VZCZCXRO6247
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHPF #0962/01 3620854
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 280854Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1507
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PHNOM PENH 000962 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, DRL 
USAID FOR ASIA BUREAU 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM EAGR SENV KDEM ECON CB
SUBJECT: DRAFT RESETTLEMENT REGULATIONS RAISE NGO AND DONOR 
CONCERNS 
 
REF: PHNOM PENH 654 AND PREVIOUS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY.  On December 4, the Ministry of Land Management, 
Urban Planning, and Construction (MLMUPC) released a draft circular 
on the process for resettlement of urban poor communities, which it 
referred to as "illegal, temporary settlements."  German development 
agency GTZ, which has found itself at the forefront of land sector 
issues since the withdrawal of the World Bank (Reftel), attempted to 
coordinate a joint donor response to the circular but failed to 
reach a compromise with other leading donors who advocated for a 
strong statement of concern.  However, participants at a December 18 
public workshop on the circular managed to lobby the MLMUPC 
successfully for changes.  END SUMMARY. 
 
DRAFT RESETTLEMENT CIRCULAR PUTS GERMANS IN A BIND 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶2. (SBU) On December 4, the MLMUPC issued for public comment a draft 
circular on the process for resettlement of urban poor communities. 
The MLMUPC had reportedly drafted the circular in response to a GTZ 
request for a standard operating procedure for resettlement of 
communities in eviction cases, in an attempt to avoid the types of 
high-profile, sometimes violent evictions seen in Cambodia in the 
past.  (NOTE:  GTZ, the largest donor involved in the Cambodian land 
sector, has come under increased scrutiny from human rights groups 
since the World Bank's (WB) withdrawal from the MLMUPC's Land 
Management and Administration Program (LMAP).  END NOTE.) 
 
¶3. (SBU) Although land sector analysts acknowledged the need for a 
resettlement framework, NGOs and the donor Technical Working Group 
on Land (TWG-Land) identified several concerns with the draft 
circular.  For example, the circular defined urban poor communities 
as "illegal, temporary settlements", pre-judging the status of those 
who according to the 2001 Land Law may have legal possession claims 
to the land and/or building where the individuals reside.  The 
introductory text specifically made reference to "300 of 569 illegal 
communities in the capital city resolved to date," a statistic 
related to a 2003 survey of 569 urban poor settlements in Phnom 
Penh, which made no determination of the settlements' legality. 
The draft circular also included tenure requirements for titling 
that were inconsistent with those stipulated for social land 
concessions in the Land Law. 
 
¶4. (SBU) GTZ, the WB, and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for 
Human Rights (UNOHCHR) attempted to draft a joint donor submission 
to suggest revisions covering major concerns.  However, they failed 
to reach a compromise on the tone of the statement prior to a 
December 18 MLMUPC public consultation workshop on the circular. 
GTZ wanted a more neutral statement of concern, while the WB/UNOHCHR 
(and Post) preferred a stronger statement reflecting donor concerns 
raised by the TWG-Land.  A UNOHCHR staffer speculated to Poloff that 
GTZ wanted to keep the donor statement more conservative in order to 
avoid antagonizing the MLMUPC; GTZ feared facing the same issues 
encountered by the WB when it began to press the RGC on LMAP's 
limitations (Reftel). 
 
RGC OFFICIALS DEFENSIVE BUT PROMISE CHANGES 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Although donors failed to issue a joint statement, 
individual donor, civil society, and community representatives 
raised many of their common concerns at the December 18 public 
consultation workshop.  MLMUPC Deputy Director General Beng Hong 
Socheat Khemro acknowledged that the reference to "illegal, 
temporary" settlements was misleading and promised to revise or 
remove it.  He explained that the circular was meant to govern the 
procedures for relocating communities living illegally on state land 
only.  Beng also noted that the "300 of 569" statistic was 
incorrect, adding that it was meant to be an example, as the 
circular would be applied nationwide, not just in Phnom Penh.  On 
the issue of tenure required to qualify for titling, Beng said that 
the MLMUPC would investigate the request.  Participants also raised 
concerns about procedures for selecting community representatives to 
negotiate with authorities in cases of evictions.  UNOHCHR and GTZ 
reps met with Beng after the workshop to push for more public 
consultation after the draft circular is revised to ensure the 
requested changes are made. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Despite some of the legitimate concerns raised by the 
circular, it does represent a small movement on the part of the RGC 
in response to repeated donor calls for a legal, transparent, and 
fair framework for handling the controversial issue of evictions and 
resettlement.  The public consultation process for the draft 
 
PHNOM PENH 00000962  002 OF 002 
 
 
circular on urban resettlement was far from perfect but serves as a 
rare positive example of civil society voices on land issues being 
heard by the RGC.  Meanwhile GTZ, now stuck at the forefront of 
donors on land sector issues, will have to find the balance that 
eluded the WB between maintaining good relations with the RGC while 
offering constructive criticism. 
 
 
ALLEGRA