Thai government orders crackdown on Freedom Beach encroachment in Phuket

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul ordered a crackdown on Freedom Beach encroachment in Phuket on May 12, directing Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suchart Chomklin to closely supervise the case, officials said. The order calls for decisive action to reclaim public beach and forest land for the state after authorities launched a joint inspection of the long-running land intrusion case.

Assistant minister Nuntachart Supamongkol led the inspection with ministry officials, the Phuket vice governor, the Phuket land reform office, the Phuket Forestry Center, ISOC and local administrators. Officials described the dispute as a chronic problem stretching back more than 10 years.

Investigation points to organized occupation and paid access

A deep investigation found the encroachment was systematic and complex. Officials said the group first entered the area in 2015 as caretakers for the original landowner, then occupied the land after the owner died.

The inquiry also found a civil servant linked to the improper issuance of land-rights documents has already faced legal action. Investigators said influential figures were later brought in to expand control and claim exclusive rights over the beach access route.

Authorities said the group used the steep mountainside terrain to block public access and charged visitors Bt200-Bt300 per person, claiming the money covered site maintenance and garbage management. Officials also found an attempt to insert forged land-rights documents into the land database system.

Earlier inspections in the Nak Kerd mountain national reserved forest found more than 57 rai encroached, leading to seizures and 23 legal complaints under forestry and national reserved forest laws.

Source: https://www.thairath.co.th/news/local/south/2932288