. Licadho said at least 500 villagers are headed to the court to support them, despite the presence of soldiers and police.

Land disputes are a growing problem in Cambodia, where land value has skyrocketed in recent years. At least 12 villagers were shot and injured by police last week in a separate land protest in Kampong Speu province.

The government has signed over hundreds of thousands of hectares of land to foreign and local investors in recent years in deals covering agriculture, rubber plantations and mining.

Kampong Speu province is to host thousands of soldiers from the United States and the Association of South-East Asian Nations next month as they take part in the US-led Global Peace Operations Initiative.

Cambodian farmers rise up over "land-grabbing"

CPP Tycoon-Senator-Land thief Ly Yong Phat

Clash between the cops and the residents (Photo: Uon Chhin, RFA)

By Prak Chan Thul

PHNOM PENH, March 19 (Reuters) - Nearly 1,000 angry Cambodian villagers rallied on Friday to oppose what they said was land-grabbing by a local business tycoon, the latest in a series of flare-ups over land disputes in the impoverished country.

The protest in Kompong Speu, 48 km (30 miles) from Phnom Penh, came a day after irate farmers burned down makeshift wooden shelters on a sugar plantation, accusing the company of colluding with the authorities to rob farmers of their land.

Villagers who spoke to Reuters by telephone said some protesters had planned to torch offices belonging to the Phnom Penh Sugar Company, owned by Senator Ly Yong Phat, which was awarded a 9,500-hectare land concession there. The plan was later called off, they said.

Farmer Sun Theng said he had been working the land for 20 years and he and other villagers had been offered meagre compensation of between $100 and $200 for each hectare. They now faced arrest over the torching of the shelter, he said.

"Villagers didn't agree with it but the company said 'if you don't take it, you people will get nothing'. They became angry," Sun Theng said, adding that the protest would continue until there was an amicable solution.

Another farmer, Sao Choeun, added: "The company looks down on us -- how can we survive with $200 per hectare?"

BIG CONCESSIONS

In a move to attract foreign investment to improve its nascent economy, Cambodia has awarded big concessions to companies, mainly from China, Vietnam and South Korea, to run mines, power plants and farms.

Cambodia is also relying on foreign help in modernising and expanding its agriculture, mining and energy sectors to create jobs and boost exports, especially of commodities like rice, rubber and sugar.
However, that has led to a rise in what rights groups and international donors say is a trend of forced evictions by state officials profiting on the sale and lease of farmland and urban real estate for use by foreign and local companies.

Indigenous Cambodians on Wednesday urged the government to suspend hundreds of concessions awarded to foreign and local companies they say are operating on disputed land.

The issue illustrates a risk for investors in Cambodia, where corruption is rife and land deals are sometimes agreed with influential politicians and officials without going through proper legal channels.

Chheng Sophors, an investigator for local human rights group Licadho, said land disputes were becoming increasingly common and a long-term solution was needed.

"Before giving a concession, the government should study carefully the impact on the local communities," he said.

Kang Heang, the provincial governor, said the villagers had cost the company at least $20,000. He blamed rights groups, rival businessmen and politicians for stoking the unrest.

He said the land belonged to the state and the deal was transparent, adding that arrests would be made.

"This kind of thing is normal. When there's new investment, there are problems," Kang Heang told Reuters.

(Editing by Martin Petty)

27 hurt as police try to evict Cambodian villagers

2010-03-18
By SOPHENG CHEANG
Associated Press

Police and villagers clashed Thursday in Cambodia, when authorities tried to evict residents of land awarded to a Taiwanese man by a court, leaving 27 people injured.

Brigadier Gen. Keo Pisey, chief of Kampong Speu province's police, said 100 police officers charged with the eviction were met by some 400 villagers, who attacked the officers as they arrived at the disputed land and wounded 14 of them.

"We were assigned to implement court-ordered eviction proceedings by asking those villagers to move out of the disputed land but once we arrived, we were welcomed by stones, sticks and slingshot," Keo Pisey said.

A representative of the villagers, Son Bun Chhuon, said police arrived with AK-47 rifles, shields and electric batons and beat them. He said 13 villagers were hurt, including a pregnant woman and a 12-year-old boy. He said four of them were in critical condition.

All 13 injured people are being treated at their homes because they fear that if they go to the hospital, the police will return and succeed in ousting them from their land, he added.

In recent years, land disputes have become frequent occurrences in Cambodia, usually pitting poor farmers against developers. Several people have been killed and wounded. Human rights groups have charged that several thousands of urban and rural dwellers have been illegally and inhumanely evicted from land that has been appropriated by corporations and influential individuals.

Keo Pisey, the police official, said he ordered his forces to withdraw from the disputed area - 160 acres (65 hectares) of rice paddies and houses 25 miles (45 kilometers) west of the capital, Phnom Penh - to avoid further violence.

Keo Pisey said the villagers had lost a lawsuit in which a court award the land to the Taiwanese man, but the villagers claimed the land belonged to them and the court just favors the rich and powerful.

Son Bun Chhuon said the land had been owned by the villagers since the collapse of communist Khmer Rouge regime in 1979, but a decade later a senior police officer and the Taiwanese man staked a claim to it and asked the villagers to move away.

"I have only a small piece of land for my home and planting rice; if I lose that land, it means that I will lose my life," he said by telephone. "I would became a beggar and my children will die if our protest is not successful."

Opposition mounts to Cambodian land law

January 5 2010
By Tim Johnston in Bangkok
Financial Times (UK)

Cambodian lawyers, human rights activists and opposition politicians are warning that a new law will weaken safeguards against expropriation of land in a country where routine evictions are already stoking widespread discontent.

The law, passed last week, allows the government to seize land for developments that are in the public interest. The government said the law will allow them to fast-track infrastructure and other projects vital to the country’s interest.

But its opponents say the definition of the public interest is too vague and puts too much power into the hands of the government.

“This is a huge step backwards,” said Mu Sochua, a prominent member of the opposition Sam Rainsy party, who failed to stop the passage of the bill through a house where the party of Hun Sen, the prime minister, controls 90 of the 123 seats.

The law takes force against a backdrop of longstanding accusations that powerful members of the government and security forces have exploited the chaotic state of Cambodia’s land title system.

“Our experience is that when the government has a project they always undervalue the land, and those who do not have full title are particularly vulnerable,” says Khoun Son Muchhim, a lawyer who has acted on behalf of clients who believe they have been shortchanged in land deals with the government.

The attempt by the Khmer Rouge regime to create an agrarian utopia in the 1970s involved not just abolishing land title but destroying all records of past land titles. Mrs Mu Sochua says that less than 30 per cent of people have enforceable land deeds.

Under a Cambodian law passed after the fall of the Khmer Rouge, people who have lived on the same piece of land for five years should qualify for title, but petitioners are frequently moved off their land by well-connected developers, particularly in areas around Phnom Penh where land values have shot up as the economy has gathered strength.

“If land is expropriated, this law is not going to protect those without full title, they will not be able to get compensation,” she said.

“This is not just a matter of the poor being affected – although they will inevitably be victims – but it also means that a business opened by a foreign company can be subject to expropriation,” she said.

Cambodia’s opposition parties scent political opportunity in the widespread discontent over land issues. A court recently issued a summons against Sam Rainsy, the opposition leader, who is accused of damaging property and inciting racial hatred for pulling up markers set out by a border commission to demarcate the boundary between Cambodia and Vietnam.

Mr Sam Rainsy, who had his parliamentary immunity revoked for the second time in 2009 so he could stand trial, is currently in Europe. Mrs Mu Sochua said he would only return when two villagers who are being held in prison for similar offences are released.

Forced eviction in Russei Keo - The pictures speak for themselves

Photo: DAP News (Pro-CPP news media)
Photo: Chulthea, Koh Santepheap (Pro-CPP news media)
Photo: The Phnom Penh Post
Photo: Koh Santepheap (Pro-CPP news media)
Photo: Koh Santepheap (Pro-CPP news media)
Photo: Sovan Philong, The Phnom Penh Post