Surayud: Khao Yai Thieng

The Khao Yai Thiang land encroachment case could open a Pandora's box, as thousands of people could be found to be illegally occupying land if the government really gets serious about enforcing the law.

"All of Thailand's jails wouldn't be enough to detain the offenders, if the authorities are serious about handling the cases as they have done with Gen Surayud Chulanont's resort home," said a lawyer who asked not to be named.

"It has to be admitted that Thailand has long had a problem with forest land encroachment and ownership and usage rights in the area."

Many stunning plots of land on mountaintops, in valleys and at seaside spots throughout the country now belong to rich local entrepreneurs, politicians, high-ranking state officials and corporate employees, and not a lot of the land is still owned by farmers.

"Those buyers are in general fully aware of the risk they are taking. They should thus be ready to control their minds once authorities take it back," said the member of the Lawyers Council of Thailand.

A senior forestry official said the problem of encroachment on forest reserves dates back many decades.

Not only landless and poor people as well as landlords have encroached on more than a million rai of forest reserves. Other offenders included monks building permanent Buddhist monasteries, centres, temples and accommodations.

He said the latest survey showed a total of 5,529 monasteries, centres, temples and accommodations covering 190,000 rai in forest reserves, national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. In 70 cases, mostly in the northeastern provinces, occupants were evicted while others were allowed to remain as long as they helped authorities with forest conservation.

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He said forestry and national park officials had to use a lenient approach to deal with forest encroachment, particularly with farmers who have occupied and used the land for generations, in many cases dating back to the days before the areas were declared reserve land.

As a result, a lot of careful negotiation, understanding and co-operation is required.

In some areas where there is a risk of landslides, authorities can persuade occupants that they should move to safer places that would be allocated for them for living. In areas where there is no risk, authorities might propose that the occupants rent the land and help officials protect against further encroachment by outsiders.

In the case of Khao Yai Thiang, the official said that applying laws to evict thousands of people now living in the reserve, as applied in the case of Gen Surayud, would pose social as well as political problems.

A solution to encroachment would be to let them stay on but pay rent to the state and ensure that their communities serve as a buffer against future encroachment, he said.

In any case, he said, there has to be a law to legalise their occupancy.

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suwit Khunkitti said occupants of land in forest reserves and conservation areas covering 8.8 million rai should return their land to the state in February or face prosecution.

He said the government planned to allocate such occupied areas to needy farmers, with allocation expected to be completed over the next two years.

"We want to warn people that existing buying and selling of prevailing Por. Bor. Tor. 5 (land with possessory right recognised only by tax payments at the Local Administrative Office) is illegal, as this type of land is not [an ownership] rights document," said Mr Suwit.

Selling and buying of such documents for land tenure is also illegal under cabinet resolutions passed in 1998 and 1999.