By Brian McCartan
Cambodian leaders have shrugged off a World Bank move this month to suspend new lending due to state-sponsored, large-scale evictions to clear land for development projects. While rising access to private Asian capital, particularly from China, has helped Cambodia weather previous Western donor pressure for reform, the socio-economic costs of the latest sanction could be much higher.
The World Bank had come under pressure from local and foreign non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to take a tough stance against Cambodia's government in response to well-documented forced evictions of communities. The issue centered on a large-scale urban development project planned for central Phnom Penh at Boeung Kak lake where many of the residents are involved in
The pressure increased late last year after an internal investigation found that the World Bank had violated its own social and environmental policies in supporting the project. It is being led by the privately-held Cambodian Shukaku company, which signed a 99-year lease with the government in 2007 to develop Boeung Kak and the surrounding area into a district of luxury apartments and high-end shops.
The company is chaired by Lao Meng Khin, a powerful senator affiliated with the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and a close associate of Prime Minister Hun Sen. Shukaku is partnered with the Inner Mongolia Erdos Hongjun Investment Co Ltd of China, which has pledged broadly to spend US$3 billion in Cambodia on property development, metal processing and power generation.
However, the joint venture has raised some eyebrows due to the unlisted Chinese company's murky background and ownership. Critics say that the company has no proven expertise in any of the areas in which it has pledged to invest, and there is an unusual lack of publicity around a company that has promised to commit such a large amount of capital outside China.
The developers began pumping sand into the lake in 2008, flooding homes and virtually wiping out the once tranquil lake's ecology. Land holders have had no say in the process and have been accused by the government as illegal squatters on state-owned land. These accusations, NGOs say, run counter to Cambodia's land law, which provides protections against evictions to long-time land holders. Many of the residents at Boeung Kak have lived there for decades.
However, the lake's residents were excluded from a process organized by the World Bank to adjudicate property claims. Over 2,000 have already been forced from their homes and another 10,000 now face eviction. The international lender has since called on the Cambodian government to halt the evictions and agree to fair compensation for land holders. After failing to reach an agreement, the World Bank stated on August 9, "Until an agreement is reached with the residents of Boeung Kak lake we do not expect to provide new lending to Cambodia."
The World Bank has lent Cambodia between US$50 million and $70 million annually for the past few years with the last disbursement made in December 2010. Most of the loans have been committed to health and education projects. Despite these capital commitments, Cambodian leaders have so far shrugged off the World Bank's statement about withholding future loans.
Analysts say they can afford to, given the billions of dollars of aid and investment the government now receives from China without strings attached. Cambodia's foreign donors pledged $1.1 billion in aid last year, with China committing the most of any country. China has also become Cambodia's largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI), with stated plans to spend $8 billion on 360 different projects during the first seven months of 2011.
It is difficult to separate Chinese foreign aid from investment since they are often intertwined. Chinese companies receive government subsidies to participate in projects that by Western standards would often be considered as development related. During a 2010 visit by Hun Sen to Beijing, China promised to provide a $300 million loan to construct two national highways and irrigation projects. Other deals concluded during the visit, mostly related to infrastructure, were worth around $293 million.
Hun Sen has made it clear in several speeches that he prefers Chinese to Western aid due to the lack of attached conditions. Western donors often predicate their aid packages on democratic reforms and improvements in human rights and counter-corruption. Hun Sen is apparently not alone in this opinion: the opaque regimes in Laos and Myanmar have also shown a preference for Chinese aid and investment for similar reasons.
Sphere of interest
Together with Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos are often considered Beijing's "sphere of interest" in Southeast Asia.
China became Laos' largest foreign investor in 2010 with total investments amounting $2.9 billion since 2000. Much of China's investment there is in mining, hydropower projects, agribusiness and services. It has also secured a prominent place as an aid donor through large-scale infrastructure projects such as the construction of Route 3 connecting southwestern China with northern Thailand through Laos.
Some of these projects have aimed more at securing goodwill, such as the widening of the Central Avenue in downtown Vientiane and the construction of the National Cultural Hall, than making money. That's evidenced in the fact that many loans are dispensed interest-free.
Last year, largely Western aid agencies and donors cautioned Laos about racing ahead with a development plan based too heavily on natural resource exploitation without enough emphasis on health, education and capacity development among the local population.
The Lao government has stated some of its own concerns over investment, especially in terms of long-term and concessions, such as those granted to Chinese investors to build casino complexes. However, the government has made it clear it intends to reduce its high dependency on official development assistance in favor of increased access to Asian private capital, especially from China.
In Myanmar, where the country ostensibly made a transition from direct military rule to a democratic system earlier this year, there is increasing Chinese investment as the country's leaders continue to look to Beijing for economic as well as diplomatic support. Much of China's investment is in natural resource extraction, hydropower projects, and infrastructure, but there is a growing interest in acquiring agricultural land, especially for rubber.
Myanmar's rulers have long relied on Chinese investment and aid to make up for a lack of development assistance from the West. Sanctions and concern over human-rights issues have prevented Western donors from providing funding at levels similar to that donated to Laos and Cambodia. Human-rights and political opposition groups have long argued that Chinese aid has allowed the military to stay in power and continue to repress the population.
China plans in coming years to further expand its trade with the region and is making moves to develop more extensive physical trade arteries. Beijing has announced plans to pour money into road and rail projects in coming years, linking its landlocked southwestern region with ports in Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia. It is hoped this will increase trade, promote regional investment and tourism, as well as strengthen ties with the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
This may be music to the ears of Southeast Asian policymakers who are interested in developing their countries' economic potential as well as improving their own financial situations given the high levels of corruption in the region. However, growing Chinese influence, especially in the economic sphere, is becoming increasingly worrisome to the average farmer and shopkeeper in these countries.
For instance, there is growing discontent in Laos over what some see as too much Chinese influence in the country. Laos are especially concerned by the growing number of Chinese migrating to work in the country on Chinese projects. This became especially acute in Vientiane when plans for an urban development project near the iconic That Luang monastery came to light.
The project, which was widely perceived as building a "Chinese city" in the heart of the capital, has stirred nationalistic responses from the city's growing middle class. In addition to a penchant by Chinese companies to import Chinese workers to work on their projects, Laos are worried those workers will not return home after the projects are finished, as has been the case on certain roadway projects in remote northern areas.
Land concessions are also an issue, especially in the north where Chinese companies have been able to acquire large tracts of land for plantation agriculture. While many villagers have been able to arrange contracting agreements to provide rubber to Chinese companies, others say they have been forced to convert their land to rubber cultivation. The north is also the location of two Chinese casino, hotel and shopping complexes at Boten and Huay Xai, where sovereignty has seemingly been handed over to Chinese developers.
There is also a longstanding, but largely quiet, animosity towards Chinese influence in Myanmar. Growing Chinese economic influence in recent years has heightened a perception of Chinese as untrustworthy businessmen bent on taking over the country.
As evidence, many Burmese point to the large areas of Mandalay and other cities which have become crowded with shops with store signs only in Chinese and catering to the growing number of Chinese moving into them. This perception apparently extends to the upper echelons of government, where some leaders are reportedly alarmed by China's growing economic clout vis-a-vis the local population.
For the average Myanmar farmer, especially in the country's northern region where there is an increase in China-linked agribusiness projects, there is concern over being evicted from their lands in favor of commercial plantations. Human rights groups have documented this practice throughout the country in a process often carried out by military units.
Others are worried their land will be taken for infrastructure and other projects. Environmental groups have documented the confiscation of land to build a deep sea port in Myanmar's south that will ship oil and gas through pipelines being constructed by Chinese companies to China's land-locked southwestern region.
While not solely the work of Chinese companies, rising evictions in Cambodia are creating a huge number of landless displaced people across the country. Some analysts speculate that the sheer number of people displaced could lead to social stability problems in the future as Cambodians forced off their land and without other viable economic options become increasingly desperate.
Unless Cambodian government policymakers make a shift from their headlong rush for development and reckless policies to supply China's demand for natural resources, agricultural products and diplomatic allies, the risk will rise that their development projects cause more social problems than they resolve.
It's a message the World Bank has delivered belatedly with its suspension of new lending and advice Cambodia's leaders would be wise to heed if they are to maintain social stability amid rapid economic growth and rising Chinese influence.
Brian McCartan is a freelance journalist. He may be reached atbrianpm@comcast.net.
(Copyright 2011 Asia Times Online (Holdings) Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact us about sales, syndication and republishing.)
From Asia Times
Sunday 4 September 2011
'Just call me Vic': Prince Sisowath on what it's like to be king for a day
Photo by: Photo Supplied
Prince Sisowath Vic said the Royal Ploughing Ceremony last year was one of the first times he witnessed the connection between the monarchy and ordinary people.They told me to be serious, but I like to goof around”
Standing in for the king of Cambodia for a day isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, says Prince Sisowath Vic. Especially when the regal duty involves manhandling a team of pampered royal oxen around a field in front of thousands of spectators, all eager to see what omens the Royal Ploughing Ceremony will reveal for the coming rice harvest.
“I was really scared. When we drove up there were crowds of people there. Before, when I agreed to do it, I thought ‘No problem, it’s just leading a cow around a couple of times right?’ But when we drove into the area and everyone was gathered, I really started to get nervous,” Vic told 7Days.
Prince Sisowath Vic – or “Vic” as he prefers to be known – was born in Phnom Penh in 1973 to Prince Monirak Sisowath and Princess Norodom Buppha Devi, but was raised in France and the US during the Lon Nol and Khmer Rouge eras. In March, he moved to Siem Reap to work as a regional manager for ANZ Royal Bank. But occasionally – like with last year’s Royal Ploughing Ceremony – he’ll be called to don the crown.
“The king has to perform the ceremony but he can’t do it every year so he uses a proxy. Basically I was king for a day and I got to be transported in a palanquin and they had the porters and carried me around. They give you a sword to carry and things like that, and then you lead the cows around. They told me to be serious, but I like to goof around, and I was waving, and winking when I saw a pretty girl. I just sacrificed one morning in my life and it meant a lot to people. In the beginning, to be honest, I didn’t want to do it. But I warmed up to it when I saw how much it meant to the people who were there and the smiles on their faces.”
Vic said he was reassured by the enthusiastic reception of the crowd, which cheered him as he made the laps in his palanquin. But his main concern at the time was the reception he would receive from the unruly pair of royal oxen he was expected to lead three times around a field, to officially kick off the rice planting season.
“I heard the cows can get rowdy, so I told the cow-handlers to make sure mine behaves, otherwise I’m going to roast him tonight. The plough was following the governor of Siem Reap around the field, so I figured if anything happened it would happen to him.”
Vic explained that his duties as substitute king also included supervising the placement of bowls of rice, grass, water, whisky, and other refreshments in front of a judging panel of royal oxen. The culinary preferences of the oxen are taken to determine how favourable the coming rice harvest will be.
Vic said his overseas upbringing meant that the ploughing ceremony was one of the first times he saw direct evidence of the connection between the monarchy and ordinary people. Another reminder was when he returned to Cambodia in 2007 to work for ANZ Royal Bank.
“When I started at ANZ I remember people were intimidated by me. I would walk over and say hello to people and they would run away from me, and I had to coax them and say ‘It’s okay.’ But little by little people who worked with me and were close to me realised ‘oh no he’s just like everyone else.’ I don’t want people to be intimidated I just want people to relax. We’re not any different from anyone else, we just have a different last name.”
Different last names was the reason his mother and father initially met, Vic explained – his grandfather cast his parents opposite each other as love interests in one of King Sihanouk’s many self-written and directed films.
“If it wasn’t for his films I probably wouldn’t be born, because my mother and father met on the set of one of his movies. My father is from the Sisowath side of the royal family and mother from the Norodom side, and they were both asked to star.
“When I was young they used to make me watch it. They would tie me down to a chair and make me watch it with them, but I can’t remember what it was called. If you write that, my parents will kill me for forgetting the name,” he joked.
Vic and his family were forced to flee Cambodia in 1973, after the Lon Nol regime imprisoned royals. The regime was concerned that people of royal blood could be a political threat. So Vic and his family embarked on a kind of exile tour. They first moved to China to live with King Sihanouk, then to France where they lived mostly in Paris. He finally arrived in the US, where Norodom Sihamoni continued his film career, in-between working as a social security fraud investigator.
“It was kind of funny; he was in the movie The Killing Fields, he had a role as a Khmer Rouge officer, and then later on he was asked to be in the movie The Mission with Jeremy Irons and Robert De Niro, and after that he stopped. I never really discussed it with him to be honest. I never asked how he felt about playing a Khmer Rouge officer. I think he was just happy doing a movie about Cambodia, as no one really had an idea about what was going on here at the time and it really put a spotlight on it.”
His family’s abrupt departure from Cambodia meant Vic and his four brothers and sisters didn’t grow up in the opulent manner of their parents, and the need to pay for college, as well as a long tradition of military service on the Sisowath side of his family, saw him enlist in the US army in 1991.
“I didn’t join because I was patriotic, when I left high school I was determined I was going to make it on my own and did not want to depend on anyone. But I didn’t know how I was going to pay for school, so a friend said ‘why don’t you join the US army?’ I was 18 years old and didn’t know what I was getting into, so I said, ‘Sure, why not, they’ll give me money to go to school and it sounds like a good idea.’ I think it’s a good system, but at the time when I was going through boot camp I was not a happy customer. Looking back, this was something I don’t regret doing. You learn a lot: discipline, honesty, honour.
Photo by: Photo Supplied
Prince Sisowath Vic said the Royal Ploughing Ceremony last year was one of the first times he witnessed the connection between the monarchy and ordinary people.I heard the cows can get rowdy, so I told the cow-handlers to make sure mine behaves, otherwise I’m going to roast him
After his discharge from the military, his time spent studying economics at the University of California, Berkeley, and his stint working in the airline industry, Vic moved back to Cambodia in 2007 to be closer to his elderly parents. He landed a job at ANZ Royal Bank as premier banking manager, dealing with high net-worth clients, before managing the bank’s central office in Phnom Penh for two years.
His workplace status as a Cambodian prince was initially both a hindrance and a help, Vic explained, and many colleagues were unsure how to address him.
“Sometimes it’s a hindrance. When I first got into the organisation I knew I had to work really hard so people wouldn’t think I got the job because of my name. So the expectations I put on myself were higher than anyone else. I remember my boss, when I first came in he asked ‘What should we call you, how should we address you?’ and I said ‘Oh no, just call me Vic’. I don’t like being addressed by my title or insist on it, like some of my family members do. I had to prove myself and I’m here today sitting at my desk not because of my last name but because I’ve worked hard.”
Promoted to oversee ANZ Royal Bank’s operations in Siem Reap and five surrounding provinces in March, the move from Phnom Penh led to Vic meeting his future wife, an as yet unnamed work colleague.
The wedding is scheduled to take place this December in Phnom Penh.
“I wasn’t expecting this at all, I thought I’d come out to the province try something new, living in a new city working in a new job, and I found something else. She works at ANZ and I proposed in secret but now our parents are meeting. My mother is handling it, she did the wedding for my sister and Ranariddh’s daughter. We have to go the palace and seek the blessing of the king and do the whole monk ceremony at the palace.”
While confessing to having some sleepless nights about the constant growth of the wedding guest list, which is expected to include Prime Minister Hun Sen and other members of the royal family, one thing Vic has no second thoughts about is the decision to uproot his life in the US and move back to Cambodia.
“I’m definitely glad I made the decision to come home. When I was in the US I was just going from job to job and now it’s a career. As you grow up, you identify your weaknesses and your strengths. I’ve identified what I’m good at, whereas before I had no clue. I love doing what I do. I have no regrets about coming here, my life would be very different and I don’t think I would be as happy living in the US. Cambodia is just my country. I feel that indescribable link you have to your homeland where you were born.
Vicious Cycles tour not a pedalling trifle
Photo by: Claire Byrne
Vicious Cyclers out and about in the back blocks of Siem Reap.A sprawling vista of rice paddies. A pink haze emerging from a sea of lotus flowers. The impromptu rush hour as we meet a herd of water buffalo on their way to bathe. And clusters of high-fiving children lining the muddy trails. Scenes such as these are why two wheels is the best way to see Siem Reap and its outer environs.
In a town already brimming with tour companies, each offering an experience more unique than the last, it takes a particularly bright gem to stand out.
But a new kid on the block – Vicious Cycles – already has a head start. Its owner, Adam Platt-Hepworth, is merely adding building blocks onto a network of shops he hopes to extend throughout Southeast Asia.
More than just a bike shop, Vicious Cycles is the Siem Reap base of Grasshopper Adventures, of which Adam is the Southeast Asian regional manager.
It is a world-renowned bike tour company which runs two wheel (and some one wheel) expeditions throughout 16 countries in Asia. And having won the coveted Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence in May, this is one company that will be a welcome jewel in Siem Reap’s crown.
While the shop opened quietly back in January, Adam’s recent arrival as a Siem Reap resident, along with his partner Marie, will put a face on what is largely an online industry.
“Siem Reap, it’s a great area, it’s a great town, we had existing tours here but we wanted to get in, to have a presence, and make connections,” he said. “Despite this huge shift towards internet travel planning, people like to be able to walk in, talk to someone and ask all sorts of unusual questions.”
When not concerned with the rental aspect of Vicious Cycles, (mountain bikes can be rented for $8 a day, town bikes for $4), and the tours, which range from a big gun temple overview, to a 70 kilometre ride to Bang Mealea, to a half-day in the Cambodian countryside, Adam has been busy networking with expats and Khmer alike.
In his first week in town he held a free, all-welcome 30 kilometre countryside cycle. Despite the ambitious start time – 8am on a Saturday – about 20 eager riders showed up to give the bikes a spin. So popular was the ride that Vicious Cycles has pencilled it in as a weekly affair.
So what makes Siem Reap such a great area to explore by bike? “Well it’s flat, that helps,” affirms Adam. “I think the real Cambodia, the Cambodia everyone falls in love with, you don’t see it from a bus, you won’t see it in town; it’s all the little back-trails, through the countryside and past villages.”
Adam says he wants to build up more consistent numbers on their tours. “It’s competitive, there are a lot of tours available. We’re not just competing with other bike companies, we’re competing with helicopters, ultra light planes, quad bikes. It’s not a niche interest, it’s just another thing you can do in Siem Reap – a simple pleasure.
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