Time For The Landless To Get A Chance: Thailand

[webfact]

FOREST LAND

'Time for the landless to get a chance'

PONGPHON SARNSAMAK,

CHULARAT SAENGPASSA

THE NATION

Private firms will have to make way for poor once concessions end: dept

BANGKOK: -- The Royal Forest Department (RFD) is preparing to take forestland away from investors and to allow local villagers to use such green zones instead.

RFD director-general Suwit Rattanamanee believed it was "high time" locals got a chance to utilise and rehabilitate forest plots leased previously to private firms.

He spoke after serious disputes between landless locals and private firms over land, where concessions had already expired.

There is now 146,480 rai of such forestland in Surat Thani, Krabi, Trang, Chumphon and Phang Nga.

Under the 1964 Forest Reserve Act, the RFD has granted many private firms concessions to use 289,997 rai of forestland in these five southern provinces. The terms of the concessions ranged from five to 30 years.

"As for concessions that will expire in the future, our policy is not to extend or renew them," Suwit said. "The private firms will have already recouped their investments."

Most private firms in these areas have grown palm or rubber trees on the leased forestland.

"We will soon inspect the plots where the concessions have already expired to prepare for the establishment of community forest," Suwit said.

He believed there was no need to uproot palm or rubber trees now growing on the plots. He pointed out that locals could be allowed to harvest them in exchange for an agreement to rehabilitate the forestland.

"It's not right to occupy [the land]. [Having the trees] will be a right to such forest zones," Suwit explained.

Meanwhile, Agricultural Land Reform Office deputy secretary-general Satitpong Sudchukiart questioned why the RFD took so long to take the forestland back from private firms.

"In some cases, concessions expired more than three decades ago," he said. Some locals could easily feel that relevant authorities had been unfair.

Satitpong said his office was preparing to help landless people by issuing them community land-title deeds. They were liasing with the Comptroller General's Department on how to sue private firms that used state land for palm plantations for compensation.

In Surat Thani's Phra Seang district, Santi Pattana Community representative Boonyarit Pirom lamented that he felt disheartened after he and eight others received arrest warrants from the provincial court on Monday - and were told to move off a disputed plot of land. Boonyarit said his group had submitted documents to the court to back their claim to the land.

The villagers have lived and laboured on plots, which they say belong to the Agricultural Land Reform Office (ALRO), but United Palm Oil Industry Plc lodged a complaint against them on March 25, 2009 accusing them of encroaching on its land. The villagers were due to engage in talks with officials from the company and related agencies on July 23 to seek solutions, he said.

Lawyer Amporn Sangthong said there were 10 oil-palm plantation disputes between locals and private firms in Surat Thani and Krabi. Most cases ended with the land being proven to belong to ALRO.

She said the Santi Pattana land was proven to belong to ALRO and the company had given a letter of consent to return the plots. But the lawsuit between locals and the firm was ongoing; it had led to eviction and arrest warrant notices being issued.

There is a similar scenario in Chai Buri district's Khlong Sai Pattana Moo 2 Community. Local villagers are due to testify from July 17-18 to fight a lawsuit in which Jew Kang Jui Pattana Co Ltd accused them of encroachment.

In another case, this company had been found to be illegally using land that belonged to ALRO.

Amporn urged people to keep an eye on many plots in the southern provinces, as private companies' concession contracts would expire soon, and it would b up to the Royal Forestry Department to determine whether such deals would be renewed or not.

-- The Nation 2012-07-11

[ramrod711]

A very big concern here is not that villagers will be allowed to use the land, it is who will be allocating this land. In other words, is there any conceivable way that administrators will be above using corrupt practices to distribute it. If my little village is any example, the answer is no. Land that is given to people to use (not own, they can't sell it) isn't commonly given to poor people, but to friends, people with influence and people with cash.

[belg]

i am a landless farang, can i also get some FREE land to put a house under my own name ???

[JurgenG]

The head of the forest department is due to retire in September. Lest hope his successor will have more common sense.

Some more information about land eviction in today's edition of Thai Rath

[daninthai]

is there any conceivable way that administrators will be above using corrupt practices to distribute it.

Come on. What country is this again?