Cambodia approves deal with Australia on refugee resettlement

PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia's government has approved the final resettlement of four refugees held in an Australian detention centre, a senior Cambodian official said on Thursday, implementing an aid-for-refugees deal that was criticised by rights groups. Australia has sent asylum seekers to camps in impoverished Papua New Guinea and the tiny Pacific island nation of Nauru, where they face long periods of detention. In September, Cambodia agreed to resettle potentially hundreds of refugees held on Nauru in exchange for an extra A$40 million ($31 million) in aid from Canberra. The agreement applies only to refugees willing to go to Cambodia. International rights groups and organisations from both countries condemned the deal, saying Cambodia was incapable of providing proper care for asylum seekers. "The Royal Government of Cambodia has agreed to take four refugees to be resettled here permanently," Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak told Reuters by telephone. "Whenever they arrive will depend on our working team to continue the work," he said, adding that the four refugees are one Rohingya -- Myanmar's Muslim minority -- and three Iranians. Since the agreement was signed last year, few details of the plan have been released and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said that it will facilitate the transfer. "IOM will provide accommodation to incoming refugees in a temporary facility until long-term accommodation is identified that meets the needs and preferences of individual refugees and families," IOM said in a statement to Reuters, adding that the location of the shelter would not be made public. Kem Sarin, head of Cambodia's immigration department, told Reuters that after arrival, refugees will stay in a temporary shelter for a year to "learn culture, language and some laws" of the country before integrating into Cambodian society. (Reporting by Prak Chan Thul; Editing by Toby Chopra)