CITA's letter to PM Hun Xen on land-grabbing of Kosamak high school case

"Cambodian tears from land-grabbing under the new Yuon colonialism disguised as companies" - Anonymous leaflet distributed in PPenh on Ban Ki-moon's visit

Click on the leaflet in Khmer to zoom in

Cambodian Farmers Fear Losing Land as Developers Move to Countryside - VOA Khmer

Construction is booming across Cambodia as the government tries to maintain high economic growth and attract foreign investment. But as farm land and forests are being cleared for factories and vast commercial agriculture operations, small farmers face increasing uncertainty about their future.

Ethnic minority in Ratanakiri sue a Yuon company for land-grabbing

14 Sept 2010
Free Press Magazine Online
Translated from Khmer by Ko Theak
Click here to read the article in Khmer

About 20 families of Cambodian ethnic minority living in Ratanakiri province are preparing a lawsuit against a Viet company that is clearing and grabbing their farmlands.

Bou Vit, the Ta Veng village chief, indicated that a company by the name of Crong Bok(?) that received a land concession grant from the government in 2009 cleared up farmlands belonging to local villagers. He added: “The company cleared [the villagers’] rice fields, cashew farmlands and community forest. They destroyed everything. A few months ago they even bulldozed down a house.”

A representative of the villagers indicated that the Viet company brought in dozers to clear rice fields, cashew farmlands and forests belonging to Jaran (Jarai?) ethnic minority villagers and grabbed the land for itself. The representative indicated that about 40 to 50 villagers met with the village chief and the commune chief, asking them to help find a resolution after the villagers sent two complaints to the provincial authority and to the civil society to no avail.

Rights Workers Faced Increased Duress in 2008, 2009: Report

Licadho President Pung Chhiv Kek told VOA Khmer Wednesday the increase was a result of a judicial system that was biased toward the rich or powerful. (Photo: The Phnom Penh Post)

Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Wednesday, 01 September 2010

“Most of the violence has happened to community representatives in land grabs and in land violence against the Khmer Kampuchea Krom.”

Cambodian human rights workers say they have faced increasing threats and pressure for doing their work over the past two years from police, courts and government officials.

In a report issued Wednesday examining the years 2008 and 2009, the rights group Licadho said it found “the intensified use of the courts as a weapon,... increased use of defamation and disinformation laws to restrict freedom of expression... [and] increased restriction on freedom of association and assembly.”

Licadho President Pung Chhiv Kek told VOA Khmer Wednesday the increase was a result of a judicial system that was biased toward the rich or powerful.

Ministry of Interior spokesman Khieu Sopheak denied the finding of the reports, reporting to the number of Licadho staff in the provinces. Were threats and intimidation as bad as reported, he said, Licadho would not have staff there.

Ou Virak, director of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, supported the findings in the report.

“Violence has progressed, not only for the NGOs,” he said. “Most of the violence has happened to community representatives in land grabs and in land violence against the Khmer Kampuchea Krom.”

The group called on the government to combat the culture of impunity and corruption by prosecuting government officials responsible for threats and attacks, including investigations into the “unresolved assassinations or disappearances” of 10 journalists since the 1990s.

Licadho also called on the government to cease arresting rights workers in the middle of their duties, to allow peaceful protests to proceed “unhindered by police obstruction of violence” and to “cease using bail as a way of threatening human rights defenders.”

“Bail is meant to avoid unnecessary pretrial detention, not as a probation mechanism to intimidate or control the activities of human rights defenders,” the group said.

Begging is all they can do to get help for the land-grabbing they suffered

Villagers from Chi Khor district, Koh Kong province, are seen begging the authority to help resolve the land-grabbing dispute with the Heng Huy Company that lasted since long ago (Photo: Adhoc)

Chi Kreng Case Update

Wounded villagers in Chikreng (Photo: Licadho)

Dear All,

The trial of nine villagers from Chi Kraeng commune is scheduled to resume at Siem Reap Provincial Court on Monday August 2 at 8:00am. The accused villagers are charged with attempted intentional manslaughter under Article 4 of the Law on aggravating circumstances of felonies. The charges arose after a dispute between villagers from Chi Kraeng and police, stemming from a long-running land dispute between villagers in Chi Kraeng and neighbouring Anlong Samnon commune. On March 22, 2009, military police opened fire on villagers from Chi Kraeng with AK-47 assault rifles, wounding four. Nine of the villagers were subsequently arrested and charged with attempted voluntary manslaughter after military police alleged that the villagers threatened them with machetes. The villagers were refused bail and have remained in pre-trial detention awaiting a hearing since March 2009.

On July 27, 2010 the trial commenced with a strong security presence. Journalists were barred from entering the courtroom after the court initially stated that the proceedings were closed to the public. The court later back-tracked stating that proceedings would be conducted publicly but noting that court officials could not allow many people to enter the courtroom due to its small size. After interrogation of the accused by the prosecutor and judges, the hearing was adjourned at 11:45am due to the complexity of the case and the requirement to hear a number of witnesses.

A trial monitor from the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, Mr. Vann Sophath, contactable at 012 941 206, will attend the hearing on Monday to monitor the continuation of proceedings.

Thank you and Kind Regards
CCHR

MP Mu Sochua with villagers in Kampot

June 15, 2010: SRP MP Mu Sochua, along with commune, district and provincial councilors visited people in Chey Sena village, Taken commune, Chhuk district, Kampot province. The purpose of the visit was to discuss problems regarding living standards, especially on land-grabbing. The villagers are facing land-grabbing from local dealers.

Part 1 of 3


Part 2 of 3


Part 3 of 3

CCHR's Public Forum on Human Rights and Development for indigenous communities affected by illegal land grabbing

CAMBODIAN CENTER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

MEDIA ALERT
For immediate release – Rattanakiri, June 16, 2010

Public Forum on Human Rights and Development for indigenous communities affected by illegal land grabbing

Since 2004 around 600 families from indigenous communities have been affected by illegal land grabbing and government granted land concessions totaling over 25 000 hectors in Rattanakiri Province. Many have been forced evicted from their land and their homes, resulting in the deterioration of their traditional way of life and culture. The indigenous communities remain in conflict with the government and private companies stealing their land and are seeking peaceful resolutions.

On the 17 June 2010 the indigenous communities, including representatives from the Charaiy, Phnorng and Tum Poun people, will have an opportunity to raise their concerns directly with parliamentarians, local authorities, civil societies, community members, and other stakeholders at a Public Forum on “Human Rights and Development” in Rattanatikiri Province. The Public Forum will consider the issues and disputes faced by the local indigenous communities relating to economic land concessions, and illegal land grabbing as they press for peaceful resolutions to the conflicts.

Kuch Moly, Funcinpec Party; Yem Punhrith, Human Rights Party; Long Ry, Sam Rainsy Party – all parliamentarians - together with Sok Hom, Provincial Council, and Ban Bunna from Adhoc have confirmed attendance at the Public Forum. Around 300 people from the indigenous communities are expected to attend.

The Public Forum will take place on June 17, 2010, from 8.a.m. to 11.30 a.m. at Adhoc’s office in village III, Sangkat Laban Siek, Banlung City, Rattanakiri Province.

For further information, please contact :

Chhim Savuth
Project Coordinator, CCHR
Tel: +855 (12) 89 98 58
email: savuth@cchrcambodia.org

Even communist China is involved in land-grabbing in Cambodia?

Protesters target resort plans

Tuesday, 18 May 2010
May Titthara
The Phnom Penh Post

HUNDREDS of villagers from Koh Kong province say they will gather at the National Assembly in Phnom Penh today to protest against a Chinese company they say has cheated them out of land to make way for a US$3.8 billion seaside resort project.

Locals say China’s state-owned Union Development Group, which is developing the 36,000-hectare coastal tourist zone, has reneged on promises to provide compensation for more than 1,000 families affected by the project in Botum Sakor and Kiri Sakor districts.

Keo Khorn, a village representative, said that during negotiations with provincial authorities and company representatives in January, villagers were told they would receive compensation of $8,000 per hectare. But he said they are now being offered only $300 per hectare and told that if they do not accept, they will receive nothing. Most villagers, he added, have refused to accept the lower offer.

Villager Che Hean said that on April 29, the provincial governor showed villagers a letter signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen that cancelled their land titles and said their land had been awarded to Union Development Group.

“The letter cancelled the villagers’ land titles and ... set a one-month deadline for villagers to move off the land,” he said. “The deadline has nearly been reached, so the villagers are worried we will lose our land. That is why we will go to ask for the prime minister’s help.”

Though most villagers have 20 to 30 hectares of land, the authorities are also only offering to provide 5 hectares’ worth of compensation to each family, he added.

The concession, which was approved by the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) in 2008, also appears to be in violation of Article 59 of the Land Law, which limits concessions to 10,000 hectares.

“I am not surprised,” said Ou Virak, president of Cambodian Center for Human Rights. “There are a lot of Chinese and Vietnamese companies which receive more than the legal limit.”

Kiri Sakor district Governor Chheng Chhe said villagers had travelled to Phnom Penh to protest because they suspected district officials had colluded with the company to cheat them. “If we had known this before, we would not have allowed them to go to Phnom Penh,” he said.

He said that about 100 families have agreed to relocate so far. “We will provide each family with 2 hectares of farmland and a 50-metre-by-100-metre plot on which they can construct a home,” he said.

Ouch Leng, land programme officer for rights group Adhoc, said the government should intervene in land disputes pitting property developers against villagers in order to find an “acceptable resolution”.

“The government thinks too much about money, they do not care about the law,” he said.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY WILL BAXTER

Villagers in Rattanakiri protested against a Vietnamese company for grabbing their lands

Friday, 26 March 2010
By Khmerization
Source: RFA

Hundreds of villagers from Lumchor commune in O'Yadao district of Rattanakiri province claimed a Vietnamese company is continuing to bulldoze their lands and intransigently refusing to pay any compensation to them, reports Radio Free Asia.

Villagers said as of 25th March, the Vietnamese mining company named Hang An Rattanakiri, has used heavy machinery to bulldoze their rice fields and vegetable gardens without paying any compensation for the damges to their lands and crops.

The villagers claimed that Hang An Rattanakiri had used 4 bulldozers and 10 Vietnamese workers to bulldoze their lands since the beginning of January. On 14th January, 50 villagers had chased them out from the village and confiscated the company's machinery, but it returned later.

Villagers said the company's machinery had been actively digging and bulldozing their vegetable gardens and rice fields up until today. "They dig in the vegetable farms and in the forests. They dig illegally even in the forests and they have dug 6 metres deep inside the ground and all the lands have been destroyed", said a villager.

Mr. Sev Thven, chief of Lumchor commune, said Hang An Rattanakiri, had received a mining licence from the Ministry of Mining and Energy to explore for minierals in O'Yadoa from 2010 to 2011.

Hem Vanthorn, director of Office of Mining in Rattanakiri, said any companies that receive permits from the Ministry of Mining and Energy have every right to conduct their explorations on the concessions granted to them. However, he said the companies must consult the villagers if their lands have been impacted.

A week ago, hundreds of villagers in Kampong Speu rose up, rioted and burned down offices of a Sugar Firm owned by Senator Ly Yong Phat, a senator from the ruling Cambodian People's Party, they accused of grabbing their lands.

Sacrava's Political Cartoon: Expropriation Law

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

Stop State Terrorism in Cambodia: Sam Rainsy

23 December 2009

STOP STATE TERRORISM IN CAMBODIA

Today the Cambodian authorities took two hostages among innocent people in Svay Rieng province. Two villagers in Samraong commune, Ms. Meas Srey, 39, and Mr. Prum Chea, 41, were arrested in connection with the 25 October incident in Koh Kban Kandal village where I uprooted six wooden poles that were supposed to be border posts separating Cambodia from Vietnam.

Meas Srey and Prum Chea are two Cambodian farmers who have recently lost their land because of border encroachments by the Vietnamese authorities with the complicity of their much weaker Cambodian counterparts. You can see and hear them in this video clip http://tinyurl.com/yfmakb5. Standing next to me, they were the only two persons to loudly air their grievances in a direct phone interview with Washington-based Radio Free Asia. The six wooden poles that were pulled out were planted on Meas Srey’s rice field.

In the video clip, Meas Srey said the Vietnamese authorities were in the process of seizing her one-hectare rice field which her family had been cultivating since 1979.

Prum Chea said he had already lost his nearby two-hectare rice field to the Vietnamese. He added he was very disappointed with the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) who had promised, before the last local elections, to defend villagers’ land and Cambodia’s territory.

Meas Srey and Prum Chea are actually thorns in the eyes of CPP leaders. In their 16 November letter to His Majesty King Father Norodom Sihanouk, CPP leaders Chea Sim, Hun Sen and Heng Samrin wrote, "Up to now, not a single Cambodian farmer [living near the border with Vietnam] has lost their rice field [because of alleged border encroachments by the Vietnamese authorities]." http://tinyurl.com/ylexj9s

As previously stated, I take full responsibility for uprooting the six wooden poles in Svay Rieng province. From a legal and judicial point of view I am the only person to be prosecuted.

At best, Meas Srey and Prum Chea are scapegoats because the CPP authorities cannot reach me while I am abroad but they need and want to frighten villagers into stopping popular protests against land grabbing associated with border encroachments. These protests are embarrassing for both the Cambodian and the Vietnamese governments.

At worst, the CPP authorities are trying to eliminate witnesses and victims altogether in order to forcibly put an end to the otherwise worsening land issue that could get out of control.

As I pointed out in my 21 December statement “The real court is in Hanoi” http://tinyurl.com/y99gv8w the CPP authorities are organizing a show trial in Cambodia which is a perfect illustration of a travesty of justice. In order to force the population into doing something it wants them to do for its shady interest, the CPP started today to take two innocent persons hostage, thus using terrorist methods.

Democrats all over the world must help resist dictatorship and stop state terrorism in Cambodia.

Sam Rainsy
Member of Parliament

KKF participate in the Universal Periodic Review on Cambodia

Friday, 04 December 2009
UNPO

At another meeting, Sam Rainsy, the President of the opposition Party in Cambodia along with NGOs such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) discussed how to put into place procedures to ensure that the Cambodian Government follow recommendations with the ultimate aim of encouraging Cambodia to represent a strong democratic country.

The Universal Periodic Review for Cambodia yields disappointing results as no attention is dedicated to indigenous or minority rights.

On 1st December, Cambodia faced examination of their human rights situation under the sixth session of the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR). A delegation from UNPO Member the Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation (KKF) attended Cambodia’s review session in Geneva. M Thhai Makarar from the Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation Youth Committee said he was ‘disappointed’ by the outcome of the review. He stated that although H.E. Mr. Sun Suon, the Permanent Representative of Cambodia spoke for an hour, the problems facing indigenous and minority peoples were not raised on this crucial international stage.

During the interactive dialogue, questions were put to Cambodia by state representatives expressing concern about land grabbing, freedom of expression, lack of an independent of the juridical system and the immunity of the opposition party. There was controversy however since the list of speakers on Cambodia was cut due to time constraints, which will impact negatively on the scope of the recommendations which will be taken into account in the Report of the Working Group.

The Khmer Kampuchea Krom were mentioned specifically three times in the Joint Stakeholders Submission - the collective contributions from non-governmental organizations on human rights concerns which should be considered during the review process. The report mentions the difficulties faced by the Khmer Kampuchea Krom in obtaining citizenship including the resulting insecurity, the denial of right to vote and inability to occupy property or own land. The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization is quoted in the report recommending that Cambodia should acknowledge the indigenous status of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom and end the forceful repatriation of Khmer refugees from Cambodia to neighbouring countries.

Instead of addressing these pertinent issues and recommendations, the Permanent Representative of Cambodia claimed that the Cambodian Government had ‘achieved a great deal to develop their country.’ UNPO considers it unfortunate that Cambodia neglected to address substantial human rights concerns and failed to respond to constructive recommendations concerning the indigenous status of the Khmer Kampuchea Krom.

Despite being procedurally ineligible to address the Human Rights Council during the review, KKF representatives were able to raise their concerns with the Assistant to the Special Rapporteur on Indigenous People. KKF delegates met with Ms Lydie Vendre at a side event in the Palais Wilson to discuss the widespread violation of religious and cultural rights, repression of the freedom of expression, concern for refugees in Thailand and the confiscation of the ancestral land as the case of M Vinh Ba.

At another meeting, Sam Rainsy, the President of the opposition Party in Cambodia along with NGOs such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) discussed how to put into place procedures to ensure that the Cambodian Government follow recommendations with the ultimate aim of encouraging Cambodia to represent a strong democratic country. The KKF delegation also lobbied countries including Switzerland, Germany and United States of America to assist them to raise their concerns with Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.

The adoption of Cambodia’s report was due to take place yesterday (Thursday 3rd December) and UNPO anticipates the publication of the ‘Outcome Report’ which will be adopted at a plenary session of the Human Rights Council.

A podcast of Cambodia’s UPR can be watched here

Cambodia confronts UN panel

Click here to watch the video online
(scroll down to section on Cambodia (2 videos) and click the appropriate language)

Thursday, 03 December 2009
Sebastian Strangio
The Phnom Penh Post

Free speech, land rights high on list of Western concerns.

LAND rights and freedom of expression dominated discussions as Cambodia came before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva for its formal rights review on Tuesday.

During a three-hour session, the Council’s 47 members questioned Cambodia on rights-related issues after the presentation of a government report by Sun Suon, Cambodia’s ambassador to the UN.

“Cambodia fully shares the view that all human rights are universal, indivisible and interdependent,” Sun Suon told the Council, adding that rights promotion should take into account the “historical, political, economic, social and cultural reality of the country and its particularities”.

But in their questions to the Cambodian delegation, several Western nations highlighted the issue of freedom of expression, brought into question after a string of lawsuits against critics of the government.

“We note a number of concerns with regard to the use of justice in order to limit freedom of expression and political freedom,” said John Von Kaufman, representing Canada.

The German delegation pointed to reports of “the intimidation of human rights defenders, NGOs, the media and even in some cases, the lifting of the immunity of parliamentarians”.

“Germany would like to know how the government reconciles such restrictive approaches … with its obligations it entered into when it ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,” said German delegate Michael Klepsch.

Lina Van Der Weyden, representing Sweden, also expressed concern about increased reports of forced evictions resulting from “legally doubtful land concessions”, calling for a moratorium on evictions until the necessary “safeguards” are in place.

Other delegations, however, diverged sharply from the criticisms of Western governments. The Indian delegation, led by Gopinathan Achamkulangare, acknowledged the “challenges and constraints” faced by nations after decades of conflict, and said it “appreciates the prioritising of poverty reduction by the government in its efforts to promote human rights through the National Strategic Development Plan”.

Kyam Myo Htut from Myanmar said he was “delighted to hear of the major achievements which came in the implementation of [government development] strategies”.

When asked whether the presence of known rights abusers – including Myanmar, Russia, China and Vietnam – on the council marred the universal periodic review process, rights defenders said its composition gave little measure of its credibility and performance.

“The most important thing is its own mandate, which is comprehensive and far reaching,” Surya Subedi, the UN special rapporteur on human rights to Cambodia, said by email.

“The UPR is a relatively new mechanism, but it already has delivered some positive results for people around the globe.”

Christophe Peschoux, director of the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Cambodia, said improvements in the rights situation are largely contingent on the government’s actions.

“It’s not just a one-off exercise – the UPR is one moment in a process,” he said. “But what matters more is the extent to which the government takes the [council’s] recommendations into account.”

The results from Tuesday’s session will go towards shaping an outcome document that is set to be adopted by the council today.

Unsettled peace in Cambodia

September 17, 2009
By Chak Sopheap
Guest Commentary
UPI Asia

Niigata, Japan — The world will soon once again celebrate the United Nations International Day of Peace, marked every year on Sept. 21. Yet the world is far from peace as civil wars, religious conflicts, growing insurgencies and the economic downturn bring more hardship than joy and smiles to people. Cambodia is no exception.

Cambodia claims to be a peaceful state, having recovered from a series of civil wars that included horrendous acts of genocide. However, there must be a clear consensus on how the country defines peace.

Peace should not be described as merely the absence of war or violence, which is “negative peace.” It should also include communal harmony, socioeconomic cooperation and equal political representation in government for all citizens. These, along with good governance, which respects the rights of the people, constitute the positive side of peace, or rather peace building.

Even when we say “absence of violence,” we must first examine what violence is. While war is direct visible violence, there is also a kind of “structural violence,” the result of bad and harmful state policies that have long-term negative effects on people, such as hunger and poverty, which harm and put peoples’ lives at risk.

If we look at the current trend in Cambodia, negative peace has been obtained but is jeopardizing positive peace. While parts of the economy are making considerable progress, more than 30 percent of the population is still living in extreme poverty. In addition, with corruption and continuous human rights violations – especially forced evictions and land grabbing under so-called development claims – there is little hope that Cambodia can move out of poverty.

In its current pursuit of development, the government of Cambodia has abused and violated people’s rights to housing and development. The judicial system is corrupt and the state is the main violator of the law. This state of affairs has rendered poor communities voiceless and powerless.

At the same time, freedom of expression – a fundamental right – has also been abused by the government, which applies various ill-defined laws with the help of the judiciary it controls as a political tool to silence critics. It is not surprising that the government recently filed many lawsuits against political activists, journalists and human rights defenders.

Systematic structural violence has not yet affected peace in Cambodia, but it will soon if the government does not undertake and implement reforms immediately. For example, there is fear that the ongoing land grabbing and evictions by the government could lead to a peasant revolution. This would then revive the cycle of bitter agrarian revolution that brought past political regimes, like Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge, to power.

The government therefore must commit to not only maintaining negative peace, but also to building positive peace in order to attain social harmony.
--
(Chak Sopheap is a graduate student of peace studies at the International University of Japan. She runs a blog, www.sopheapfocus.com, in which she shares her impressions of both Japan and her homeland, Cambodia. She was previously advocacy officer of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights.)

US Congress to review the violations of human rights and abuses of the judicial system in Cambodia

SRP MP Mu Sochua and Ho Vann
Forced eviction in Dey Krahorm

27 August 2009
By Moeung Tum
Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (TLHRC) of the US Congress plans to hold a public hearing to discuss the current violations of human rights and abuses of the judicial system in Cambodia.

The public hearing is scheduled for 10 September 2009, between 1 and 3 PM at the US Congress in Washington DC.

According to the announcement issued by office of the co-chairs of the US Congresss human rights committee, dated 26 August 2009, the committee plans to invite SRP MP Mu Sochua, Dr. Pung Chiv Kek, President of the Licadho human rights group, Moeun Tola, President of the Cambodia Labor Organization, to participate in the hearing, as well as representatives of the US State Department.

The public hearing plans to focus on social problems in Cambodia. The TLHRC organized this public hearing after it received numerous information from trusted sources showing that the Phnom Penh regime is using the legal system to discriminate against the opposition and opposition activists, against journalists who criticize the government and against victims of land dispute cases. The government does not provide justice to people in the resolution of land disputes, but instead, it is supporting the companies [accused of land-grabbing] in full violation of human rights. These issues are major concerns for the US.

New UN rapporteur concerned about land rights in Cambodia

Surya Subedi (Photo: Reuters)

June 29, 2009
ABC Radio Australia

The new UN special envoy for human rights to Cambodia says a corrupt judiciary, forced evictions and land grabs are the country's most pressing issues.

Nepali-born Surya Prasad Subedi is Professor of International Law at Leeds University. Professor Subedi has just spent ten days in Cambodia.

Presenter: Sen Lam
Speakers: Surya Prasad Subedi, UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Cambodia

Click here to listen to the audio program (Windows Media)

SUBEDI: The impression I have formed after meeting so many people both within the government and outside of the government, NGO people, people who have been evicted from the land, other pressure groups, I have met a broad section of the population and have come to the conclusion there are serious human rights issues here that have to be tackled and I will doing my best to help the government to tackle those problems.

LAM: Yours is a delicate job of course. You are the UN representative of UN Secretary-General, and at the same time you must work with the Cambodian Government, which in the past, hasn't taken criticism to well. Do you think that might pose a huge challenge to you?

SUBEDI: Indeed, I am aware on the rather unpleasant relationship between the government of Cambodia and my predecessor - that is always the risk for any special rapporteur, because your mission, your mandate is to promote human rights and be critical where there are shortcomings and failures. If people are willing to accept the shortcomings and engage in a constructive dialogue, then we can be effective. But I met the prime minister and a number of other senior ministers and I was pleased that they have acknowledged that there are shortcomings and they would like to engage in a constructive dialogue with me. I have noticed that there was a change in approach, a change in tone at least, during my first visit to Cambodia.

My meeting with the prime minister this time was a cordial one. It lasted for nearly two hours and I was able to raise a number of issues with him, especially relating to the rights of people evicted from land and their settlement problems and other issues relating to corruption and the independence of the judiciary, clearer separation of power between the three main branches of the government - mainly the legislative, judiciary and the executive. And he was listening to me attentively, and that gave me certain indication that perhaps they are willing to listen to me and work with me, but it remains to be seen how they will react when I go into the details.

LAM: The question of forced eviction and land grabs in Cambodia, for instance. Many of these developers have links to people in high office. Do you think that might pose a huge insurmountable challenge to getting some kind of justice for these people who were forcibly removed from the land?

SUBEDI: There are very many difficulties that lie ahead, but again my approach would be to give them concerted set of recommendations. If you were to do the following things, perhaps the situation would be better. For instance, those forcibly evicted from the land don't have a great deal of confidence in the judiciary. So if the judiciary were to strengthen, independence of the judiciary was enhanced, corruption was controlled, then people would go to court, and to get their legal remedies. For instance, those who have possession rights over the land, but not a proper title, they can go and prove their case before a court of law. That should be the way in a democracy, so that these are the areas that we can planning to pay particular attention during my work.

LAM: Well, you have just finished a ten-day tour of Cambodia. When do you intend to return to the country?

SUBEDI: Hopefully in the second half of November, and at that time I will have a special focus on certain areas, but have land rights and the resettlement issues would be on the top of my list and then make a series of recommendations to the government and to the United Nations.

LAM: What to your mind is the most pressing human rights issue in Cambodia today?

SUBEDI: The most pressing right is the independence of the judiciary and the freedom of speech. These are the two overall key issues, but within that you have the third one will be people evicted from their land and the resettlement. I have identified already these three areas as the private areas of my work.

Villagers curse Mondulkiri plantation

Khaou Chuly, the Sino-Cambodian tycoon cursed by ethnic Phnong

A Phnong woman attends a traditional ceremony Tuesday in Mondulkiri's Pouteut village to appease their ancestors and protect their land from a local rubber plantation. (Photo by: Bill Herod)

Friday, 19 June 2009
Written by Sam Rith and Sebastian Strangio
The Phnom Penh Post

Ethnic Phnong community resorts to tradition in dispute with Franco-Cambodian rubber venture.

ETHNIC Phnong villagers in Mondulkiri's Bou Sra commune held traditional ceremonies Tuesday to appease ancestral spirits and curse a joint French-Cambodian rubber plantation they say has robbed them of large tracts of communal farmland, participants said.

The ceremony took place in Pouteut village, which lies inside a 10,000-hectare rubber concession granted to the Khaou Chuly Co and French rubber giant Socfin, they said.

"Residents sacrificed a buffalo, dedicating it to the spirits of our ancestors and the neak ta spirits who look after the forests, to help protect our remaining land," said a Phnong community representative who did not want to be named.

"According to our traditional beliefs, if the company continues clearing the land [it] will meet problems."

Bill Herod, an adviser for Village Focus Cambodia who works with Phnong youth, said the ceremony, which took place next to a large rubber company excavator, began with the beating of traditional gongs before the buffalo was sacrificed and its head placed on an altar.

After village elders drank ceremonial rice wine from earthen jars, the villagers then cooked and ate the meat, he added, sharing it with local police.

Pouteut village is one of seven villages in Bou Sra commune that claim to have been affected by the rubber companies, which were granted their first 2,500-hectare concession in late 2007 and began clearing forest early last year.

Tensions came to a head in December, when angry villagers, claiming the destruction of spirit forests and rotational farmland, torched and smashed machinery belonging to Khaou Chuly Co in the commune's Bou Sra village.

"If the company continues clearing the land [it] will have problems."

So far, the community representative said, Socfin has cleared about 200 hectares of rotational farmland in the vicinity of Pouteut village.

"We want to keep the farmland and forests not only for human beings, but also for wild animals.... We do not want to allow any company, whether Khaou Chuly or the French company, to clear the land and forest any further," he said.

Saving the situation
When contacted Wednesday, Socfin General Manager Philippe Monnin declined to comment on the situation.

But in an interview at Bou Sra in April, he told the Post the company was trying to enlist the support of international development agencies - including the French government's French Development Agency - to offset the negative impacts on local communities.

Mondulkiri Deputy Governor Yim Lux said Socfin was offering compensation to people who had lost farmland, but added that villagers were making confusing claims.

"We have already measured the land that belongs to them, but they are claiming more forest land that does not belong to them. For this, they have to adhere to the law," he said.

But Herod said that despite the relaxed atmosphere Tuesday, locals were still uncertain about the rubber plantation and what its long-term impact would be.

"[The Phnong] didn't know which way to turn. They are still unclear about exactly what's happening ... or where they're supposed to farm," he said.

"From the perspective of the [Phnong], the giant machines ploughing their forests, rice fields, gardens, graves and other spiritual sites are weapons of mass destruction."

Plantation highlights struggle of development and preservation

Khaou Pallaboth, former son-in-law of Chea Xim, brother-in-law of CPP minister Sun Chanthol and son of tycoon Khaou Chuly. Khoau Chuly is a businessman who has been wheeling and dealing with several regimes: Sihanouk's Sangkum Reastr Niyum, Lon Nol's Khmer republic, Hun Sen's regime.

Ethnic Phnong houses sit on recently cleared rubber plantation land in Mondulkiri's Bou Sra commune. (Photo by: SEBASTIAN STRANGIO)

Monday, 25 May 2009
Written by Christopher Shay and Sebastian Strangio
The Phnom Penh Post

Ethnic minority community says a giant rubber conglomerate is destroying its traditional culture, as plantation officials insist that the company is bringing much-needed work to the area.

Mondulkiri Province

FIVE months after an angry mob smashed and burned machinery belonging to a local rubber company in Mondulkiri province's Bou Sra village, ethnic minority residents in the area say their culture and livelihoods remain in danger from new plantations that have displaced them from their ancestral farmlands.

"They've lost hope," said Bill Herod, an adviser for Village Focus Cambodia who works with Phnong youth in the provincial capital Sen Monorom.

"We in the West talk negatively about slash-and-burn, but this is slash-and-burn by the company."

According to an article in Science, the expansion of rubber plantations in Southeast Asia could double or triple by 2050, doing far more damage than traditional farming methods.

And while the Bou Sra plantation owners say they seek to balance their interests with those of the local communities, residents and advocates say the situation is symptomatic of the unrestrained development that is harming other indigenous populations.

Residents in Mondulkiri say more than 800 families in seven villages - the majority of them from the Phnong ethnic minority - have had plots of land taken by the rubber plantation, claiming there was no consultation prior to the granting of the concessions.

"They just came and took my land," said Umbarup Sherup, a Bou Sra village resident who said he received no compensation from the company.

"When we came to meet the company [they] said they would take the land whether we agreed to it or not."

Another resident, who declined to be named, said the villagers were not given a choice.

"When we came to meet the company, [they] said they would take the land whether we agreed to it or not," the resident said. "Now we have nothing."

In late 2007, government authorities granted 2,500 hectares in economic land concessions to a joint venture between the local Khaou Chuly Group and the French rubber conglomerate Socfin.

In early April, Khaou Chuly Group President Khaou Phallaboth signed an agreement with Minister of Agriculture Chan Sarun granting his company a further 2,705 hectares in the area.

"We hope to receive a total economic land concession of over 20,000 hectares from the government by 2010 to grow rubber trees," Khaou Phallaboth told the Post at the time.

After clearing began last year, village representatives travelled to Phnom Penh in June to deliver a personal plea to Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The dispute came to a head in December, when a frustrated group of villagers destroyed machinery belonging to Khaou Chuly Group.

"No one is happy with them. They do whatever they want, and they don't care about the people," said one Phnong community representative, who declined to give her name for fear of reprisals. "In the future, the Phnong people will die out because we have no forests."

Chith Sam Ath, executive director of the NGO Forum on Cambodia, said an investigation by his organisation found that the rubber project had led to the loss of traditional agricultural land, water supplies and spirit forests, and had impeded access to schooling for some village children.

"Socfin or Khaou Chuly [should] focus strongly on consultation with the community regarding environmental impacts and impacts on their livelihoods ... and find a solution with the community before they start their project implementation," he said by email.

When contacted by the Post, Kao Phallaboth declined to comment in detail, saying day-to-day management was in the hands of Socfin officials.
Reversing the damage

Socfin sources say that following the burning of the tractors, managerial control was assumed by their company, which says it has adopted a more conciliatory approach.

Socfin General Manager Philippe Monnin said the company was doing all it can to help the community and offset the impact of the plantations.

At Socfin's invitation, Monnin said Medicins du Monde, a French NGO, had helped construct a local hospital, and that the company hoped to bring in the French governmental development agency AFD to revitalise the community.

"Our plan is to get NGOs to work with us to take care of the community and ensure what we are doing is a model," Monnin said during an interview in Bou Sra village. "We want to do something proper, but it will not be easy."

He said that of the 10,000 hectares planned for the rubber plantation, 3,000 hectares would remain as spirit forests for the Phnong. He also added that Socfin was now conducting an environmental and social impact assessment of the plantation as part of its master plan, as well as sending an ethnologist and sociologist to study the situation.

He said the plantation would provide regular employment for Phnong. From May until August, he said, the company would double its daily manpower to 1,000 workers, who would earn 20,000 riels ($5) per day on the plantation.

Mondulkiri Deputy Governor Yim Lux told the Post that Socfin was paying US$15,000 a month in wages for local workers, and said it was providing "fair" compensation to the villagers affected by the plantation.

"The company agreed to compensate the people whose farmland was impacted, either with a plot of land or with cash," he said, but added that negotiations were still in progress.

Monnin said that Socfin, as a French company that needs to maintain a positive global image, was more vulnerable to criticism than other rubber companies in Cambodia.

"It [development] is inevitable.... If we were not here, it would be the Vietnamese, and then for the Phnong it would be the end," he said.

But many of the Phnong villagers said the Vietnamese state-owned Daklak Rubber Co, which has a plot adjacent to Socfin, has treated the Phnong more equitably.

"If people disagree with the Vietnamese company, they don't destroy the land. When the Vietnamese company does [harvest] the land, they give half [the profits] to us," one villager said.

Officials at Daklak's Mondulkiri headquarters declined to comment in detail about their rubber operations.

Too little too late

Critics of Socfin say the company's actions come too late and that irreparable damage has been done.

"Mistakes have been made by all key partners involved, including the Cambodian government and the company. ... Forest was destroyed, a Phnong graveyard was bulldozed, and [these] can't be undone," Herod said.

According to Cambodian environmental law, Herod said, an impact study should have been completed before the concession was awarded. He also noted an increase in drunkenness and other disorders related to social disintegration among the underemployed Phnong.

But despite indigenous land protections existing under the country's 2001 Land Law, villagers insist the Phnong community was not consulted.

While there is intermittent work on the plantations, the Phnong representative said the loss of rotational farmland forests meant that local communities faced an uncertain future.

"Now that the company has come here, they are very strict and will not allow the Phnong to cut wood on company land," she said. "Before they had the freedom to cut the forests and grow crops. Now they say the land is French; the sky is French."