The following was written by Kristin Jack, team leader for Servants Cambodia and an eyewitness to the violent eviction of slum residents and the demolition of their homes that took place on Saturday January 24th.
The history of Cambodia is littered with tragedies brought about by the oppression of the weak by the powerful. Power, and it’s abuse, seem to be a constant theme that spreads its destructive influences through all levels of society here.
On the morning of Saturday, January 24th, I witnessed yet another display of this ‘naked power’ being used to crush those who were weak and poor, in order that the rich and powerful of this city might take something from those who already have so little.
Dey Krahorm is an inner-city community of poor and working class families who have been resisting the confiscation of their land by a wealthy development company (called 7NG) for three years now. Under Cambodian law, all city land resettled for four continuous years after the Pol Pot times reverts to the ownership of those on it. Many of the residents of Dey Krahorm had lived there for 20 years of more. Their work, their friendships, their childrens schooling was all bound up in this community. However, becasue it is a prime inner city location, both the Government and the development company 7NG were determince to seize ownership. In return, the residents of Dey Krahom were seeking fair market value compensation for their land and houses.
In the early hours of that morning I stood from 2.20 am on and watched as hundreds of military police and company demolition forces armed with axes and crowbars gathered to storm the community. From 2.30 am on they sealed off all entry and exit points to the community, and from then on refused to allow human rights observors or media to enter. Eight friends, fellow volunteer human rights observors, had already entered the community the night before, and were sleeping inside (plus a film crew). I stood at the police barricade, also wearing my ‘human rights observor jacket’, and kept in contact with them by cell phone and text message. As I stood with the gathering troops, I prayed, I talked, I reasoned and I asked them to show mercy and compassion.
At 6.15 am the eviction began with a blitzkrieg-style storming of the community using a barrage of tear gas and riot sheilds, with bulldozers and graders plowing into peoples houses. It is incredible that no body was killed in the fear, panic and violence that was created by the company (7NG) and the troop’s in the half-light of dawn. I personally witnessed houses being aggressively bulldozed while folk were still trying to retrieve precious possessions, with the bull-dozer operator refusing to back off. One of the really disgusting aspects of this display of raw power was that the residents of Dey Krahom (reasonably) beleived they were still in the middle of ‘good faith’ negotiations over compensation, and therefore that no forced eviction would be thinkable at this point.
On the Friday before this tragic event, the Muncipality of Phnom Penh facilitated a meeting between the Dey Krahom residents and the company (7NG), in which residents were asked to submit their ownership documents and how much compensation they were seeking, to 7NG for consideration. The inference (if not promise) was that no ‘action’ would take place till these had been fairly considered. It now appears that this was no more than an elaborate ruse to catch the community off guard.
Our friends in the human rights community are coordinating the emergency response in terms of emergency food supplies and shelter for the hundreds of people displaced, whose homes have been bulldozed (the relocation site ‘prepared’ by the Govt and 7NG many kilometers outside the city is of course grossly unprepared with inadequate shelter, water, power etc).
My friends, at this stage I want to ask you to join us in praying for justice and compassion to break forth in this nation. Please pray for the hundreds of displaced, homeless families who have lost everything under the blades of the bulldozers, and that enough pressure can be brought to bear on the company so that they would pay fair compensation to those whose land they have taken.
For more images of the eviction click here.
For a video of what took place click here.
For all other articles on this event at this blog click here.
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