NRSA’s community subcommittee receives petition on fair allocation of land for farming

[snoop1130]

NRSA’s community subcommittee receives petition on fair allocation of land for farming
NNT News

BANGKOK, 2 February 2016 (NNT) – A subcommittee of the National Reform Steering Assembly has received a petition from the People's Movement for a Just Society (P-MOVE) related to the fair allocation of land for farming.

Chairman of the NRSA subcommittee on the strengthening of the community, Dr. Ampol Chindawattana met with representatives from P-MOVE who have been calling for the enactment of a law governing community land titles and land banks, which they believe will help solve the problem of social inequality.

P-MOVE also believes that such a law would make it possible for people to own land with the intention of making a living from it.

Dr. Ampol said that problems with land ownership in Thailand have sprung from the fact that more and unscrupulous businessmen have been acquiring the government’s land and that has led to the eviction of low-income or poor farmers from land where they have been making a living.

Source: http://thainews.prd.go.th/website_en/news/news_detail/WNPOL5902010010007

-- NNT 2016-02-01

[Srikcir]

"unscrupulous businessmen have been acquiring the government’s land and that has led to the eviction of low-income or poor farmers"

Seems the problem is with the government selling the land without regard to the farmer tenants. Resolution of that problems is one more of internal procedure and regulation than of new law. If a businessman can otherwise convonce the government to sell the property, ie., for development, that's not being unscrupulous in itself. Albeit, bribing government officials to sell government property should already be covered by current criminal code.

Moving government property into the hands of the community or banks only shifts the burden for responsible administration. Such action would tend to remove legal due process of law from current farmer tenants and cause them to be more vulernable.