In Dara, ambassador and permanent representative of Cambodia to the UN Office and other International Organisations in Geneva. Supplied
The Permanent Mission of Cambodia to the UN Office and other International Organizations in Geneva has responded to concerns raised by independent experts in a UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) notice regarding the ongoing resettlement of residents from the Angkor conservation area, highlighting contrasting perspectives on the implementation and impact of the relocation programme.
The Cambodian government, in a December 19 press statement from the permanent mission, “challenged the allegations of 'mass forced evictions' and 'arbitrary displacement',” describing such claims as misleading and baseless. The statement emphasised that the resettlement process is conducted on a voluntary basis, with residents who agreed to resettle receiving “legal land titles, access to public services and essential infrastructure, including roads, schools, health centres, pagodas and markets.”
The OHCHR notice cited five human rights experts – Balakrishnan Rajagopal, special rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, Vitit Muntarbhorn, special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, Paula Gaviria Betancur, special rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, Michael Fakhri, special rapporteur on the right to food, and Alexandra Xanthaki, special rapporteur in the field of cultural rights – who claimed that since 2022, around 40,000 people have been displaced from their home and land in the Angkor Park and moved to the Run Ta Ek and Peak Snaeng areas.
“Cambodia must immediately halt mass forced evictions and arbitrary displacement, establish case by case that the resettlement of communities is necessary and ensure that it is carried out in accordance with international human rights standards,” they stated.
According to the permanent mission, the resettlement initiative stems from conservation requirements for the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The programme is based on a 2004 census of villagers within the Angkor area and aligns with both national laws and the World Heritage Convention's operational guidelines, it added.
The experts suggested that while 112 traditional villages could remain in the area, “there is lack of clarity on which those villages are, which leads to a clear protection gap.”
While the mission's statement indicated that extensive community consultations were conducted and most residents accepted the solutions willingly, the experts reported that resettlement has occurred “without meaningful consultation of affected communities, without the possibility to discuss alternatives to displacement and without adequate replacement of lost homes and livelihoods”.
The situation has drawn international attention, with the UNESCO World Heritage Committee requesting Cambodia in July to allow a joint Reactive Monitoring Mission to assess conditions at the resettlement sites.
The permanent mission indicated that while those included in the 2004 census are not required to relocate, they may apply for resettlement in the new development areas. The government also denied using harassment, threats or coercion, stating that measures were only taken against illegal land occupation within the conservation area.
The experts warned that “indigenous peoples should not be resettled without their free, prior and informed consent” and called for those who had been “wrongly displaced” to be entitled to return and compensation.
In response, the mission urged the experts to “avoid actions that could be seen as interference in Cambodia's domestic affairs” while adhering to the Code of Conduct for Special Procedures Mandate-holders in their public statements. The statement encouraged international partners to support the country's heritage protection efforts while ensuring residents' rights to housing, infrastructure and public services, and called for constructive engagement with the Cambodian government on these issues.
