The mayor of Sattahip’s Samae San District lashed out at the Royal Thai Navy for cracking down on villagers who have been illegally encroaching on government land for 40 years.
Prasert Pitakorn, joined by former village chief Pramote Towsakul, used a merit-making ceremony attended by 1,000 locals, police and military officers in the Nongjong Community to stage his protest. An angry debate went on for an hour but, with soldiers and police maintaining security, there was no violence.
Village leaders in Sattahip’s Samae San District have lashed out at the Royal Thai Navy for cracking down on villagers who have been illegally encroaching on government land for 40 years.
Addressing his comments to Capt. Atikom Laohakul, deputy director of the Real Estate Division at Sattahip Naval Base, Pramote blasted the recent move by the navy to require residents squatting on government land to register and pay rent.
He said villagers have been using the land to grow crops and do other business for decades without objection and he questioned why the military was now cracking down.
Atikom explained to the residents that the land has belonged to the government since 1975. It used to be free space for local residents to use to plant crops, but locals expanded the hold over the area and are now intruding on more government property.
The navy investigated found influential figures and criminals were posing as owners of the land and building structures on them including shopping centers, restaurants, parking lots and resorts. All of the facilities are illegal, he said.
It is clear that the encroachment an appropriation of government land has gone too far, Atikorn said. Some people have been arrested already over this issue and if any residents are concerned, they can contact the land office for more answers, he said.
