In defense of land rights: A monitoring report on land conflicts in six Asian countries 38 dominated by leaders of the community. They become inoperative where disputants involve non-members of the community. In Cambodia, traditional systems facilitated by village chiefs have proven effective for settling early disputes in the process of land registration. These include border demarcation between property claims, conflicts among relatives, and occupation of land – which are often not recognized by higher authorities. n Political negotiations. This is a key tool for addressing broader land- related conflicts that are political in nature – i.e., caused by national laws, policies, and government-supported projects. These include discussions on broader issues of land governance, such as assisting informal settlers, instituting agrarian reform policies, recognizing customary rights, providing preferential access to marginalized sectors in the granting of access to public lands and resources, equal land rights and support services for women, and preventing arbitrary evictions and displacement. A large number of land conflicts within countries are highly political in nature, and thus demand political solutions. The challenge is how to arrive at political consensus and inclusive solutions, with the active participation of affected sectors and communities. Safeguards for conflict prevention ANGOC In Bangladesh, there are no direct measures to prevent land conflicts. There are no procedural safeguards, effective land policies or legal and institutional frameworks related to public and private investments to prevent land grabbing and land disputes. Moreover, there are no policies in place to protect affected communities or to protect land rights defenders (halfway house, legal assistance, witness protection, relocation or medical and psychological assistance). In most countries, there are procedural safeguards in the case of land-related large-scale projects and investments. These include the need for social and environmental impact assessments (ESIAs), as well as the need public disclosure and consultations. In the case of indigenous peoples in the Philippines, there is also a legal requirement for free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) prior to the extraction of resources from indigenous ancestral domains and lands. FPIC in this context requires that indigenous communities be provided with adequate and accessible information, and that consensus is determined in