The voice of the hydropower-driven resettled people should be heard

• CIRUM cooperated with the Laws and Policy of Sustainable Development Research Center (LPSD) to hold a discussion on "Implementing policies on hydropower resettlement projects" on December 26, 2018. Eighteen representatives of resettled communities in Son La hydropower attended the discussion.
  
  CIRUM representatives introduced the objectives and approaches to improve the resettled community's capacity to apply law in reality and to solve the discrepancies and problems. Then the community representatives worked in small groups to discuss on the enforcement of law on compensation and support for stabilization and improvement of the lives of resettled people.
  
  
   
  Through group discussions and presentations, the following messages are noted: The legal framework on compensation and support for resettled communities has been quite sufficient. The principle "life in a new resettled place must be equal or better than the old one" is good, nevertheless, there have been many shortcomings in the implementation. The biggest reason for the inadequacies is the implementing hydropower compensation process and the previous resettlement projects did not ensure the principles of democracy, transparency and publicity. Therefore, the participants proposed clear provisions on the responsibilities of investors, project officers and competent agencies in implementing the above-mentioned principles.
  
  
   
   Participants recommended holders of projects on life stabilization and development support in the next period and competent agencies to seriously listen to the voices and thoughts of the resettled people. Only when people have full access to information and involve actively in contributing ideas, making decisions and monitoring development projects, then the intractable resettlement problems will be eventually solved.