A/HRC/21/63 I. Introduction 1. The present report is the fourth of the current Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia and is submitted in accordance with resolution 18/25 of the Human Rights Council. 2. The Special Rapporteur conducted his sixth mission to Cambodia between 5 and 11 December 2011, with the aim of conducting a human rights assessment of State institutions relevant to the electoral process in the country, including the laws, policies and practices applicable to elections in the context of the country’s international human rights obligations to ensure free and fair periodic elections. He conducted his seventh mission to the country between 4 and 11 May 2012, focusing on the impact of economic and other land concessions on people’s rights. The Special Rapporteur is grateful to the Government for extending its cooperation during his missions and for its willingness to work with him constructively. He was encouraged by its response to the issues that he raised. The Special Rapporteur also congratulates the Government on its current chairship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). 3. During his missions, he sought to assess progress in the implementation of the recommendations made in his previous reports to the Human Rights Council and to monitor and address other human rights issues in the country, such as disputes related to land, freedom of expression and a draft law on associations and non-governmental organizations. During his sixth mission, he met a broad range of actors, including the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, rights holders and representatives of civil society, political parties, the National Election Committee, a provincial electoral committee, the Cambodian National Police and the Ministry of Defence, in addition to commentators, foreign diplomats, donors and the United Nations country team. He also met the residents of Boeung Kak and Borei Keila and other victims of recent human rights violations, including indigenous peoples and communities affected by land disputes, economic land concessions and forced evictions. 4. The Special Rapporteur did not meet the Prime Minister, but was grateful to him for sending an emissary. 5. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the progress made in some areas, especially the decisions to carry out further consultations with relevant stakeholders on the draft law on associations and non-governmental organizations and to seek a negotiated settlement of the land disputes in Boeung Kak. He was encouraged by the fact that the Prime Minister himself took the initiative for the municipality of Phnom Penh to provide more than 600 land titles to the remaining residents of the 12.44 ha area. The Special Rapporteur urged the Government to broaden the consultation process to encompass those families excluded from Subdecree No. 183 of 11 August 2011 and to resolve the dispute in a peaceful manner to the satisfaction of all concerned. 6. It is also encouraging to note that Cambodia has continued to engage with United Nations human rights mechanisms, as is demonstrated by the finalization of a draft of its report to the Human Rights Committee under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The work begun by the Government to implement the recommendations of the universal periodic review process of the Human Rights Council also merits commendation. 7. The Constitution of Cambodia firmly establishes the country as a liberal parliamentary democracy, and elections are central to democracy. Since the elections organized under the auspices of the United Nations in 1993, Cambodians nationwide have embraced democracy with high expectations, and the Special Rapporteur’s sixth mission to 4