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Australian Bank to Compensate Cambodian Farmers for Lost Land

Sok Khemara

   In a landmark decision for the rights of smallholders,a leading
   Australian bank has agreed to pay more than 1,000 Cambodian families
   displaced by a sugar companyit granted a loan to in 2011, even
   thoughthe loanviolated the bank's stated human rights standards.

   ANZ Australia will pay the families with interest earned by the $40
   million loan to Phnom Penh Sugar (PPS), a company owned by a
   conglomerate headed by Cambodian lawmaker and tycoon Ly Yong Phat, who
   is affiliated with the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP).

   At the time ANZ granted the loan through its Cambodian joint venture,
   ANZ Royal Bank, PPS had [1]attracted international media
   attentionfollowing widespread [2]allegations of its use of child labor
   and clashes with local human rights groups.

   PPS did not respond to VOA Khmer's requests for comment.

   At the heart of the dispute was the 2011 eviction offarmfamilies, who
   allegedly received no compensation when PPS purportedly seized their
   holdings and homes in collusion with local authorities and Cambodia's
   armed forces. At the time, plantations owned by Ly Yong Phat were
   spread across theTbpongand Oral districts. They eventually occupied
   23,000 hectares.

   Critics said his operations produced "blood sugar," because of the
   violent forced evictions and other human rights abuses inflicted on the
   families.

   'Huge difficulties'

   SoeungSokhom, a representative of the affected families in Cambodia's
   KompongSpeuprovince, said he supported the outcome in a statement
   issued as part of the payment announcement.

   "We have experienced huge difficulties with our livelihoods since the
   sugar company took our land almost 10 years ago, and this contribution
   will greatly help our situation," he said. "The whole affected
   community, including me, are deeply grateful that ANZ has resolved our
   complaint."

   The bank did not disclose the exact amount it wouldpay the farmers,
   whose holdings variedin size.

   The agreement camefive years after two nonprofits filed a complaint
   against the bank with a little-known entity within Australia's treasury
   department, the nonjudicial [3]Australian National Contact Point
   (ANCP). It oversees complaints about the behavior of Australian
   companies overseas based on guidelines for responsible corporate
   behavior set forth by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
   Development (OECD).

References

   1. https://www.voacambodia.com/a/victims-of-blood-sugar-vow-to-keep-fighting/2592040.html
   2. https://www.inclusivedevelopment.net/anz-bankrolls-massive-land-grab-in-cambodia/
   3. https://ausncp.gov.au/about

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