Land and natural resources

10. The Committee is concerned at:

(a) The denial of the traditional rights of ethnic minorities to their ancestral lands and natural resources and the concentration of land ownership in the hands of a very small proportion of the population;

(b) Information received that the implementation of its forest conservation policy, in particular NCPO Orders No. 64/2557 and 66/2557 of 2014, has resulted in the destruction of crops and forced evictions; and

(c) The adverse effects of economic activities connected with the exploitation of natural resources, including large-scale projects such as the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate, on the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights by people living in the areas concerned and the lack of participatory mechanisms and consultations, as well as limited access to information for affected individuals and communities (arts. 1.2, 2, 11, 12 and 15).

The Committee recommends that the State party take all necessary steps, including revising its legal and policy framework, to:

(a) Effectively remove all obstacles to enjoyment of traditional individual and communal rights by ethnic minorities in their ancestral lands and take effective measures to guarantee land tenure rights without discrimination so as to ensure access to land and adequate housing for all;

(b) Ensure that forced evictions are only used as a measure of last resort and persons forcibly evicted are provided with adequate compensation and/or relocation, bearing in mind the Committee’s general comments no. 4 (1991) on the right to adequate housing and no. 7 (1997) on forced evictions; and 

(c) Adopt a human-rights based approach in its development projects, as well as establish participatory mechanisms in order to ensure that no decision is made that may affect access to resources without consulting the individuals and communities concerned, with a view to seeking their free, prior and informed consent.