Dear friends,
Over the years some rich and powerful people have illegally cleared different portions of woodlands that belong to the public domain so as to own the land cleared of forests as their private property. Recently the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Wild Life and Fishery has said that over 200,000 hectares of such woodlands had been owned in this manner. In many cases such clearance and ownership has affected poor people living in or around the area whose livelihood depend on the forests and their by-products, and/or have encroached upon their own land. This is one form of land grabbing and also a source of land dispute in the country.
On 10 May 2006 Hun Sen, the Prime Minister of Cambodia, in the glare of much publicity, issued an order to all provincial and municipal governors to take all that land back and return it to the public domain. He ordered them to use state power to issue orders to take the land back from its owner. In doing so he bypassed all due processes of law. Those governors have hurriedly executed the order and there has been no protest against this. According to the National Authority for Resolution of Land Disputes, a body which was created earlier this year, over 170,000 hectares of that land has been seized and returned to the public domain.
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that the authorities have remained silent over the number and names of the owners of the different portions of land and have not taken any legal action against anyone for their illegal clearance of forests and ownership of those parts of the public domain, their illicit gains from this domain or their destruction of the forests. This is very much in contrast to action taken against the poor and the weak who are invariably evicted by force, see the little timber they have taken from the forests confiscated, or are fined or arrested for much less offence. The absence of such action against the rich and powerful for this illegal grabbing of woodlands has become another aspect of the prevailing culture of impunity for the benefit of these people.
The AHRC urges the Cambodian government to publicise the names of those unlawful owners and the size of the woodlands they have cleared and owned, to follow the due process of law and bring these people to justice without any delay to ensure equality before the law and end impunity for this form of crime. We are very much concerned that, without such transparency and punishment by courts of law, Prime Minister Hun Sen’s measure will be ineffective and turn out to be just a show to soothe public concern. Illegal clearance for ownership of woodlands would continue and no one can know for sure whether those evicted rich and powerful owners would not try to get their land back.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the relevant authorities listed below seeking their intervention in ensuring that those who unlawfully took land and destroyed forests are brought to justice for their actions. Should the Cambodian authorities fail to do this, then the rich and powerful will continue to enjoy impunity while the poor and weak are further disadvantaged.
To support this appeal, please click: ![]( "http://www.ahrchk.nethttp://www.ahrchk.net/ua/support.php?ua=UG-012-2006")
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear ___________,
CAMBODIA: State repossession of illegally cleared and owned woodland must be transparent and unlawful owners punished
I am writing to bring your attention to the issues of illegally cleared and owned woodlands in Cambodia. As I am sure you are aware in recent years some rich and powerful people have illegally cleared different portions of woodland, which belong to the public domain, in order to use the land as their private property. It is reported that over 200,000 hectares of woodlands have been dealt with in this manner.
Such illegal possession of land has had serious consequences on poor persons living in or around the area and whose livelihood depends on the forests. This is yet one more form of land grabbing in Cambodia which has seen poor persons significantly disadvantaged.
Though the government has taken action to return some 170,000 hectares of land to the public domain, they have bypassed all due processes of law by failing to take legal action against any person who illegally took lands and cleared them of forest in the first place. This is very much in contrast to action taken against the poor and the weak who are invariably evicted by force, see the little timber they have taken from the forests confiscated, or are fined or arrested for much less offence. The absence of such action against the rich and powerful for this illegal grabbing of woodlands has become another glaring example of the prevailing culture of impunity for the benefit of these people.
I therefore urge the Cambodian government to publicise the names of those unlawful owners and the size of the woodlands they have cleared and owned. The due process of law must be followed and those who unlawfully possessed land should be brought to justice for their actions. Only with such measures being taken will equality be assured before the law and impunity for this form of crime end. Further, only with such measures will Prime Minister Hun Sens actions be as effective as it is hoped that he wanted them to be.
Yours sincerely,
----------------------
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTER TO:
1. Mr. Samdech Hun Sen
Prime Minister
Office of the Council of Ministers
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Fax: + 855 23 426 054
2. H.E.Mr. Sar Kheng
Deputy Prime Minister
Minister of Interior
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Email: moi@interior.gov.kh
3. Mr. Ang Vong Vathna
Minster of Justice
No 240, Sothearos Blvd.
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Fax: + 855 23 364119
Email: moj@cambodia.gov.kh
4. H.E.Mr.Chan Sarun
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
#200 Norodom Blvd, Sangkat Tonle Basak,
Khan Chamkarmorn, Phnom Penh 12301, Cambodia.
Tel: + 855 23 211 351, 23 211 352
Fax: + 855 23 217 320
E-mail: maff@everyday.com.kh
5.H.E.Mr. Svay Sitha
Secretary-General
National Authority for Resolution of Land Disputes
Council of Ministers
Royal Government of Cambodia
Address: #41, Str Confederation de la Russie
Tel: +85512 970 608
Fax: +85523 881 045
E-mail: pressocm@pressocm.gov.kh
6. Mr. Douglas Gardner
UNDP Resident Representative in Cambodia
53, Pasteur Street
Boeung Keng Kang
P.O. Box 877
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Fax: + 855 23 216 257
E-mail: douglas.gardner@undp.org
7. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights - Cambodia
N° 10, Street 302
Sangkat Boeng Keng Kang I
Khan Chamcar Mon
Phnom Penh
CAMBODIA
Tel: +855 23 987 671 / 987 672, 993 590 / 993 591 or +855 23 216 342
Fax: +855 23 212 579, 213 587
Email: cohchr@online.com.kh
8. Prof. Yash Ghai
Special Representative of the Secretary-General for human rights in Cambodia
Attn: Ms. Afarin Shahidzadeh
Room 3-080
OHCHR-UNOG
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 91 79214
Fax: +41 22 91 79018 (ATTENTION: SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE CAMBODIA)
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)
