Families to Receive Land Titles

KHMER TIMES
VEN RATHAVONG

Some of the families having a meeting recently about their land dispute. Supplied

Prime Minister Hun Sen has decided to cut land from an economic land concession (ELC) and a rubber plantation to grant land titles to more than 1,000 villagers in Tbong Khmum province’s Memot district, according to the Land Management Ministry.

Land Management Minister Chea Sophara’s Facebook page yesterday announced that about 2,000 hectares of land were cut from an ELC and a rubber plantation to give to villagers from six communes in Memot district.

Mr. Sophara said there were two separate land issues in the district. One involved 643 families in dispute with an ELC over 1,960 hectares and another involved 635 families in dispute with a rubber plantation over 50 hectares.

“Inform to brothers [villagers] from Chan Mul, Choam, Choam Kravien, Rung, Tramung and Tonlung communes in Memot district which has 643 families occupying the land but do not have land titles and involves the Men Sarun company’s land on 1,960 hectares,” he said.

“Samdech [Mr. Hun Sen] grants this land to brothers in the form of a social land concession.

“Inform to brothers [villagers] in Khnong Kraper Kert and Khnong Kraper Lich villages in Memot district, Samdech [Mr. Hun Sen] decided to grant land titles on 50.9415 hectares involving 635 families.”

Ministry spokesman Seng Loth said the two cases were the results of successful land dispute resolution and the decisions were made because the villagers had cultivated and occupied the land.

As for the villagers on the rubber plantation, Mr. Loth confirmed that they were workers and plantation staff and they had lived in the area for a long time. Only 466 families would receive land titles, while 169 families would receive right of use the land.

“Because they are newcomers, that’s why we gave them only the right to use the plot of land,” Mr. Loth said.

For the villagers in dispute with the ELC, the spokesman said the villagers occupying the land will get titles if they obey the social land concession law. “If they obey the social land concession law and occupy [the land] for five years, they will get land titles,” he said.

Prum Danet, from Khnong Kraper Kert village, said she had not heard news of the decision. “However I am so happy and excited if what you [Khmer Times] said is true,” she said.

Ms. Danet said she had struggled for more than 10 years and protested to demand ownership of the land.

“I am so happy that our struggles have been successful because we protested for a long time,” she said.

Theng Savoeun, secretary-general of the Coalition of Cambodia Farmer Community-Member APC Regional, applauded the ministry’s solution to end the long-running land disputes.

He asked the ministry to announce the decision to the villagers and cooperate with communities and civil society organizations to resolve future disputes transparently and efficiently.