Lawmakers Probe Overlapping Land Dispute at Thap Lan National Park

A parliamentary legal affairs and human rights committee led by Rangsiman Rom visited Thai Samakkhi village in Wang Nam Khiao District, Nakhon Ratchasima Province on July 3, 2025, to investigate and resolve a decades-long land dispute affecting residents in areas overlapping with Thap Lan National Park. The committee included former Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong, Hmong human rights lawyer Loufang Bundit Thetsagul, and other government officials. Over 500 affected residents attended the public hearing, hoping the committee would use parliamentary mechanisms to resolve legal obstacles and help those facing encroachment charges.

The committee visited Wat Bu Phai to gather evidence and testimony from locals. Committee member Somboon Singking revealed that approximately 46,000 people in 97 villages across five districts and two provinces are affected, with the controversial Group 4 residents classified as residing within park boundaries despite their historical settlement. "This is not encroachment by people, but encroachment by forest," Somboon stated, explaining that park boundaries were originally drawn on maps in offices, creating overlaps with existing communities. He urged media to avoid portraying residents as invaders, as it deepens the pain of rural poor communities lacking social justice.

Chairman Rangsiman Rom emphasized that the core problem is incorrect boundary demarcation—not capitalist land seizure—which wrongly criminalized residents who preceded the park's designation. The committee aims to gather comprehensive evidence and propose legal reforms or policy recommendations to address this 40-year-old conflict at the national level.