Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination considers report of Cambodia

19 February 2010

The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has considered the eighth to thirteenth periodic report of Cambodia on its implementation of the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination.

Presenting the report, Sun Suon, Permanent Representative of Cambodia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said Cambodia was mainly a homogenous society, but it also had ethnic minority groups apart from foreign residents and immigrants. Cambodian society naturally adopted an open and tolerant disposition, with inherent respect for cultural diversity. At the national level, the Government was continuing to implement its reform agenda through national plans of action and other development programmes and strategies that prioritized social integration, gender equality, the social safety net and population policy reform. The Government had thus prohibited any acts encouraging or inciting acts of racial discrimination. It further provided civil society with the opportunity to participate actively in that development process, including in advocacy for the promotion of national harmony and ethnic and religious interests.

The Government also attached high importance to land reforms for sustainable socio-economic development, Mr. Suon said. In implementing the land law policies, the Government had focused on measures to strengthen the system of land management, distribution, use and land ownership, land rights security and eradication of illegal land encroachment. Among policies, institutional and legal frameworks in this area put in place since 2002 were the policy for the development of indigenous communities; the policy on the registration and rights to use the land of indigenous communities; the sub-decree on the procedure for registration of land belonging to indigenous communities; and the sub-decree on the procedure for communal land use planning. Moreover, some projects had been launched and implemented on land registration for indigenous people and on the demarcation process for remote provincial villages. Those policies and legal frameworks had been prepared with a wide range of participation and inputs on the part of relevant national agencies and ministries as well as other stakeholders, including representatives of indigenous communities.

In preliminary concluding observations, Pierre-Richard Prosper, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the report of Cambodia, noted as positive that the Government had fully accepted many international principles and many international laws, and they had been enshrined in the Constitution and codified in law. The Committee's primary concern was that the rule of law was not perhaps being uniformly or faithfully applied in certain aspects, in particular as it regarded refugees, asylum-seekers, and the various groups that had been talked about in the dialogue. There was also a need to find the delicate balance between development and the rights of citizens, in particular with reference to the "land grabbing" issues faced by the indigenous populations. While there might be laws on the books, it had been observed that they might be too cumbersome or simply were not being applied.

A particular focus of questions and comments by Experts was land ownership for indigenous communities, including whether indigenous persons evicted from their land had the right to have their lands restored and/or were entitled to any compensation; and how the boundaries of indigenous lands were demarcated. Experts were particularly concerned that it seemed that few, if any, indigenous peoples had actually received collective titles to their lands, as well as at the lack of prosecutions for those who had evicted indigenous persons from their land. Other questions and concerns by Experts included the situation of families living in Cambodia for generations without obtaining citizenship, and the procedure for becoming a naturalized citizen; information on what was being done to bring to justice members of the Khmer Rouge that had committed genocide and crimes against humanity; and whether or not the punishment of "banishment" existed in Cambodian law. It was also pointed out by several Experts that Cambodia did not have a legal definition of discrimination that was in line with the Convention.

The delegation of Cambodia also included other members of the Permanent Mission of Cambodia to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The Committee will present its written observations and recommendations on the report of Cambodia at the end of its session, which concludes on 12 March.

When the Committee reconvenes at 3 p.m. this afternoon, it is scheduled to take up the combined twelfth and thirteenth periodic report of Guatemala (CERD/C/GTM/12-13).

Report of Cambodia

In Cambodia discrimination has not been used for separating, limiting or giving a better opportunity to Khmer people or foreigners or to minority or endogenous people who are living in Cambodia. The combined eighth to thirteenth periodic report of Cambodia (CERD/C/KHM/8-13) says the Government has never, under any circumstances, encouraged discrimination against ethnic minorities or foreigners. Within the Cambodian territory both previously and currently, there are a wide range of ethnicities existing and living as usual. The Government takes the responsibility to broadly provide equal rights and freedoms for them, in making their living, in society and at work, and in the conduct of business under the control of the laws. The way of life, tradition, language and different beliefs of each ethnicity are made from their own preference: by gathering in groups or clans according to their own ethnicity. This means that the Government did not separate or exclude those groups from Cambodian society. Nor has the Government placed any restrictions on them. On the other hand, the Government helps them in maintaining social order, social security, health care, and it provides them with enough freedom so that they can live happily like the majority citizens. Citizens, civil servants of all national institutions at all levels, departments, political parties, associations, newspapers, and non-governmental organizations are all liable to be punished whenever they permit racism.

In response to the need and aspiration of the mountainous and highland tribes, the Government has considered human resources development as the priority plan in which the literacy programme and the non-formal education programme have been introduced to expand their knowledge of both culture and language. Textbooks for the literacy programme are written in two languages: Khmer and tribal languages. The Government respects good communication with the mountainous and highland tribes regarding the use of land and natural resources that have been used by the community so far. The Government has recognized and protected the right to use traditional land of the indigenous people and the demarcation of the existing village borders with the consent of the local community and the local authority. The provincial development commission has monitored the use of land and drafted measures to ensure the methods of using the natural resources sustainably. The Council of Land Policy Making has drafted the policy concerning land registration and rights to access land of the community of the indigenous people in Cambodia and will submit it to the Council of Ministers for approval.

Presentation of Report

SUN SUON, Permanent Representative of Cambodia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that Cambodia was a nation endowed with a rich culture, but it was also a country that had been struggling for survival. Past conflicts and civil war had plagued Cambodia over the past decades with total destruction of its social and cultural infrastructure, including in the areas of education, health and social protection services. The loss of qualifications and devaluation of its human capital, including the minority groups, through the Khmer Rouge regime had caused Cambodia untold sufferings and had had dire consequences. The country had thus made great efforts to recover from its legacy by overcoming all the challenges towards peacebuilidng, national reconciliation, reconstruction and development. An assessment of Cambodia's human rights situation should take into account its past situation, and note the evolving process of national reconciliation.

Cambodia was mainly a homogenous society, but the country also had ethnic minority groups apart from foreign residents and immigrants, Mr. Suon noted. Cambodian society naturally adopted an open and tolerant disposition, with inherent respect for cultural diversity. With peace and stability achieved over the last decade, the Government was now making an advance towards the continued process of political, economic, social and cultural development in all spheres, including that of human rights. The Government therefore attached high importance to national unity, national integration and social harmony, which was epitomized in its development planning processes and frameworks for the sake of peace, democracy, growth and prosperity.

Constitutionally, Cambodia forbade discrimination on grounds of race, religion, sex or birthplace, Mr. Suon stated. The Constitution also guaranteed equality before the law and equality of opportunity for all citizens while providing for affirmative action for particularly disadvantaged groups.

Over the years, the Government had made numerous efforts and initiatives that aimed to promote policies of social harmony, consistent with the Convention's provisions for the fight against hatred and all forms of racism. Internationally, Cambodia had supported efforts in the fight against racist practices and racial intolerance, consistent with relevant United Nations instruments, including the Durban Declaration and its relevant follow-up Plans of Action. It had joined international efforts against Apartheid in South Africa and other forms of racism around the world, and was a State party to the Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of Apartheid. Also, since the end of the peace process in 1993, Cambodia had extended its cooperation with the United Nations on human rights through the operations of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Cambodia.

At the national level, the Government was continuing to implement its reform agenda through national plans of action and other development programmes and strategies that prioritized social integration, gender equality, the social safety net and population policy reform. The Government had thus prohibited any acts encouraging or inciting acts of racial discrimination. It further provided civil society with the opportunity to participate actively in that development process, including in advocacy for the promotion of national harmony and ethnic and religious interests, Mr. Suon added.

The Penal Code of Cambodia provided the focus for the prevention of racial discrimination. To that end, the Government took into account, inter alia, the promotion and respect for the rights of all races; the right for respect for cultural identities; the right to be free from genocide; the right to consume the assets of natural resources; the right to development; and the right to enjoy education and culture, including the use of language.

Turning to institutional mechanisms to fight discrimination, Mr. Suon said that Cambodia had established a national human rights committee attached to the Government in order to coordinate and cooperate with national and international agencies and other stakeholders to address all relevant human rights challenges. It had also set up a number of institutional and legal frameworks to address all the issues concerning the minority and indigenous communities.

Cambodia placed special emphasis on poverty reduction as a main element in promoting and protecting human rights. To do that, the Government was implementing a poverty reduction strategy and a National Strategic Development Plan. A Cambodian plan for achieving the Millennium Development Goals had also been established, and had had a positive impact that had contributed to the improvement of human rights, Mr. Suon noted.

The Government also attached high importance to land reforms for sustainable socio-economic development, and was mindful of the continuing challenges and the sensitivity of that issue due to historical, political, economic and social dimensions. In implementing the land law policies, the Government had focused on policies and measures to strengthen the system of land management, distribution, use and land ownership, land rights security and eradication of illegal land encroachment, and had taken proper steps to prevent the concentration of unused and unproductive lands.

Since 2002, the Government had initiated and undertaken policies, institutional and legal frameworks in this area, Mr. Suon said, namely the policy for the development of indigenous communities; the policy on the registration and rights to use the land of indigenous communities; the sub-decree on the procedure for registration of land belonging to indigenous communities; and the sub-decree on the procedure for communal land use planning. Moreover, some projects had been launched and implemented on land registration for indigenous people and on the demarcation process for remote provincial villages. Those policies and legal frameworks had been prepared with a wide range of participation and inputs on the part of relevant national agencies and ministries as well as other stakeholders, including representatives of indigenous communities.

Turning to education, Mr. Suon noted that the right to education was protected by the Constitution. To that end, the Government recognized the importance of allowing and assisting persons of different background to preserve and develop all aspects of their identity, while at the same time promoting a harmonious integration into the whole of society. To that end, the Government had published the Educational Strategic Plan for 2006-2010, which aimed at ensuring that all Cambodian children and adults, including other disadvantaged and indigenous groups, had equal opportunities in receiving basic formal and informal education without discrimination. Morally, that strategic plan was connected to the education of a culture of peace, respect for human rights, legal and democratic principles and justice by fighting against violence, drug use, trafficking in children and women, and all types of discrimination in society. Elements of intercultural education had also been introduced as a teaching method in schools.

Pro-poor policies in the education sector, aimed at reducing barriers to universal enrolment and completion of primary education, had been implemented, including the abolition of school fees in 2001; the provision of lower secondary scholarships for poor and ethnic minorities in 2002; and the completion of incomplete primary schools, Mr. Suon highlighted. In line with that, the Ministry of Education had developed a literacy programme now being implemented for illiterate persons throughout the country and encouraged bilingual education in both the Khmer language and the language of origin of illiterate adults living in indigenous communities.

In the health sector, the policy guidelines of the Ministry of Health were established to provide healthcare service to all people nationwide, especially for the poor and those living in remote areas, including minorities. It had prioritized the deployment of staff to ensure that health service delivery had reached the remote areas including those minority people. The deployment of midwives to every new health centre had been accomplished efficiently. Many health centres had been built in indigenous communities and remarkable progress had been made because of those efforts.

Cambodia attached equal importance to the promotion of respect for diversity. The Constitution stipulated that the State recognized and promoted the rights of indigenous cultural communities. The Government had therefore made efforts in the implementation of relevant programmes to promote and protect the cultural rights of persons belonging to minorities. The situation of various specific groups in society and of minorities in particular was a test of the democratic development in every country, Mr. Suon observed.

Since 1993, the Government had established an inter-ministerial committee to work with the United Nations Development Programme in the preparation of a project on the development of indigenous peoples, with the Ministry of Rural Development as a chairman and an implementing agency. It had then established the Department of Ethnic Minorities Development under the supervision of the Ministry of Rural Development with the aim of upgrading the living standard of indigenous peoples and to safeguard their valuable culture, customs, traditions and beliefs. To fulfil those aims and to ensure consistent implementation in all sectors, the Government had elaborated the National Policy on the Development of Indigenous Peoples, which had been approved by the Council of Ministers in April 2009.

In that context, a practical step had been taken in the establishment of the National Council on Ethnic and Demographic Issues, a body for consultation and coordination between government institutions and non-governmental organizations with the priority objective of designing and implementing the national policies for addressing the ethnic programmes and interests, Mr. Suon said.

With respect to the rights of migrants, Mr. Suon explained that the Government had established the basic laws, such as the immigration law and other supporting legal frameworks regulating immigration, which had been implemented for years to overcome administrative challenges in the post conflict period and following the country's development. Measures had been progressively adopted in order to address and improve existing procedures to control and facilitate the process and to protect vulnerable groups, including victims of human trafficking. From 2001 until the present, Cambodia had been closely cooperating with the United Nations Refugee Agency and other relevant international organization partners in implementing its duties as a State signatory to the 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees.

Oral Questions Raised by the Rapporteur and Experts

PIERRE-RICHARD PROSPER, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the report of Cambodia, said he had travelled many times over the years to Cambodia. What he had seen on his last trip, in 2005, was tremendous positive change and growth; economic development; and the growth of a civil society, which had just been in its infancy when he had first visited.

Of course, however, with dramatic development, there was always a tension within society on how to develop that growth and how to do it in a measured and an equitable way. There were numerous ethnic and indigenous groups, which helped to enrich the society. Mr. Prosper further noted the need to take historical developments into consideration when looking at the country, including its emergence from colonial rule in 1953, as well as the killing fields of Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge regime, which had had a truly profound impact on the development of the country. The new Government had only been established in 1991.

Mr. Prosper lauded Cambodia's Constitution, which enshrined a number of important rights, as well as the new laws that protected rights of minorities, including the law on indigenous lands. However, he wanted to discuss today how those laws were being implemented. The reason for that concern could be found in the report, which stated (para. 173): "Although there is no particular provision to define the offense of discrimination, no one in Cambodia has ever suffered from acts of discrimination. However, if there are any, the victim has full right to file a complaint to a court to claim for damages and seek compensation on the basis of applicable laws."

Mr. Prosper was also concerned by questions regarding the independence of the judiciary, including reports that the judiciary continued to be politicized, and that there was corruption in the judiciary.

More information on the indigenous population would also be welcome. The Committee had heard of from 17 to 25 groups of people, making up anywhere from 100,000 to 200,000 people. The major concern for this group was land rights. There were concessions being granted for exploitation of indigenous lands at a vertiginous rate and it was clear that some of the land laws and subsequent decrees were not being followed, in particular with regard to consultation. How, specifically, was the right to consultation guaranteed, Mr. Prosper asked?

The Committee had also received reports that some of the indigenous population had been prevented from using their land and had sometimes been evicted from their land, Mr. Prosper said. An elaboration on that issue would be welcome, in particular when they heard that the "spirit forests" of some of these peoples were being taken away or that they were not able to enjoy them. There had further been allegations that indigenous people were being coerced or forced to agree to land concessions or appropriations.

The Committee was also concerned about the situation of the Khmer Krom, a people that the Cambodian Government considered to be historically Cambodian, but who had been annexed to Viet Nam in the redrawing of boundaries by the colonial powers. Apparently, many of these people wished to move to Cambodia because of alleged discrimination they faced in Viet Nam. However, the Cambodian Government would not grant these people citizenship unless they could show a Cambodian home address. That appeared to be a bit of a contradiction.

Mr. Prosper was also concerned about the tensions between Cambodia and Thailand. In 2003 there had been acts of anti-Thai violence in which people had been hurt and killed. He wondered what measures or policies the Government was undertaking to ensure that those tensions did not escalate into ethnic violence.

Other Committee Experts raised questions and asked for further information on a number of subjects. A particular focus was land ownership for indigenous communities. Did indigenous persons evicted from their lands have the right to have their lands restored to them and/or were entitled to any compensation? An Expert was confused by the exact situation of land rights in the country, and said the contents of some of the sub-decrees in this area actually conflicted with wider national legislation in the area. Moreover, it seemed that few, if any, indigenous peoples had actually received collective titles to their lands. Further, how were the boundaries of indigenous lands demarcated: what kind of evidence was taken, from whom and who would participate in that process? Other issues in this area were a lack of prosecutions for those who had evicted indigenous persons from their land and how and if environmental impact studies were undertaken before granting concessions to indigenous lands.

Other questions and concerns by Experts included the procedure for becoming a naturalized citizen, as it appeared some families had lived for generations in the country, and yet their members were still not citizens; whether any cases had been brought under provisions to prohibit hate speech; more information on what was being done to bring to justice members of the Khmer Rouge that had committed genocide and crimes against humanity; what the role of the Human Rights Commission in the National Assembly was, and how was that related to the Cambodian Human Rights Committee; and whether or not the punishment of "banishment" existed in Cambodian law.

Several Experts took issue with the statement in the report, which defined discrimination as "accepting or claiming anything in order to satisfy someone’s wishes". An Expert noted that that was the definition of corruption, not racism. There was a definition later in the report that was much closer to the definition in the Convention, an Expert pointed out, the definition in the draft Penal Code. However, even that did not really match the definition in the Convention, which had to do with equality of rights. It was therefore asked what the Government would do to ensure that the definition as contained in the Convention was reflected in national legislation.

Response by Delegation to Oral Questions

Responding to questions and concerns raised by Experts, the delegation said that, with regard to establishing the rule of law in Cambodia, the legal and judicial system had had to be built up from scratch after its sad history had left the infrastructure of the country in ruins. The Government had made significant progress over the last decade in adopting and ratifying legislation, which had included the adoption of the Criminal Code, the Code for Criminal Procedure, the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure.

Institutionally, the Royal Academy of Courts functioned to train and govern the work of judges and prosecutors. Expanding legal institutions and courts had also been accomplished successfully, the delegation said. Many laws had been adopted and promulgated through publication in gazettes, as well as through dissemination of hard copies and trainings and workshops for legal authorities on the new laws. There were two levels of courts in the Kingdom – courts of the first instance, provincial courts and military courts; and the court of appeal.

For indigenous persons, pilot projects were being carried out with regard to access to justice in indigenous areas and staff were also being trained on dispute resolution techniques. Because of economic development in the country, such disputes in the countryside were growing.

Concerning the Khmer Rouge trials, the Extraordinary Chamber for the prosecution of Khmer Rouge leaders had been set up and Cambodia was cooperating with the United Nations in that regard, as was well known. Indeed, it had been Cambodia that had requested the United Nations to set up the Extraordinary Chamber. The delegation here stressed that that was a Cambodian court, with international participation – a sort of hybrid tribunal. If the Extraordinary Chambers succeeded it would go a long way towards eradicating the climate of impunity and establishing one of accountability. That was what Cambodia was doing and expected to do further. They had completed one case and the second case was currently being tried. A total of five cases had been identified and referred to the Prosecutor of the Extraordinary Chamber.

On the issue of the Khmer Krom, they were formally recognized as Cambodian citizens, without any discrimination whatsoever, the delegation continued. There were 82,000 Khmer Krom currently living in Cambodia and they were legally recognized as citizens. There were also over a dozen civil society organizations for the Khmer Krom, including those who worked to ensure that they enjoyed their political rights.

With regard to identification cards for Khmer Krom, there had been difficulties in providing those as they had not been aware of the official documents needed. Those requirements included that they had a permanent address in Cambodia; a birth certificate; and a court certificate that one of their parents had Khmer nationality, among others.

To become a naturalized citizen, for those who had not married a Cambodian citizen, there was a Constitutional provision to grant foreign residents who had contributed to the economic, scientific or cultural achievements of the country citizenship, the delegation stated. A number of persons had already been granted citizenship in that way, in particular to those who had carried out efforts as part of non-governmental organization work in the country, including Angelina Jolie.

The Cambodian Human Rights Committee was not a national human rights institution in the sense of the Paris Principles, The delegation said. It was mandated to monitor and control the activities of local authorities regarding the application of laws and policies aimed at combating racial discrimination. The Human Rights Commission, for its part, was established by three royal decrees and had been in place since 2000. It was tasked with investigating complaints regarding human rights violations and with gathering all information on human rights violations. It was also responsible for organizing trainings on human rights and many other duties. Now, it had to be updated and its duties expanded to cover all human rights violations that could occur in Cambodia.

The Government had committed to the establishment of a national human rights institution in accordance with the Paris Principles a couple of years ago, the delegation noted, and work to that end was ongoing.

Cambodia was a signatory to the United Nations Declaration on Indigenous People, and in that context held an annual day in celebration of the indigenous.

The Government had chosen elimination of poverty as the highest priority on its policy agenda. Cambodia had therefore tried to attract investment from all sectors to develop the economy. On the other hand, the Government had always taken the interests of indigenous communities into consideration and had tried to minimize the impact of economic activities to the greatest extent possible, together with trying to find solutions. There were measures in place to ensure that there was no negative impact on the environment or on the livelihood of the indigenous population. There had to be consultation with indigenous communities regarding the use of their lands via the local indigenous councils. Having said that, indigenous people might be asked to leave their land for the national good, with their consent. In those cases, the indigenous people would receive other land and compensation. Those decisions had to be based on the results of a consultation held with the indigenous communities themselves. The delegation said the sub-decree on the use of indigenous land of April 2009 provided a good basis for protection of collective ownership and use of land by the indigenous.

As to whether indigenous people could own forests, the delegation noted that all forms of natural resources, including forests, belonged to the State. The State could allocate those resources as it sought fit. The State ensured that indigenous persons could have access to those resources, in consultation with the local indigenous councils.

There were two types of collective ownership of land – that for monasteries and that for indigenous communities. In order for an indigenous community to register collective land title, they had to form as a legal community. For 2009, three new communities had been officially formed. In total, up to 2010 there could be [sic] nine indigenous communities officially registered.

There were no clear criteria to establish provisional protection for areas where indigenous communities had not officially registered. The Ministry for Interior had therefore issued a circular to promote registration. The two provinces with the majority of the indigenous populations had asked for a suspension of granting of all contracts in those areas unless there had been a royal grant made in advance. In that connection, since 2007, there had been seven contract concessions that had been cancelled indefinitely.

There were no grounds for the criticism that indigenous people had been evicted from their land without compensation, the delegation insisted. There had always been free negotiations and agreement obtained from the community beforehand. Such claims were merely opportunist attempts by the communities to obtain further lands.

There was inevitably some encroachment that had occurred by certain industries. The Government still needed the involvement of cooperation of non-governmental organizations and civil society organizations to highlight such weak spots, to ensure that the appropriate measures could be taken, the delegation underscored.

Also in the area of the indigenous community, the Ministry of Education had paid the utmost attention to the literacy programme, which was a bridge to the indigenous community – both children and adults. A training of trainers programme had been carried out by selecting indigenous people so that they could carry out educational programmes in the indigenous community. The culture and beliefs of the indigenous people were also being incorporated in the school curriculum, the delegation added.

The fact that Buddhism was the State religion was not discrimination at all. Cambodia was a country that advocated tolerance and that applied the law equally. It was simply a fact that some 90 per cent of the Khmer people were Buddhist. It was like the need at the United Nations to identify only so many official languages; it facilitated cooperation and organization. Specifically on whether non-Buddhists could hold positions such as a university chair, the delegation confirmed that there were no restrictions whatsoever on the basis of religion. Any qualified person could hold a university chair.

On the topic of refugees, the sub-decree on the screening and according to status of refugees had been issued in 2009. Prior to that, Cambodia had relied on UNHCR to undertake screening, working closely with UNHCR since 2001. The Government had implemented a tripartite agreement with Viet Nam and UNHCR to deal with the situation of the 1,830 Vietnamese mountain people ("Mongtenha") refugees Cambodia had received between 2004 and 2009. Some 900 had since been resettled in third countries. UNHCR had rejected the asylum applications of 704 Mongtenha, of whom 200 had been returned to Viet Nam.

Further Questions by Experts

Reverting to the Khmer Krom situation, an Expert reiterated concern that the implementation of the law, which viewed all Khmer Krom as Cambodian nationals, required a procedure that rendered the law ineffective.

PIERRE-RICHARD PROSPER, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the report of Cambodia, said he had some "breaking news" on the situation with the Khmer Krom: 19 Khmer Krom waiting since January 2010 had been denied their identification cards. It appeared that some of those decisions were being made at the local level, rather than at the State level. The central Government really needed to seize this issue and to embrace the position that it had stated – that the Khmer Krom were Cambodian.

With regard to education of the indigenous population, Mr. Prosper said the Committee had received information that the indigenous population was still challenged in the area of receiving equal education because of their remote location and a lack of bilingual or indigenous-language texts.

Regarding information provided today on the number of indigenous communities that had registered, an Expert said it was unclear if those figures simply referred to communities that had been legally registered or if they represented the number of such communities that had legally registered their collective land. It was also problematic that the recognition of legal status for indigenous communities had to be granted by the Ministry of the Interior, whereas the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples specifically set out the right of indigenous peoples to self-determination. Also, had he heard correctly that concessions to multinational corporations for exploitation of indigenous lands could be re-evaluated in light of international agreements?

Replies by the Delegation

Responding to those questions and others, the delegation was unable to answer the technical question about the registrations for the indigenous community, but did say that the Government was working with international partners, including the Asian Development Bank and UNDP to register indigenous land.

The delegation confirmed that the Prime Minister had been advocating re-evaluation of land concessions to determine environmental impact, sustainability and the impact on the livelihood of the indigenous community, as well as the projected job creation for the Cambodian people. If the concessions failed to meet the criteria, that land would be reassigned.

On the definition of discrimination, the delegation agreed that a mistake had been made in writing the report. However, there had been a better definition set out later in the report, and it was hoped in future to harmonize legislation with the Convention.

Concerning the Khmer Krom, the delegation understood there were difficulties regarding the residency requirements and the need to submit a birth certificate to obtain identification cards. The delegation would bring the recommendation of the Committee to the Government in that regard.

Preliminary Concluding Observations

In preliminary concluding observations, PIERRE-RICHARD PROSPER, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the report of Cambodia, thanked the delegation; the Committee had learned more about the issues in the country and the challenges Cambodia faced during the two-day dialogue.

On the Khmer Rouge prosecutions, Mr. Prosper said he agreed with what had been said by the delegation – that in pursuing justice it was necessary to balance that with peace. But now that Cambodia had committed to that process – within a narrow mandate that would ensure peace – how the Government performed in that process was critical.

There were many positives that had come out of this session, Mr. Prosper said, first and foremost a renewed engagement on the part of the Government. What would also be noted in the Committee's conclusions was the progress Cambodia had made. The Government had fully accepted many international principles and many international laws, and they had been enshrined in the Constitution and codified in law. Moreover, the Government over the past few decades had worked side by side with the international community and the United Nations to promote democracy.

There were also some concerns, Mr. Prosper noted. The primary concern involved the area of the rule of law. That was key to protecting the rights enshrined in the Convention. Cambodia would be encouraged to continue to promote the rule of law and to ensure that it was being applied properly. Concern had also been raised that the rule of law was not perhaps being uniformly or faithfully applied in certain aspects, in particular as it regarded refugees, asylum-seekers, and the various groups that had been talked about in the dialogue.

Another issue was the definition of discrimination in Cambodia's legal code, Mr. Prosper said. It would be recommended that Cambodia undertake the appropriate review and studies to ensure that the laws were in harmony with the Convention and that the society was aware of those laws.

During the meetings, concerns had been raised by Experts about finding the delicate balance between development and the rights of citizens – whether those be land rights or economic rights. Related to that was the "land grabbing" issues faced by the indigenous populations. While there might be laws on the books, it had been observed that they might be too cumbersome or simply were not being applied.

The nationality issue for the Khmer Krom had also been discussed, and recommendations would be made in that area, Mr. Prosper said. Related to that would be recommendations concerning the equal access of the indigenous population to health and education. While the central Government might have the will and the intention to have those situations equalized, what was happening on the ground might not match that intention. It was also hoped that the economic benefits that Cambodia was experiencing could be channelled to help those populations.
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