The issue of forced evictions, displacement, and landlessness among Cambodia’s rural and urban poor is reaching crisis proportions.

12.08.2009
Norwegian People Aid

Evictions and land confiscation continue in Cambodia. This is despite that The World Bank, ADB, UN and Cambodia’s donors have called for for the government to enact a moratorium on forced evictions and land confiscation until it establishes effective conflict resolution mechanisms and relocation procedures meeting international standards

On August 11th, community representatives from 19 different provinces gathered in Phnom Penh to submit community complaint petitions to government offices. Complaints from approximately 30 cases have a total of over 15,000 thumbprints. The complaints cover an area of at least 200,000 hectares of land.

These community complaints will be filed directly by affected communities. They demonstrate a rising awareness among Cambodians about their rights under Cambodian and international law. The complaints also reflect a rising level of frustration with attempts to solve land disputes and evictions at the local level. The complaints come from 19 different provinces but have a similar theme: marginalized communities are being driven into poverty by forced evictions, economic land concessions, mining concessions and unlawful land grabs. Communities’ efforts to seek peaceful solutions are met with intimidation, coercion, court action - and sometimes violence.