Denial of right to fishery and water resources could severely affect 120,000 poor families

It is a matter of life and death for Cambodian fisher folks and farmers. It is a matter of demanding or getting starving. Simply, it's about only source of livelihood. The fisher folks and farmers feel they must have access to resources from Thom (big) lake, such as fish and water. So Ann, 44, is one amongst the villagers who suffer from the continual deprivation of access to water and fish from the lake because a dam that retains the volume of water in the lake was cut. That the dam was breached exacerbated the living condition of thousands of people. Their access to the lake resources, as stipulated by existing fishery law and policy, was severely restricted.

"If the lake dries up, we don't have fish or enough water to irrigate the rice field. In order to end local hunger, the dam must be restored urgently," said So Ann, a villager from Kampong Samnagn village. She is also one of the focal persons who mobilise poor families especially women to promote their understanding of rights and of root cause of their hunger before going on to demanding access to the productive resources.

120,000 families, most of whom are fisher folks and farmers, live in three districts of the province, 130 kilometres east of Phnom Penh capital. They heavily depend on fishing and farming as a source of their livelihood. However, these marginalised groups have been particularly deprived of access to fishing, and water for their paddy fields since late 1980s when Rolum Por dam was cut. Since the time the dam was cut, the volume of water retained in the lake has been too low and dried up in the dry season that the farmers could not grow rice. As a result in Mien commune alone, 2,000 hectares of rice fields were abandoned. The dam which is located at the very end of the Thom lake was built during the Pol Pot regime in mid 1970s to increase the volume of water retained in the lake, releasing it via two weirs. For years, this has allowed the community to control the level of water and fish in a sustainable way. But private leaseholders, in conspiracy with corrupt local authority, cut about 50 meters wide of the dam in order to easily catch all the fish coming along the lake stream flowing through the cut dam. When the leaseholders wanted to catch fish from the lake, they released the water, causing flood and destruction to crops. When they wanted to keep the fish and did not release the water, the rice fields became dried. Harvests were, as a result, not enough for household consumption.

People would catch only one or two kilos of fish per day, while some fisher folks return home empty-handed. Some used chhib (a handy fishing tool which is allowed even on privately owned fishing lots. By using this tool, fisher folks may spend hours but catch only very little amount of small fish or shrimp. There are two options for people to ‘buy' access to the private lots. First, private fishing lot owners allows people to fish their lots if they pay a yearly Riel 600,000 or US$150 fee per family for the use of fishing nets and one boat, or riel 200,000 for a samrah (barricade). The second option is for them to pay for the catch through their own labour: the fisherman received 2 portions while the remaining 8 portions go to the fishing lot owner.

The marginalised groups including women and small, migratory fisher folks have experienced and endured the exploitation for about two decades. However, they could just think that the exploiters are rich and powerful. They thought they had no money. Therefore, they were nobody. They could not protest. They were unorganised. Local authority including the commune chief, district governor, Department of Fisheries and Agriculture failed to solve problems of denial of access to the water and fish resources, though. However, the fishery communities realised that within the limited and difficult space, they could, therefore, start with demanding to breach the dam while this demand is more feasible and that if the dam is fixed, they will have a lot more water as well as more fish accordingly.

Remarkable changes
With a view to assisting the marginalised group in getting out of poverty, while knowing that they were lacking in confidence and awareness of rights and related laws, SAMAKY works with 1,500 families from nineteen villages of Mien commune. SAMAKY started their interventions with an understanding that they don't impose solution for the rural people and that they would not be quick ahead of the people in any endivour if the people were not ready enough.

"Importantly, people must have willingness. If it is from SAMAKY, they don't believe. Authority don't believe. They will question why SAMAKY is so anxious when affected community don't feel hurt. Does SAMAKY have any interest?" said Seung Samrosh of SAMAKY, explaining it is dangerous to lead people when they are not ready. She said that it is essential that meetings be held. People must understand the goal of their demand, and they speak one language. There were meetings in each village. Community facilitators visited households, door to door. Issues were raised and analysed to find out what was the real cause. By looking into each raised problem, they finally realised that it was the dam—a main priority.

"People felt scared. They did not believe in us," said So Ann. "Before we go to protest, we talked with them, discussing with them. We told them that you can see with your own eyes, what causes the loss of fish? Isn't because the lake dries up and due to the dam being cut?" she recalled her facilitation with villagers. So Ann added that no villager was forced to be on board, but on a voluntary basis. Those who wished to join raised their hands and registered their names by themselves.

It took them nearly three years to have their condition improve and to achieve the position they are now in. Villagers' confidence has been strengthened. The sense of solidarity is not questionable. Villagers said they would not watch the few people breach the dam and exploit the fish and water resources again. Their awareness of the importance of resources has proved their assertion.

"Everyone has become well aware of the issue and all of them have given their agreement by thumbprint. They don't listen to our people. Unless the Mien Fishery Community (SAMAKY) – all 19 villages – and the media work together, we won't succeed. Were there just a few of us, they would accuse us of rebelling. But if we are many, they won't have enough room to imprison us all," Much Nim added, explaining how important it is to have exploited community organising tactics.

In early 2008, the fishery communities sent a petition to restore the cut dam to commune, district and provincial office of agriculture and of fishery, the provincial governor office three times. Unfortunately, it was returned with different reasons. They responded that fixing the dam is illegal. Or at least they need time to study first. After many attempts failed and consultations with other core team members of community network for food sovereignty in Cambodia (CNFSC), community representative decided to opt a collective action—not only representatives but many people from the 19 villages go to demand together.

It was during 2008 national election campaign period that a new strategy was used. While it was a great opportunity that people's demand was most likely to be met, they found it hard to get together. They could only hold meetings at SAMAKY's office. Two CNFSC core team members, besides helping 38 community facilitators to prepare necessary information, evidence and tools needed, facilitated them in role-playing different players.

"We had three-day rehearsal, playing the role of representatives meeting with the provincial governor, the group responsible for food and sanitation. Role-playing when police block our way, we raised the signs of the ruling party," said Much Nim. Police were hanging around. But, they did it in a closed office. Some village chiefs, commune chief and police were taking the leaseholders' side, warning villagers not to go to the province. Police threatened villagers with a jail term, telling village chiefs not to allow resource mobilisation.

"Police told villagers not to contribute rice and money. That villagers are starving. So, I called to the police officer. I turned on the phone loudspeaker and recorded his voices," So Ann said. She said that the officer called to her lest she manipulated what he had said to the media. "Police and commune chief felt scared about me. Because I was quick to talk to Radio Free Asia," she added.

On 6 June 2008, more than 400 people from the 19 villages including some village chiefs joined in a mass rally in front of the governor office. In going to the office, some took rent trucks; some went by Kor Yun (home-made vehicles). They left at different time, from different places, in smaller groups in order to divert authority's attention away. When police blocked their way, they raised portraits of the ruling party leaders. They managed their way ahead. Finally, five community representatives were allowed to talk to the governor while the media gathered with the protestors outside. The governor agreed to the demand.

Villagers got very excited after they could successfully convince provincial governor that fixing the dam would benefit thousands of people. People mobilised their contribution in cash and in kind to bridge the cut dam. Nearly Riel 1.7 million was raised. They filled land into sacks to prevent the newly restored dam from erosion. A clearly visible change was Rolum Por dam was breached. Daily, people approached the dam restoration to see how it has progressed. They feel excited and also contributed. They become aware that they can use their rights to demand access to and control over their community resources. Before, they felt hopeless. They believed that they are poor; therefore, they could not do anything. Some even thought that the community facilitators, most of whom females, were nobody. Now they really appreciate the women. After the dam was restored, the rain has filled the lake's aquatic forest. Some community fisher folks catch 3-4 kilogrammes a day and some started to clear forest to farm in the land they have abandoned several years due to lack of irrigation. While some others no longer need to swim across the cut dam to do wage work in the distant villages. Local villagers said there is more water for the 2,000 hectares of paddy fields and more fish and thus being able to earn better.

"Before I couldn't catch fish as I can now. The water stream was too low. After it was breached, there is water remaining in aquatic forest and reed. We can catch some better than when the lake dried up," said a fisherman from Kveth Thom village, Sao Ros, 29.

"Some day, I can sell caught small shrimps for Riel 20,000. A kilogramme for Riel 8,000. Before, I couldn't even catch enough to eat," said Lis Ky, 62-year-old widow who has depended on fishing for half of her life.

Beyond these noticeably immediate changes, the community have to take more urgent things forward so as to ensure a more sustained change in their life. Those include a selection of new fishery committee in charge of the dam. According to Kann Vanna, SAMAKY's food security project coordinator, the methodology will be people-centered. There is a need to know how much resources the community has and how much they need external support.

"The committee must be selected out of the beneficiaries. Smaller groups are selected first. And a bigger group will be selected from the small groups. Good management requires cautious selection of good human resources," said Teng Bunly, SAMAKY's programme coordinator. He added the organisation only guides and tells them the objectives and confidence must be built among them.

SAMAKY now facilitates the organisation in the first stage of 100 poorest families out of the families who depend on the lake to irrigate their 2,000 hectares of rice fields. It provides technical assistance to the farmers who now have enough water to grow rice in dry season. Other upcoming priorities include demand to redistribute community access to the lake in accordance with the law and policy as well as building trust of local authority through engaging them in community reflections, trainings and community development so that they will not be able to accuse partner organisation and community facilitators of inciting people, and exposure visit for committee members and commune councillors to successful fishery community where community people have a good cooperation with local authority and economic self-reliance.