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Published on December 26, 2007

More than 35,000 households in 160 villages in the six provinces hit by the tsunami are still having legal problems with land ownership, as hoteliers and financiers are filing lawsuits demanding their eviction and possession of seaside plots on which they are planning to build resorts and hotels.

Sutthiphong Laithip, a legal activist, said around 1,000 villagers were now facing eviction lawsuits and a huge number had already been filed, with 334 over land-ownership disputes. Some cases are being fought between villagers and authorities, not just investors and financiers.

Thassana Nawes, another activist involved with community services, says a large number of villagers could not use many land plots after they were barricaded with fences, while the Moken (sea gypsies) were restricted from fishing near coastlines where areas had already been grabbed by hoteliers.

She said some of the 160 villages had been totally overwhelmed with lawsuits by developers. "These people are facing eviction lawsuits that will force them out of their homes and land where their ancestors have lived for hundreds of years," she added.

General Surin Phikulthong, a deputy head of a government committee on land disputes, said unclear ownership had occurred long before the tsunami three years ago, and the problem was now intensifying because everyone involved wanted to claim "hot property" due to the tourism boom in these coastal provinces.

Surin called for greater influence by the authorities and more government agencies to be involved rather than the Interior Ministry, which was viewed by the villagers as an ally of the hoteliers.

People who represent the Moken, who live on Lao island off Phang Nga province, said Thai ownership granted to them meant nothing in this case, because they had still been ignored by authorities.  

"We have no land left and have now been driven to live our lives out at sea, but we still cannot still make a living using the sea," he said.

They said the government did little to help when they were arrested for illegal entry into India after they recently caught fish there. One Moken man said all 212 members in his village had scarcely anything to eat and very little fresh water to drink.

He said a Burmese crew member of a trawler who was killed by the bends was thrown in the sea by the Thai captain when the vessel reached Thai waters because the captain did not want to pay any money for the funeral or fill out paperwork.

"We don't know if we will be thrown away like that one day. We have been treated like animals," he added.

Janjira Pongrai

 The Nation