Bridges Across Borders Cambodia

Chinese Firm Linked to Boeung Kak Lake Development Called Upon To Engage with Affected Communities

Boeung Kak lake residents facing eviction have appealed to the Chinese firm Inner Mongolia Erdos Hung Jun Investment Company to support their efforts to prevent further evictions resulting from the highly contentious Boeung Kak development project.  The Boeung Kak development has led to the actual and threatened displacement of more than 20,000 lakeside residents, constituting the single largest forced relocation of Cambodians since the Khmer Rouge era.  Hung Jun entered into a joint venture partnership with a local Cambodian company linked to ruling party Senator Lao MengKhin to develop the controversial project, according to news reports that surfaced in January 2011. Development plans for the 133-hectare area of the capital were announced to Boeung Kak residents in January 2007, after the Municipality of Phnom Penh entered into a 99-year lease agreement with Lao MengKhin’s firm, ShukakuInc, and without consultation with affected families. In a letter obtained by the Phnom Penh Post, dated November 12 of last year, Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema wrote to Prime Minister Hun Sen to inform him of the joint venture partnership and to request that the land be registered in the lease agreement under the name Shukaku Erdos Hung Jun Property Development Co, Ltd., “for directly implementing the project in the Boeung Kak area.”  The Prime Minister reportedly agreed.

Since 2008, lakeside residents have faced intolerable flooding of their homes, resulting from the developer pumping sand from the Tonle Sap river into the lake in order to fill it in for development.  The flooding has forced hundreds of families to accept compensation at a small fraction of the market price.  Some families who refused to accept the paltry compensation on offer have watched as their homes were buried in sand.  Meanwhile, community leaders who have led protests in defense of the housing and property rights of residents have faced a barrage of beatings and arrests.

Hung Jun has a reputation in China as a generous philanthropic company, which has provided significant support to people in need.  Specifically, in 2010 the company was awarded the People’s Republic of China, Ministry of Civil Affairs’ prestigious China Charity Award in recognition of the company’s commitment to balanced development.  Further, in the same year, the company’s Chairman, Mr. Wang Linxiang, was recognized as one of “China’s Most Outstanding Philanthropic Entrepreneurs.”

In light of this reputation, the affected communities privately approached Hung Jun in the hope that their prior standard of conduct would prevail in their case and the company would support their proposed alternatives to further evictions.  In a letter translated into Chinese, and sent to the company’s headquarters in Erdos city, Neimenggu Province, China and to its Hong Kong office,community representatives asked Hung Junto support their alternative plan for resettlement onsite. The community’s plan calls for the provision of housing for affected people near their existing residences so that they could maintain their connection to the surrounding communities, the services that they enjoy in the city, and their small businesses and employment.  The Cambodian Housing Rights Task Force, a coalition to which BAB Cambodia belongs, also sent a cover letter to Hung Jun urging the company to meet with the community and to engage responsibly in the BoeungKak lake project.  Months later, Hung Jun still has not replied to either letter.   

Following pressure on the Cambodian Government from the World Bank to resolve the Boeung Kak lake dispute, in March 2011, Phnom Penh City Hall accepted in principle the community’s demand for onsite housing; however, it has rejected terms that are acceptable to the residents.  Negotiations between City Hall and residents have been stalled since May and the company has continued to pump sand into the lake, causing ongoing flooding of people’s homes.

BAB Cambodia calls upon Shukaku Erdos Hung Jun to engage with the affected community and support their legitimate effortto be included in the development plans.  If Hung Jun seeks to uphold its reputation as a socially responsible company, it must ensure that the BoeungKak development proceeds in a manner that respects the rights of affected people. 
Click here to download the HRTF letter to Hung Jun in English and Chinese.