Leader Of Demolishers Shot Dead At Chatuchak Sunday Market

[george]

Leader of demolishers shot dead at Chatuchak Sunday Market

BANGKOK: -- A leader of a group of men sent to demolish shops at the Chatuchak Sunday Market early Wednesday was shot dead.

Police said Samlee Yai-im, 50, was shot at his forehead while leading some 20 men to vandalise shops at the market at 1 am.

Police said they did not know where he bullet came from.

The market was owned by Thanasarn Sombat, which has been unsuccessfully trying to evict vendors.

The gunfire frightened the men who tried to flee the scene but they were rounded up by police who happened to arrive at the scene.

They admitted that they were hired by Samlee between Bt200 to Bt500 each to demolish the shops.

-- The Nation 2008-06-04

[Heng]

Sometimes the squatters win a round or two. It's invariably a losing battle for them in the end though. The next demolition team will simply be an armed team.

[jfchandler]

What's going on with the JJ Sunday market that involves demolishing shops and evicting shop holders???

Last I heard, the property owner underlying the Suan Lum Night Bazaar had won some kind of ruling entitling them to move ahead with closing the place....to make way for a future development (though it's still open now as far as I can see...)

But I hadn't heard anything was afoot at the JJ Sunday market.....

[stumonster]

The next demolition team will simply be an armed team.

by police who happened to arrive at the scene.

maybe wombat will not go the "no frills" option next time

[Prakanong]

"Last I heard, the property owner underlying the Suan Lum Night Bazaar had won some kind of ruling entitling them to move ahead with closing the place...."

Yes the site has been leased to Central for a condo and shopping mall I think it is.

The underlying owner is the CPB

[Scott]

The police don't know where the bullet came from--my guess is that it came from a gun!

I hope someone can supply more information about the Market. What is to be demolished? Everything, part of it? Why? etc.

[A_Traveller]

This has been going on for some while now, if memory serves the the land belongs to the State Railway Board, and they leased it to a new company, which has 'issues' with existing tenants {they may or may not be legally entitled to be there}. There was a arson attempt about a year ago, and about 6 months before that an attempt at 'eviction'.

Regards

[A_Traveller]

From the Nation June 2007

Mall to replace part of market

Five-storey shopping centre and car park scheduled to open in second quarter 2008

A new property-development company has announced plans to develop a 1.6-hectare section of the Chatuchak Sunday Market into a five-storey retail mall and car park.

The company, Thanasarnsombat Pattana, plans to spend Bt1.5 billion on the project, to be called the Sunday Mall. Completion is scheduled for next year's second quarter and it will occupy a small portion of the total 30.4 hectares of Chatuchak Market, opposite the Children's Discovery Museum.

Company president Rattana Torsutkanok said the project would generate up to Bt2 billion annually within the 12-year term of the company's lease contract with the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). Up to 70 per cent of the initial investment will come from the company's capital and cash, and the rest will be borrowed from Krung Thai and TMB banks.

Revenues are expected to cover the investment within three years.

LINK

Regards

PS The arson was about a month after this piece

Edited June 4, 2008 by A_Traveller

[njpski]

Ah, progress! so the world-renowned JJ Market is to be replaced with a dime-a-dozen mall!!

Bangkok will lose some of its vibrancy if the market goes.

if people want chic, they should go to Siam Paragon, if middle of the road then to MBK, but please leave Jatujak alone

[jfchandler]

They're obviously not going to make the second quarter 2008 opening for the supposed future mall!!!!

I like the way the Thai legal system for property rights operates here... So you got a lease for some property and want to build, but there's folks staying on "your" land... So the first recourse is attempted arson... Then, send in a gang to tear the place up.... Then, send in a gang to try to tear the place down.... Then somebody gets shot in the head....

[A_Traveller]

Just so there's no confusion here this the the Sunday Market, not Chatuchak itself.

Regards

PS The law is entirely clear, if the property changes hands, either bought, or a new head lease issued, the existing leases are to be honoured, they are not extinguished by the transaction.

PPS As an example, though not specifically speaking about this case, the issue often is that the shop keepers are at the end of a chain which may involve several 'lessors' who may or may not have the legal right to make an agreement to lease space there, so from their perspective they may pay rent to 'someone' but they have, in the eyes of the law no enforceable right to be there.

Edited June 4, 2008 by A_Traveller

[jfchandler]

The thing I really like about these kinds of issues in Thailand...in terms of the reporting on them in the media and elsewhere...is there's usually virtually no explanation or clarification of just WHETHER the actual tenants are paying to someone who has a valid lease or not...

So if folks who have shops there might, per chance, actually have signed with someone who has a valid lease continuing into the future... then they might actually have a "legal" right to stay there...

Dunno much about Thai property rights in this regard.... But if the developer really had a clear title and wasn't encumbered by legally valid leases on the property that might extend beyond their desired timeframe, then you'd wonder WHY they'd be resorting to those kinds of gangster tactics...

In the U.S., if someone gets a court order to legally evict someone from an apartment or house or other, and ultimately they refused to vacate, the U.S. Marshal's Service or Sheriff's Department gets called out, and they enforce the order, if necessary, forcibly removing squatters....as a last resort

In Thailand, if someone has a valid legal order to evict, they do what????? (And I don't mean in the realm of extra-legal recourse....)

[A_Traveller]

I'm going to suggest that searching for [Chatuchak Sunday Market SRT] might be interesting, allegedly.

Regards

PS Re last line in post above they issue a formal notice to quit, LINK as described here in this PRD item.

PPS Edited original search suggestion since it may be misleading.

Edited June 4, 2008 by A_Traveller

[soundman]

From the Nation June 2007

Mall to replace part of market

Five-storey shopping centre and car park scheduled to open in second quarter 2008

A new property-development company has announced plans to develop a 1.6-hectare section of the Chatuchak Sunday Market into a five-storey retail mall and car park.

The company, Thanasarnsombat Pattana, plans to spend Bt1.5 billion on the project, to be called the Sunday Mall. Completion is scheduled for next year's second quarter and it will occupy a small portion of the total 30.4 hectares of Chatuchak Market, opposite the Children's Discovery Museum.

Company president Rattana Torsutkanok said the project would generate up to Bt2 billion annually within the 12-year term of the company's lease contract with the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). Up to 70 per cent of the initial investment will come from the company's capital and cash, and the rest will be borrowed from Krung Thai and TMB banks.

Revenues are expected to cover the investment within three years.

LINK

Regards

PS The arson was about a month after this piece

That development is allready up and running. Went shopping there last week.

So I don't think this today's fiasco has anything to do with that development.

Cheers.

[A_Traveller]

Maybe so, there's a JJ Mall which I don't think is the same as the Sunday Mall proposed by Thanasarnsombat Pattana, though I may be in error, won't be the first time.

Regards

Edited June 4, 2008 by A_Traveller

[soundman]

Maybe so, there's a JJ Mall which I don't think is the same as the Sunday Mall proposed by Thanasarnsombat Pattana, though I may be in error, won't be the first time.

Regards

Maybe I'm at fault.

What I went to was called JJ mall (I think). Didn't realise there was two five story mall complexes in the area.

[jfchandler]

Ohhh... come on... this is TOO GOOD to only link to... It deserves to be READ...in its entirety.... So..forthwith... the govt. PR Department's announcement from Nov. 2006. Comments added in italic!!!

Chatuchak Sunday Market is still crowded though some parts have been closed down Merchants at the Sunday Market in Chatuchak area still carry on their businesses though some of them are unable to operate their stalls yet. (yes...and it's both hot and cold outside today...also)

The market is still crowded even though some sections are halted due to the landowner’s notice. Thanasarnsombat Pattana Company has already posted a notice dated October 4, 2006 showing the right of possession of the Sunday Market which was leased by the company from the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). The notice stated all merchants and retailers in the Sunday Market must move out from Chatuchak as from March 31st this year (2006 some months before or 2007 ahead???). As for the side of the unfortunate merchants, they had gathered and waited for parties responsible (and those parties would be????) for solving problems occurred in the market, to discuss and find out the best alternative to enable them to continue their businesses as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, tourists and locals still enjoy shopping at the Sunday Market though there are obstacles obstructing the paths because the road in front was invaded by the thugs. Aside from that, both officials and plainclothes police officers from Bangsue station are taking care of the overall security at the market area (Whew... glad to hear the local police and officials were taking care of 'overall security"... but about the thugs...hey.... no problem!!!!)

And this, folks, is a national government news release.... I've written hundreds of them in my prior life in government in the U.S. But I can't honestly say I've ever written or read anything quite like this one...

[redman]

Interseting slant maybe off thread, but if it were Tesco who wanted to close down the market and all the vendors were to be evicted, there would be huge protests in all media ststions and press. But this is not a foreign company takeover so everything is quiet until some hired thug gets offed?

[ratcatcher]

Maybe so, there's a JJ Mall which I don't think is the same as the Sunday Mall proposed by Thanasarnsombat Pattana, though I may be in error, won't be the first time.

Regards

This from a year ago...................

Wed, June 20, 2007 : Last updated 20:01 pm (Thai local time)

The Nation

Mall to replace part of market

CHATUCHAK PARK

Mall to replace part of market

Five-storey shopping centre and carpark scheduled to open in second quarter 2008

A new property-development company has announced plans to develop a 1.6-hectare section of the Chatuchak Sunday Market into a five-storey retail mall and carpark.

The company, Thanasarnsombat Pattana, plans to spend Bt1.5 billion on the project, to be called the Sunday Mall. Completion is scheduled for next year's second quarter and it will occupy a small portion of the total 30.4 hectares of Chatuchak Market, opposite the Children's Discovery Museum.

Company president Rattana Torsutkanok said the project would generate up to Bt2 billion annually within the 12-year term of the company's lease contract with the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). Up to 70 per cent of the initial investment will come from the company's capital and cash, and the rest will be borrowed from Krung Thai and TMB banks.

Revenues are expected to cover the investment within three years.

Thanasarnsombat Pattana currently has registered capital of Bt10 million, but the company's shareholders will meet next week to increase that to Bt100 million.

Rattana, who owns a pet and pet-accessories import-export company called LP Aquarium, owns half of Thanasarnsombat Pattana. Five of her friends own the rest. Rattana also owned a pet shop in the Chatuchak Sunday Market before establishing Thanasarnsombat Pattana three years ago with the intention of securing the lease deal with the SRT, following the fall into bankruptcy of the earlier Sunday Market operator, Sunday Holding.

Last year, the Sunday Market's existing tenants resisted Thanasarnsombat Pattana's plans when the company attempted to lift existing structures off the 1.6-hectare plot and begin development of its Sunday Mall.

Rattana said the company now had the approval of existing Sunday Market tenants, who have been offered retail bookings on the ground floor of the new mall, which will be a pet-shop area. Construction will begin this year, and the occupancy rate of the new mall is already 50 per cent, following forward bookings.

She said the company also had a list of 300 retailers - many of them from the Suan Lum Night Bazaar and Chatuchak Sunday Market - interested in booking retail space in the project.

The company's 12-year lease agreement with the SRT involves payment of Bt300 million over its full term. Payments began with Bt30 million last year. The company also has the right to renew the lease for a further period.

The Sunday Mall will have five floors and a total floor space 47,000 square metres. Of this, 20,000 square metres will be retail space and the rest a carpark. The ground floor will be a pet-shop area, and 50 per cent of its space is already booked.

The second floor will have a shopping mall and chain restaurants, and the third floor will contain a food court.

The fourth and fifth floors will be a carpark.

The company will also set up an open outdoor auto-sales area with room for up to 200 cars. (Car Boot Sales?)

Somluck Srimalee

The Nation

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I am still confused.

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Edited June 4, 2008 by ratcatcher