The cost of dividing the commons: Overlapping property systems in Tonle Sap, Cambodia

Abstract

This paper examines the political implications of dividing the commons through the case study of private fishing lots in the Tonle Sap Great Lake of Cambodia. The de facto private property in Tonle Sap lasted for over 100 years until the government abolished the system completely in March 2012. Unlike conventional studies of the commons which assume away the question of divisibility as too costly to be realistic, we argue that divided management occurs even when the cost is very high. This “cost” is not merely economic, but also political. Our case study illustrates how this political cost is channeled through a network of influential people to maintain the resource system and how a private property on the commons can be demolished, also for political reasons.