This year the alternative Nobel Prize also goes to the organization Mother Nature Cambodia. Despite threats and arrests, the young activists are committed to environmental protection, human rights and democracy.
A group of young activists raise their green-painted arms in the air. They hold banners in their hands and discreetly shout their demands through a megaphone. It is a peaceful protest in a country where demands from civil society are directly understood and punished as an attack on the government.
The environmental protection organization Mother Nature Cambodia was founded in 2012. It gives village communities, fishermen, farmers and indigenous people of Cambodia a voice and advocates for environmental protection, democracy and human rights. This year she will receive the Right Livelihood Award, also known as the Alternative Nobel Prize.
Illegal sand mining stopped
It all started with a protest against a Chinese dam in Cambodia. Several university students and other young people protested against deforestation, illegal gold mining and land expropriation. They managed to stop the construction of a hydroelectric power plant that would have threatened the livelihoods of indigenous people.
The most famous case involved illegal sand mining in Cambodia’s coastal regions. According to the organization, the small state of Singapore imported around 75 million tons of sand from Cambodia between 2008 and 2016 in order to expand its islands through landfill and land reclamation. According to the Cambodian government, only around three million tons of sand were officially exported.
After Mother Nature Cambodia drew attention to the illegal business and corruption, sand exports were stopped by the government in 2016. Since then, Singapore has been importing sand from other countries.
“Civil society permanently changed”
However, several of the activists ended up in prison. While the environmental protection organization was able to protest undisturbed in the early years and draw attention to grievances, they say they have been increasingly exposed to threats, attacks and arrests since 2015.
“Mother Nature Cambodia is a group of young, fearless activists fighting for environmental protection and democracy,” said Ole von Uexküll, Managing Director of the Right Livelihood Awards, in justifying the award to the organization.
“It is a remarkable achievement to raise concerns in such an environment where there is government repression.” With creative and viral videos, the group managed to point out grievances and inspire future generations to protect the environment. She has changed civil society sustainably and created more space for engagement with her innovative, young approach.
“Right to protect our country”
Some of her videos have been viewed and shared millions of times across the country. They decided to make videos of their actions themselves because local media did not cover the topics or could not report freely. Independent, critical media were gradually banned in Cambodia.
“This award belongs not just to the team, but to all the people of Cambodia who support us,” said Sun Ratha, the chief financial officer of Mother Nature Cambodia, who served five months in prison in 2021 for her activism.
“The dictator wants us to stay away from politics, stay away from democracy and not criticize the government,” said Ly Chandaravuth, who also spent five months behind bars. “This award is proof that we have the right to engage in activism, that we have the right to protect our own country and that it is our duty to do so,” he added.
Ly Chandaravuth describes the former head of government Hun Sen as a dictator, who led the country with a hard hand for almost four decades and only handed over his office to his son Hun Manet in August. Despite his resignation, Hun Sen continues to hold important political positions.
Environmental protection equals lese majeste
Both activists are awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy against the government and lese majeste, which can carry a prison sentence of up to 10 years. They had drawn attention to the pollution of a river in Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh.
The environmental organization is the first winner of the Alternative Nobel Prize from Cambodia. The Right Livelihood Award has been presented for over 40 years. To date, 194 winners from 76 countries have received the award.