Court allows Nui Beach demolition order to proceed during legal challenge

The Phuket Administrative Court has rejected a request to temporarily halt the demolition of structures and eviction at Nui Beach, allowing government agencies to continue implementing the order while a legal challenge proceeds.

Suchart said in a Facebook post on 15 August 2026 that an investor had sued him after the Department of Forestry ordered the removal of structures that authorities considered to be encroaching on protected forest land.

The order was issued under Section 25 of the National Forest Reserve Act of 1964. It instructed occupants to leave the area and demolish the structures. The recipient appealed, but the Department of Forestry upheld the order, followed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

The parties then filed a case with the Phuket Administrative Court against Suchart, the ministry, the Department of Forestry and related committees. The court accepted the case to consider whether the order was lawfully issued, but rejected the request for a temporary injunction. It also dismissed the case against two defendants, which the ministry said were not relevant to the issues under consideration.

Suchart said the ministry and the Department of Forestry would prepare statements for the court setting out the facts and procedures behind the order. He said the action must be carried out lawfully and without discrimination, regardless of the location or who was accused of encroaching on forest land.

“I am not afraid of being sued,” Suchart said, adding that the action was intended to reclaim state land for the public rather than harass anyone.

The ministry said the action at Nui Beach forms part of its wider “Phuket Model” to address encroachment on state land and protect natural resources. Suchart said he would continue the process through the courts and that the government’s objective was to protect state land as a public asset.