Resolving Land Disputes and Protecting Citizens’ Rights

By William E.Todd, U.S ambassador to Cambodia

For thousands of years, Cambodia has been a place where people’s lives are deeply connected to the land they cultivate.  With more than half of the country’s labor force still employed in the agricultural sector today, the land continues to be the backbone of the Cambodian economy.  This week, Sopheap from Phnom Penh wrote to me to express her concerns about this precious resource.  She asked, “Villagers from provinces as far as BanteayMeanchey and Pailin have been coming to Phnom Penh to ask our national government to help resolve land disputes.  How can we improve our land policy to prevent land disputes and protect citizens from forced evictions?”

In recent weeks, we have seen hundreds of people marching into the capital to protest over land concessions, bringing renewed attention to this long-standing issue.  Land is a finite resource, and increased population growth and economic activity put an increasing strain on public lands.  A fair and effective land management policy that advances economic development and also protects individual rights is something that individual families and businesses both demand. 

Last week, Samdech Prime Minister Hun Sen expressed his own concerns about land concessions and called for greater accountability by local officials in the handling of land disputes.  It was also reported that the Prime Minister set up a new high-level inter-ministerial committee to review whether companies are abiding by the rules of the economic land concessions, which is a promising idea.  For Cambodian citizens who have been affected by land concessions, the Prime Minister’s call for action has raised hope that positive changes may be within reach, but implementation will be key.

It is not surprising that an issue as complex as land management continues to present challenges.  Moratoriums on land concessions have temporarily addressed the problem but are not a permanent solution.  According to a report issued this month by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the number of violent forced evictions from disputed rural land has been on a steep rise over the past year.  In addition to ripping people from their homes, these forced evictions can lead to environmental degradation through illegal logging and other practices and contributes to public distrust of government.  

The process for determining land use works best when the transaction is open and transparent, with equal and full access to information for all interested parties.  Experience shows that the most effective way to reduce disputes is to ensure that all decisions on land use are made with maximum participation from the communities that are impacted by the decisions.  In the United States, most federal public land falls under the Bureau of Land Management, which administers public lands and makes them available for recreation or commercial use, and the National Park Service, which manages our national parks.  These agencies have the responsibility to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the land for the current and future generations, and they make sure that they are doing so by soliciting feedback from the public and by being subject to oversight by the U.S. Congress.  Citizens who feel that their rights have been infringed can appeal the decision in court.

In Cambodia, bringing land concessions into a fully transparent process will go a long way towards ensuring that public land is used for the public good instead of for the short-term economic gain of a few.  In keeping with the spirit of the Prime Minister’s recent statements, I encourage relevant government officials at all levels to work more closely with civil society groups and the communities affected by evictions.  A partnership between citizens and their leaders is the only way to repair the distrust caused by land evictions and to ensure that land disputes are resolved fairly and equitably.  At the national level, if the government and National Assembly can find a way to build a truly open and transparent land management policy, it will help Cambodia to achieve a proper balance between the promotion of economic growth and the protection of the rights of individual citizens.

Thank you very much for reading my column this week.  If you would like me to answer your question, please e-mail me at AskAmbToddPP@state.gov

William E. Todd is U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Cambodia.

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