Loei: Yossawadee resort home seized

[EyesWideOpen]

Great news. And hopefully Prayuth will not forget to prosecute the corrupt

officials that allowed these buildings to be built....

Or his colleagues that own many of them.........

Good point. Would be great to see a public interest group publish a list of the owners

of these encroaching properties, so we can see who is being singled out....

[bigbamboo]

A Thanpuying owner no less, that's as close as you can get blue blood without being an ML or MR. They're going after the amart also.

Isn't it great to have a non partisan government.

[gchurch259]

Good deal on conserving the forest.

Now if they get the Thai people to quit littering the street, fields, waterways and any other place these lazy people want to drop something it would be very nice. There is only one place in my travels that is worse and that is India.

There are a lot of reasons for poverty but no reason to pollute and trash every square foot of unocupied land.

[HerbalEd]

Encroachment indeed. Seven-hundred rai and 24 houses is taking encroachment to a very high level. I really hope they bust them all.

Corruption in Thailand is rampant on all levels and it is ruining the country financially and morally. And it's not just police and politicians and the rich. It's the taxi & tuk-tuk drivers, the vendors of counterfeit goods on the streets, etc. ... ati even the people who pay tea money and bribes ... and that includes farangs also.

[kurtgruen]

I have been advising friends for years, only to buy #1 Chanot and not to get involved with Nor Sor Sam (Nor Sor 3) or other lesser papers. Foreigners beware, if your spouse or friend buys land that is not #1 Chanot, you/her are much more vulneralbe. I don't think your Usufruct or 30 year lease, will be worth the paper it's written on, if it was land that encroached on the forest, which a lot of it is.

You must also remember, that the money cannot come from you (the foreigner) to buy land in Thailand, if your wife purchases them. You can lease the land from her for 30 years or in some justictions even get a lifetime Usufruct (lifetime right of use), but you cannot own it and the money to purchase it, cannot come from you. So if you choose to break the law, don't start whining about it later, when you get caught.

I am happy to see, that the military government is starting to nail some of these crooks. I would also like to see a property tax in Thailand, that applies to everyone except the poor, so the rich can't just keep piling up land, without paying any (or very little) taxes.

[Briggsy]

I wonder if the military will return the military bases in Khao Yai, Doi Inthanon, Phu Phan National Parks, etc. "to the people"?

[fasteddie]

Great news!

The entire lawless and corruption-filled path Thailand has been moving over the past several years has been abruptly changed.

Bearing in mind these actions were started by previous (legal) administrations.

[ClutchClark]

"The raid at the resort was in compliance to the policy of the National Council for Peace and Order to return forests to the people."

While I do applaud the NCPOs strong-willed drive to weed out crooks and influential bigwigs who for decades have shamelessly plundered Thailand's resources without legal implications or punishment, the above sentence nevertheless gives me food for thought:

Does it mean that citizens soon will be able to collect wild mushrooms in national forests without having to fear to be jailed for 15 years for their "crime"?

I am vaguely familiar with your reference.

Does anyone recall whether those arrested were harvesting mushrooms for personal use or for resale?

A commercial intent would be grounds for arrest, correct?

[fasteddie]

I bet all these people wish Yingluck had shut the reds down and the UDD and PTP made to be very quiet over amnesty and rice and etc.

They would still be running a corrupt government and no laws enforced. Go General Go.!

Just a thought

This action, and other similar elsewhere, were started under previous (legitimate) administrations, unfortunately the law is a slow and laborious process.

[ClutchClark]

This is small potatoes compared to the destruction that the hill tribe people cause to the forest.

You don't know much about the real "hill tribe" people, do you?

I know I don't, JustOne, so I would be interested in what you have to say.

Most of the real hill tribe people don't destroy the forests and jungles, they live in harmony with them. They respect their surrounds, taking from nature only what they need, not what they feel greed for. They plant, and rotate crops that nourish the soil, not sap it of it's resources. Most of the real hill tribe people have been around before BKK was even a city, but you don't see them overpopulating the jungle, or tearing it down to build houses, condos and factories. To my way of thinking, these people have more of a right to where they live than the average "Thai" does. But, as I said, that's just my opinion.

I have no personal knowledge of the Hill tribe people and I appreciate the insight, although it does sound a bit idyllic and quite similar to how our own american native American has been described. Unfortunately, in the case of the American Indian, there is a large chasm between the reality and the ideal.

Hopefully, the Hill tribe people are actually as you describe.

Do you have much personal experience with them, or this Park? I have never visited the area but am interested in doing so.

[fasteddie]

I wonder if the military will return the military bases in Khao Yai, Doi Inthanon, Phu Phan National Parks, etc. "to the people"?

No chance! but they'll have no hesitation in returning the people to the military bases.

[ClutchClark]

Don't be fooled by the show the military puts up!

I am definitely applauding their recent efforts to take action of various illegal actions of mainly influential people but as long as they do not do the same within the army I start to seriously doubt the genuity of this whole thing. What about resorts owned by senior or retired army people, what about corruption in the army and about the army being involved and sometimes running crime gangs? Do you guys think all these army professionals got rich in winning the lottery?

There is not one single action made by them during the last few weeks. This stinks to heaven! A big show in order to get recognized by the population and chasing away their competitors.

Thaksin has been reaping Thailand, now the army does it.

I would say that the Junta has accomplished quite alot in a short span of time.

I see no reason to doubt their efforts up to this point or their motivations.

They have been performing triage.

Perhaps the time to voice your concern is in 6-12 months.

[I Like Thai]

[boomerangutang]

This is small potatoes compared to the destruction that the hill tribe people cause to the forest.

true. ever steeper hillsides are being used to grow marginal crops like ginger. One, maybe 2 seasons, and then the little bit of soil is depleted, and the hill reverts to giant weeds and erosion. Trees are gone. same for animals and topsoil.

[tabs]

A Thanpuying owner no less, that's as close as you can get blue blood without being an ML or MR. They're going after the amart also.

But I keep reading posts here by some self-professed experts that the amart control the army and are the ones that directed the coup and are responsible for dictating what happens.

This all runs polar opposite of that.

I guess they were just confused. Most of them are red shirt proponents so it's understandable.

[rametindallas]

This is small potatoes compared to the destruction that the hill tribe people cause to the forest.

But this is the Amataya, the 'Elite', being punished in a demonstration of fairness. I'm all for taking down these 'privileged' who believe they are above the law. Another 100 examples and they may get the idea that the good general is not joking and everybody must be accountable for their actions.

[Morch]

A Thanpuying owner no less, that's as close as you can get blue blood without being an ML or MR. They're going after the amart also.

Well, current owner is her son. Might be amart, but different title I guess:

The Yossawadee forest resort was owned by Thanphuying Yossawadee Buranasamrit Ampornpaisan who passed away in 2012 and the ownership was later transferred to her son.

Old lady seems to have passed away at 105, certainly saw another era.

Said to have been a teacher and co-founder of Ampornpaisan school.

[tabs]

This is small potatoes compared to the destruction that the hill tribe people cause to the forest.

But this is the Amataya, the 'Elite', being punished in a demonstration of fairness.

I'm all for taking down these 'privileged' who believe they are above the law.

Another fallacy is exposed regarding the elite/amart is that in addition to supposedly controlling the army, they also get their way with the courts.

When the amart went to the Administrative Court with their petition to remain on the park land, they dismissed the petition.

Furthermore, the Supreme Administrative Court also dismissed the petition when the amart appealed to the higher court.

[Longtooth]

Surly more good than bad could be done if they just annex the property instead of destroying the property? Think of the revenue the forest reserve could earn by renting out the rooms and bungalows to foreigners and the people in the holiday season.

Yellowstone National Park and Yosemite National Park have places to stay. You must reserve early in the day, the maximum 365 days in advance, or they're already booked. "Nature" is usually a far piece from civilization.

[aussieinthailand]

Good news, lets hope this is followed up and it is reported in 30 days that the buildings have been removed.

Lets also hope that they go after all persons who have encroached instead of just selecting relatively unconnected persons.

Lets have a look at Kho Yai, Samui etc............

Ye'p agree with you completely, As for Samui and other Islands close by there is a court action supposedly going against a Suthep family member or 2, will they be fully prosecuted??? and those that allowed the illegal paper work to be allocated??? Where's the media follow up???

as I said in a previous post Old habits are hard to break.

[ezzra]

700 Rais, when they stole land they surly went big and wide, might as well they were thinking,

if we steal land let's us still the lot.... it just shows how rotten to the core some/most officials

in this country are, the word Scrupulous completely foreign to them.....

[wabothai]

Next: corn farmers confiscating (and detroying jungle) government land for profit.

[Morch]

700 Rais, when they stole land they surly went big and wide, might as well they were thinking,

if we steal land let's us still the lot.... it just shows how rotten to the core some/most officials

in this country are, the word Scrupulous completely foreign to them.....

Depending on the time the family actually took over the land, could have been seen in less

negative light. The original owner of the resort was a product of different times, back when

Thailand was Siam. Not even sure if there was even a concept of public land, but perhaps

crown lands?

Closer to present day, and yet a few decades in the past, the FIL was given a large tract of

land up North, as reward for services to King and country. There was so hassle over land

ownership, papers and such (being the Man with the Face, he went on to distribute every

last bit of it among his underlings, which explains why years down the road, I'm not a kept

husband).

Taking a short three hour ride West of Bangkok, and toward the border, one finds the same

things. Private resorts, estates, including lakes, streams and waterfalls. Many of them are

relatively recent "acquisitions". A bit of a rush in the last few years to set the land papers

in hurry, I hear.

Not defending encroachment on national parks, or taking over public lands. Far from it.

Take it all back, I say. Just think that this practice was seen in a different light and was much

more acceptable in the distant past. So while present day owners are surly in breach of the

law, I'm not sure that holds true for all cases when it comes to original owners.

[Wombat6]

It seems like a lot of people were required to visit the Resort which was being looked after by a 65 year old man. Not too much planning involved unless it was an inter Office Picnic day and the old guy wanted to charge them an entry fee.

[Banzai99]

Loei is one of the places that needs protecting, very nice area of Thailand.