The House Committee on Land, Natural Resources and Environment will invite representatives of three groups residing in Thap Lan National Park, to provide information and share their views on the plan to carve out about 42,400 out of the park’s 208,000 hectares for distribution to settlers.
Chair of the committee, Move Forward party-list MP Poonsak Chanchampee, said today that the groups residing in the park are, firstly, those who had plots of land in the park before it was declared a national park.
These settlers include former communist insurgents and their families, who were settled there under the 66/23 policy of then government of Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanonda after laying down their arms.
The second group is those who settled on park land, after it was declared a national park, but under the land reform or “Sor Por Kor” program.
The third is land developers, who encroached on the national park and built resorts and hotels.
Poonsak said the committee will try to wrap up its findings for submission to the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation within the 30-day deadline, following the completion of public hearings this Friday.
