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FOREST CONSERVATION NEWS TODAY

Cambodia Banishes Highly Effective Environmental Group

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Forest Networking a Project of Forests.org, Inc.

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December 26, 2002

OVERVIEW & COMMENTARY by Forests.org

Cambodia took a serious step backwards on their quest for forest

sustainability this week, as Prime Minister Hun Sen has indicated

he will shut down the offices of Global Witness.  For many years,

this group has played a watchdog role on rampant predatory and

illegal logging activities in Cambodia - connecting local to

national and international audiences.  Their efforts have been

absolutely groundbreaking and highly effective in highlighting

problems and demonstrating remedies to stop Cambodian rainforest

abuses.  Indeed, the government had endorsed and worked closely

with Global Witness, naming them they country's official forestry

monitors.  Their methodology could and should be replicated

elsewhere in heavily forested countries undergoing foreign

driven, murderous and unethical, and frequently anonymous forest

plunder.

Together great progress had been made to gain control of predatory

logging - mostly by Malaysian multi-national criminal enterprises. 

Now in an abrupt shift, the Cambodian government is attempting to

intimidate and silence a group that is internationally respected for

its monitoring of illegal logging.  Just as Cambodia appeared likely

to emerge from the grasp of the international timber mafia, the good

guys are being run out of town; all because Global Witness dared to

truthfully report on violence waged by the government against peaceful

protestors of timber policies.

The failure of continued efforts to reform the irredeemable

industrial log industry in Cambodia derives largely from World

Bank projects that repeatedly promise but fail to bring

"sustainable forest management".  The World Bank is now in the

business of protecting and subsidizing international markets for

ill gotten timbers from Cambodia and elsewhere.  Shame on the

Cambodian government and World Bank - whose interests are you

serving?  It is certainly not those of long-term ecological

sustainability, local self-determination and self-reliance, and

equity and justice for the global community of humanity.

Forests, water, oil and to a lesser degree other resources are

the new flashpoint for conflict.  Who controls our ecosystems,

energy, water and other basic human necessities will determine to

what degree human societies are equitable, just, free and

sustainable.  Resource fascism is on the rise - Dick Cheney and

George Bush on the forefront - "Big Time Resource Fascists"

indeed.  No war or violence for oil - or timbers.  There are

other ways to meet our needs without destroying the Planet

and each other.

g.b.

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RELAYED TEXT STARTS HERE:

Title:  Cambodian prime minister banishes UK-based environmental

  group

Source:  Copyright 2002 Associated Press

Date:  December 24, 2002

Byline:  KER MUNTHIT, Associated Press Writer

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - Prime Minister Hun Sen said Tuesday he

would shut down the office of an international environmental

watchdog group for "inflicting damage" to Cambodia's reputation

and national sovereignty.

The move came in response to "unacceptable" allegations by the

group, United Kingdom-based Global Witness, that Cambodian police

used brutal methods to break up a protest over government

forestry management plans earlier this month, he said.

"The task for Cambodia is to terminate the duty of the Global

Witness," Hun Sen told reporters. "The Global Witness is (being)

asked to leave Cambodia."

Global Witness ran into trouble when it reported that Cambodian

police used violence against peaceful grassroots protesters

gathered at the country's Forestry and Wildlife Department on

Dec. 5.

According to the report, at least seven were injured when police

kicked people and used electrified batons in the crowd of about

150 demonstrating villagers.

One of the injured, 29-year-old Hem Sao, later died - but it was

never clearly shown that his death resulted from police

brutality.

The United Nations office for human rights in Cambodia strongly

criticized the government for the alleged attack, demanding firm

action against the culprits.

On Tuesday, Hun Sen called the allegations "a grossly unjust act"

and "an exaggeration unacceptable to Cambodia."

"We have the right to terminate visas for anyone (at the Global

Witness office) who dared to abuse our national sovereignty, our

political rights and inflict damage to our reputation," he added.

He said Cambodia would continue to allow independent

environmental groups in the country, but not Global Witness.

The New York-based group Human Rights Watch said in a statement

Tuesday that the Cambodian government appeared to be "attempting

to intimidate and silence a group that is internationally

respected for its monitoring of illegal logging."

"Any attempt to remove the organization as the official forestry

monitor demonstrates the government's utter lack of commitment to

combating illegal logging and other forestry crimes," the

statement said, quoting the group's Washington director, Mike

Jendrzejczyk.

Cambodia's forests have been dramatically depleted during decades

of civil conflict, with former warring factions selling trees to

finance their wars. The situation has worsened since the

government began putting forests up for logging concessions in

the 1990s.

Global Witness has been contracted by Cambodia's aid donors to

monitor forestry crimes since 1999.

Forestry provides the main livelihood for many Cambodians living

in the remote countryside, who constitute about 85 percent of the

country's 12.5 million people.

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