Residents of Ban Sa Eiub in Phrae's Song district camped outside Phrae's provincial hall to protest against the Kaeng Sue Ten Dam project yesterday.
The villagers set up tents and took turns to speak on a makeshift stage against Phrae Governor Somchai Hattayatanti's collection of signatures from people supporting the Kaeng Sue Ten Dam. The villagers refused officials' request for them to move their rally to the nearby Rama 9 public park as they claimed the state office and street were built by tax money and they had a right to use them for the gathering.
At 3pm, they submitted a letter to Somchai telling him to cancel the gathering of signatures and putting pressure on schoolchildren to support the dam.
The tambon Sa Eiub Environmental Conservation Committee also issued a statement condemning Somchai for ordering civil servants, state employees and public schoolchildren to support the project and join a prodam rally on this morning in front of the province hall. They said such action was an abuse of authority to benefit some politicians and a violation of people's rights. They urged the governor to change his mind and join forces with people to protect the teak forest and become a good example for youth in conserving the environment.
As the protest might last into today, when Somchai has urged civil servants and schoolchildren along with Yom River Basin residents to show support to the dam project, Phrae police chief MajGeneral Chalongchai Burirat told officials to keep peace and order at the rally site to prevent the two sides from clashing.