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Land
Reform Council Holds First Meeting
A
new council created to study the nation's land policies
met for the first time Thursday and began work on a draft
policy to guide upcoming discussions on land laws.
The Council on Land Policy, created in December set as its
first goal the drafting of a statement by June to outline
their land priorities.
The statement should be written by June to coincide with
the international donors meeting that month, said Im Chhun
Lim, the minister of construction and urbanization.
"We want to show to the world and the international
donors that we have and official policy, "he said.
Im Chhun Lim said the statement will cover three areas of
land issues: administration, management and distribution.
The development of effective land laws stands as a
significant issue for the upcoming session of Parliament,
to begin after the Khmer New Year.
Malcolm Childress, a consultant to the Council on Land
Policy from the World Bank, said he expects the council to
meet their June deadline.
Speaking at the workshop Thursday, Childress said he
worked on similar issues in South America and Africa.
"The reason they wanted a national land policy was
because they wanted to make sure there is equity, and
there was a need to establish stability after historical
turmoil, "he said.
There are three factors behind successful land policies,
he said: There must be clear, unambiguous legislation;
money and resources to back up the plans; and the
government and people must have the political will to
carry out their policy.
The Council on Land Policy was created by the Supreme
Council of the Reform of the State, which is chaired by
prime Minister Hun Sen.
The draft statement written at the workshop will be
distributed to NGOs working on land issues, such as the
Asian Development Bank and the World Bank, to ask for
their input.
The workshop also addressed the need for an inventory of
land, both private and state-owned, and the need for a
complete registration system.
By
Matt McKinney
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