Lower Sesan 2 Dam, Cambodia: devastating affects on human and environmental rights

This report is part of our former „Harmful Cases“ documentation, where we continuously and concisely recorded human rights violations, violations of international law or environmental destruction caused by companies.

The Lower Sesan 2 Dam is a hydropower project in Cambodia, Stung Treng Province. According to an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the dam conducted in 2010, 5 villages will be flooded and 5,000 people resettled. Many of them are indigenous people who also fear to lose their culture and traditions. Apart from that, communities fear the loss of their livelihood through the depletion of fish and biodiversity.

As the development of the project is proceeding rapidly, representatives of the communities travelled to Phnom Penh in November 2014 to address the President of the National Assembly with their claims.

The project is developed by a joint venture consisting of Royal Group (Cambodia) and Hydrolancang International Energy Co., Ltd (also Cambodia, 90%) and EVN International Joint Stock Company, a subsidiary of the Electricity of Vietnam. Financing comes from The Hydropower Lower Sesan 2 Company’s capital (30%) and an undisclosed bank loan (70%), most likely from China.

 

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