Forestry Policy and Practices of the People's Republic of Kampuchea, 1979-1989

Abstract

What amounts to the squandering of Cambodia's natural resources since 1991 stands in sharp contrast to the stewardship mentality that appears to have pervaded the PRK government's approach to forestry management throughout the 1980s. As evidenced by the internal documents of the regime that have been cited throughout this paper, forestry policy was in line with the scale of needs required for national reconstruction after the catastrophe of the preceding 10 years of bitter civil conflict. Forests were exploited for development purposes, to raise revenue, earn foreign currency, and repay loans according to contracts taken out with countries providing assistance, particularly Vietnam. Theft was investigated and other abuses were roundly condemned, as the report of the Economic Commission to the thirteenth session of the National Assembly in 1987 illustrates. The Center drafted and passed laws to regulate the forestry industry. Structures were put in place to oversee the implementation of those laws and regulations. That those same laws and regulations were apparently so easily circumvented and contravened had as much to do with the fragile nature of the PRK local-level administration as it did with traditional patterns and notions of power in Cambodia. Provincial governors and department chiefs took advantage of the Center's weaknesses, as well as of the privileges granted by the system of provinces twinned with Vietnam, to recreate their fiefdoms. Given the client-state nature of the PRK regime, Cambodian forestry department officials were helpless in the face of rebel PAVN units that stole timber. As the dynamics of international politics shifted toward the end of the decade, ideological conviction gave way to personal greed and ambition. Regional forestry policies also played their part, as logging bans in neighbouring countries brought pressure to bear on Cambodia's own rich forest resources. The PRK period was one of genuine achievement in the face of overwhelming odds. The Cambodian people can only hope that this current and overly long period of transition will soon end and that balance will be restored to the country's forestry policies and practices.