Land reform in Cambodia was met with success?24 October 2007
By Mom Sophon
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
Prime Minister Hun Sen made the claim to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) delegates and President, in the morning of 23 October, that his government is successful in bringing land reform in Cambodia.
Ieng Sophalet, Hun Sen’s spokesman for the meeting between Hun Sen and the IPU delegation, indicated that the meeting held between Hun Sen and Mrs. Ann Clwyd, a MP and IPU President, at the National Assembly, was to allow the IPU to understand about land and education problems in Cambodia.
Ieng Sophalet said: “The direction of the visit to Cambodia by the parliamentary delegation at this time, is to understand the problem of land reform in Cambodia, as well as the education issue in Cambodia. In response to the land issue problems in Cambodia, which the delegation wants to know about, Samdach (Hun Sen) said that Cambodia is inserting numerous reforms into the government rectangular strategy. And, the reform in this strategy was put into application and was successful when it comes to all these land problems.”
Regarding the land problems, opposition leader Sam Rainsy said that the resolution brought forth by the government was not successful yet because land disputes bring hardship to a number of people still.
Sam Rainsy said: “I believe it is contrary to what the government says. I don’t agree with it because it does not go down smoothly anywhere, there’s no success anywhere, we only see an increase in the number of land disputes, and they become more severe as well. The victims are being chased out of their homes, their lands are being confiscated, therefore, this is not a measure of success, it’s a failure and a major concern for all the Cambodian people.”
SRP MP Son Chhay indicated that the IPU delegates and the IPU President do not seem to trust the government report at all. He said that the government claimed it successfully resolved the land dispute problems, but yet there are many people protesting about land disputes in Phnom Penh.
Chum Bunrong, spokesman for the National Authority for the Resolution of Land Disputes (NARLD) said that, in the first 6 months of 2007, the NARLD received 116 complaints, and it managed to resolve some of the complaints through various expertise organizations.
Ieng Sophalet, Hun Sen’s spokesman for the meeting between Hun Sen and the IPU delegation, indicated that the meeting held between Hun Sen and Mrs. Ann Clwyd, a MP and IPU President, at the National Assembly, was to allow the IPU to understand about land and education problems in Cambodia.
Ieng Sophalet said: “The direction of the visit to Cambodia by the parliamentary delegation at this time, is to understand the problem of land reform in Cambodia, as well as the education issue in Cambodia. In response to the land issue problems in Cambodia, which the delegation wants to know about, Samdach (Hun Sen) said that Cambodia is inserting numerous reforms into the government rectangular strategy. And, the reform in this strategy was put into application and was successful when it comes to all these land problems.”
Regarding the land problems, opposition leader Sam Rainsy said that the resolution brought forth by the government was not successful yet because land disputes bring hardship to a number of people still.
Sam Rainsy said: “I believe it is contrary to what the government says. I don’t agree with it because it does not go down smoothly anywhere, there’s no success anywhere, we only see an increase in the number of land disputes, and they become more severe as well. The victims are being chased out of their homes, their lands are being confiscated, therefore, this is not a measure of success, it’s a failure and a major concern for all the Cambodian people.”
SRP MP Son Chhay indicated that the IPU delegates and the IPU President do not seem to trust the government report at all. He said that the government claimed it successfully resolved the land dispute problems, but yet there are many people protesting about land disputes in Phnom Penh.
Chum Bunrong, spokesman for the National Authority for the Resolution of Land Disputes (NARLD) said that, in the first 6 months of 2007, the NARLD received 116 complaints, and it managed to resolve some of the complaints through various expertise organizations.
