CAMBODIA: Nine families from a village in Phnom Penh are facing forced eviction by the municipal authority

[NOTICE: The AHRC have developed a new automatic letter-sending system using the “button” below. However, in this appeal, we could not include e-mail addresses of some of the Cambodian authorities. We encourage you to send your appeal letters via fax or post to those people. Fax numbers and postal addresses of the Cambodian authorities are attached below with this appeal. Thank you.]

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that nine families in Tuoi Kok village in Phnom Penh have been peaceful protesting their forced eviction by the government since 4 January 2007.  The villagers have been displaced due to the construction of a new public road by a South Korean company named World City Co. Ltd, which will run through the land filled Pong Peay Lake towards the city of Phnom Penh. We also have learned that the municipal authorities and the Korean company have already begun demolishing the villagers’ neighbourhood with bulldozers in order to pressure them to accept a well-below market price offered to them as compensation. In light of the insufficient proposal, the villagers refused to accept the USD 50/m² offer that was presented by the Municipality of Phnom Penh.

CASE DETAILS:

According to the information we have received, the Municipality of Phnom Penh had commissioned the construction of a new public road that run towards the city of Phnom Penh to a major South Korean construction company called World City Co. Ltd. Since the land that the families had been living on was designated a section of the new road, the Municipality of Phnom Penh asked the victims to relocate each of their homes and offered well-bellow average compensation for the land (USD 50/m²).

However, the villagers did not accept the offer and claim that they cannot afford to relocate with such insufficient compensation. Also, the villagers have claimed that the actual market price of their land is between USD 200 – USD 400 and demand that they receive compensation that is within this price range. They argue that it is impossible to purchase new land within the area at the rate offered by the municipality and fear that they will be forced to move to a remote area in the city.

A few days prior to 4 January 2006, the Municipality of Phnom Penh and the Korean company used bulldozers to demolish the neighbourhood where the families live. Members of the nine families are scared that the demolition that was started near their property will soon move closer to their homes and destroy everything they own.

On January 4, the families began to hold peaceful protest against the demolition of their houses saying that they would not allow the work to continue until they received fair compensation.

The nine families have been living in Tuoi Kok village, Tuoi Sangke commune, Russey Keo district, Phnom Penh since the 1980s and early 1990s. According to article 44 of the Cambodian Land Law of 2001, any person who has continuously occupied land for more than 5 years will automatically be entitled the land ownership. All of nine families have satisfied this qualification and they are the legal owners of the land they are using in the village. The Land law of 2001 also authorises forced eviction only to be conducted by state authorities after compensation has been paid to the concerned land owners.

However, the Cambodian government has not fulfilled these guidelines and entered a contract with the Korean company without any proper consultation with the families or provide adequate compensation to them.

The AHRC is appalled by the inadequate compensation offered to these families.  It is clear that the payments offered by the municipality will not help these families maintain their livelihoods and ensure their protection.  The AHRC also condemns the municipality and the company for having entered into this agreement without consulting the local villagers.

The AHRC maintains that the nine families have a legitimate right to receive the compensation that they are demanding and urges the Municipality of Phnom Penh to accept the amount that the families are asking. The Municipality of Phnom Penh and the Korean company should also suspend all demolition work in the neighbourhood of the families in order to provide enough time for them to relocate after receiving the compensation.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

Forced eviction over land disputes is one of the most serious human rights violations occurring in Cambodia. The AHRC has reported numbers of cases of forced eviction of land in the past to date. For the most recent cases, see UA-003-2007; UA-002-2007; UA-001-2007 and UA-411-2006.

The Municipality of Phnom Penh had signed a “Declaration of Principles for Best Practices in Housing and Pro-Poor Development in Cambodia” in September 2004 initiated by local NGOs and the Cambodian office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. In the declaration, the Municipality of Phnom Penh pledged to use involuntary eviction as a last resort to cease the land disputes and to pay compensation based on the sufficient calculation of market values.

SUGESSTED ACTION:
Please write to the authorities listed below to urge them for intervention to this case for the demolition will be suspended until a fair amount of compensation is paid to the nine families. Please also urge them to guarantee sufficient time to be given to the nine families for their relocation after the compensation is paid.

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER