Phuket committee urges faster action on Sirinat National Park encroachment cases

A parliamentary committee has urged Thai authorities to speed up legal action in nine encroachment cases involving Sirinat National Park in Phuket, including the cancellation of improper land titles and the demolition of unlawful structures.

Kulwalee said the cases involved hotels, resorts, companies and individuals accused of occupying or using land inside the park. Some cases have reached final court judgments and the occupants have left, while others remain under review for land-title cancellation, demolition enforcement or verification of the titles’ legality.

The committee called on the relevant agencies to act within their legal powers and prevent delays that could allow businesses to continue operating on disputed land. It also proposed that Phuket’s Department of Public Works and Town and Country Planning join inspections of property boundaries and building setbacks.

The committee further recommended that Conservation Area Administration Office 5 be allowed to submit boundary surveys to the Land Department itself, rather than waiting for private parties to initiate the process.

At Nui Beach, in the Pa Khao Nak Koet national reserved forest, the committee said authorities should separately examine alleged encroachment and unlawful structures, and the claims of residents who say they have occupied and used the land since 1950. That date predates Thailand’s Land Code and the declaration of the national reserved forest, according to Kulwalee.

The committee instructed the Royal Forest Department, Phuket’s Natural Resources and Environment Office, the Land Department and the Agricultural Land Reform Office to prepare reports on the facts, boundaries and legal status of seven plots for its review. It said enforcement should be firm against encroachers while protecting residents who may have legitimate rights.

“Court judgments must be implemented,” Kulwalee said, adding that individuals, companies, hotels and large resorts should be subject to the same legal standards. She also said residents with evidence of prior occupation should receive fair treatment.

The report said Succhat had previously announced plans to demolish structures in Sirinat National Park, at Nui Beach and at Freedom Beach after some appeals were dismissed, and had pledged to proceed against encroachers without exceptions.