A coalition representing Thai and Cambodian fishermen have urged the Human Rights  Commission (Suhakam) to probe a Malaysian company over a dam in Laos which is  affecting livelihoods of those along the Mekong River. 
 
In a memorandum received by Suhakam commissioner James Nayagam, the group said  the Don Sahong dam will block migratory fish and “could devastate fish populations”. 
 
This means that the dam currently being constructed by a private Malaysian company will severely affect local communities where fishing is a means of income.

A

s such, they called on Suhakam to probe the company for non-compliance of human  rights standards. 
 
They also called on the company to halt the project immediately pending impact  assessment studies.
 
“The Don Sahong Project is representative of what is happening across much of  Southeast Asia.
 
“Large scale development projects, funded and owned by foreign companies, are being  developed without the participation of affected communities and in countries where  domestic accountability measures are weak,” EarthRights International lawyer Tanja  Venisnik said. 
 
The coalition includes Cambodian Rural Development Team (Cambodia), Community  Resource Centre (Thailand), EarthRights International (USA), International Rivers  (USA), NGO Forum on Cambodia (Cambodia) and Northeastern Rural Development. 
 
According to the NGOs, the dam will not only affect Laos, where the dam is built, and  Cambodia two kilometres away, but also communities in Vietnam and Thailand. 
 
This is as the dam blocks the main channel of the Mekong, which provides year-round fish passage through the Khone Falls area. 
 
It will also cut off the food source from the endangered Irrawaddy dolphins, which  population in the Mekong River stands at an estimated 85 dolphins. 
 
The NGOs also claim that the locals have not been properly consulted, nor any  studies on the impact on fisheries.