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    Forum

    Understanding the American ways

    By Anonymous, Created on: 16/10/2004, Last updated on: 28/03/2007

    » I am a Thai lady who left Bangkok at the age of 20, lived in Singapore for 11 years before residing now in the US for the past 4 years. I lived in California for the first year & a half and now I live in Boise, Idaho. Determine to upgrade myself educationally, I enrolled for classes at the local...

    • Anonymous commented : n Thailand with mountains and forests, or Eastern and Central provinces with close by the sea and lowland forests. I would not want to live in Bangkok. But Bangkok is not too far from other provinces comparing to large country like USA. If you like to visit Bangkok often, I would suggest that you find provinces that is no more than 2 hours highway drive away.

    • 39 replies, 17,828 views

    Forum

    Solar Power

    By Anonymous, Created on: 29/03/2005, Last updated on: 31/03/2015

    » I dont understand why Thailand is not using the sun which is there 365 days/year. Can anybody tell me ? I am in the process of building a house but when it comes to solar energy i might have to import myself to only then be confronted with a high import tax on such products. And that while closing...

    • rickyward commented : farmers feel forced to clear forest to make a living or go overseas to work. Yes, the ultra rich have cornered the market for solar panels and have laws in place to exclude others. This was the information supplied to a recent forum in Chiang Mai about damming the Mekong to supply electricity for the Thai EGAT grid by former senator and environment campaigner Kraisak Choonhavan. He told us that for a building ( other than a small house I suspect ) to install solar panels it must first be registered as a factory, a process which takes many months. Little wonder hotels and condos do not bother, but also it is clear that factories do not as well. So write to Mr Prayuth, I suggest ,and insist he open the field up and remove import duties while he is about it.

    • 58 replies, 163,778 views

    Forum

    Buying property in Thailand

    By Anonymous, Created on: 17/02/2006, Last updated on: 11/11/2011

    » Nothing much to say here is there, i think that IAN has told us all there is to know and believe me.......... .he's right.

    • Anonymous commented : y politicians are involved in forest encroachment and land speculation on the resort island of Koh Samui, a member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) said yesterday. Chaiyapan Praphasawat said illegal land grabs had increased across the island in the five years since the Thai Rak Thai party won power in 2001. Mr Chaiyapan, a member of the commission's sub-panel on land, water and forest problems, was responding to a call by caretaker Natural Resources and Environment Minister Yongyuth Tiyapairat for the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) to look into the growing land scandal. Mr Chaiyapan called on the caretaker government to take serious and sincere action to bring those involved to justice as quickly as possible. He said the sub-panel, chaired by rights commissioner Sunee Chairos, had received a flood of complaints from Koh Samui residents over the past three years. The villagers were afraid they would have no place to live one day if nothing was done to stop the rich and influential from continuing their land grab, Mr Chaiyapan said. "The information we have has implicated well-known politicians of this government in land encroachment," he said. The politicians, whose names were not revealed, acquired the land through nominees who would later sell the property to foreign developers at high prices. It was apparent that the land acquisitions were made with the use of inside information as the politicians knew well in advance about the state development plan. However, there was no evidence to prove that the villagers were forced to sell the land against their will. The politicians and land developers had bribed land officials to issue land ownership documents, including nor sor 3 kor papers, for areas designated as public land, he said. They should not have allowed the land to change hands as the original owners had no land documents, he said. "The villagers only had land use tax papers. How could they then sell their land?" Mr Chaiyapan also urged the DSI to look into other suspect areas, particularly the development of land under the government's Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration, which was the subject of many complaints. Pol Maj-Gen Latthasanya Piensomparn, commander of the natural resources and environment crime division, said the issuance of land documents for many plots on Khao Duang Nok and Khao Dang mountains on the island appeared to be illegal. However, it would be difficult to find the evidence needed to bring the wrongdoers to justice. Songsak Trichum, assistant village head of tambon Bopud in Koh Samui district, said more than half of land ownership papers on Koh Samui were unlawfully issued. He was concerned that the next generation of Thais on the island would have no land to make a living. Sunthorn Watcharakuldirok, head of a panel investigating the issuing of land documents on Koh Samui, said the probe had found that Suwat Vichaidit, a former Surat Thani land official, had issued a title deed for a 96-rai plot on Khao Duang Nok mountain to Suthep Wangdan, developer of The Peak property project. The land in question did not have a sor khor 1, a lower level land use paper required for issuing a land title deed.

    • Anonymous commented : he Forestry Department's forest protection and suppression division, who heads the inquiry, said they had finished compiling documentary evidence relating to the occupation of a 96 rai block of land on Khao Duang Nok mountain. There was evidence on the ground showing that the issuance of title deeds for the plot was illegal, he said. Plans to take legal action against staff involved in issuing the land documents are also being drawn up. The panel had handed its investigation report to caretaker Natural Resources and Environment Minister Yongyuth Tiyapairat. A court order would be sought to revoke the land documents so the land could be returned to the state. The investigation was ordered by Mr Yongyuth following an uproar over an advertisement for the sale of a 514-rai land plot by The Peak property project posted by a foreign firm. The project developer was selling the land for eight million baht a rai, totalling more than 4.1 billion baht. The probe report handed to Mr Yongyuth found that title had been unlawfully issued for 96 rai of land on Khao Duang Nok mountain because the Sor Khor 1 land rights document held by the firm was for only 26 rai, not 96. The Sor Khor 1 paper was needed to apply for the title deed. The issuance of a land document for the firm's second plot, of about 500 rai, was being investigated. Mr Sunthorn said the panel would extend its investigation to look into the issuing of title deeds for ''several hundred rai of land'' on Lamai mountain that had been earmarked for development as a nine-hole golf course. The panel's coordinating centre had been flooded with complaints that several forest and public land areas on the island had been encroached upon, he added. Surat Thani provincial authorities yesterday met local leaders in Koh Samui and Koh Phangan districts to allay residents' fears that their land documents would be revoked as a result of the inquiry. Provincial governor Vichit Vichaisarn gave an assurance that lawfully issued documents would be left untouched. Only areas suspected of part of public or forest land would be investigated, he said.

    • Anonymous commented : beautiful beaches and verdant forests. As tourism grew, property developers descended on the island. New hotels and luxury housing projects sprouted up. Land prices skyrocketed. Samui is back in the news, but for a different reason. Two weeks ago, Surat Thani provincial authorities began looking into possible encroachment onto forest reserve land and other illegal ownership. Caretaker Natural Resources and Environment Minister Yongyuth Tiyapairat flew to the island with investigators. He said there was evidence that several plots of land around Khao Dang and Khao Duangnok might have been obtained illegally for sale to foreigners. Meanwhile, another investigation was launched by Pien Yongnu, head of the Bangkok Metropolitan Waterworks Labour Union, who claimed that leading members of the ruling Thai Rak Thai party had bought large parcels of land from local villagers and later obtained title deeds. Sand was dumped onto rocky beaches while local authorities were ordered to cut a new road into the area, Mr Pien claimed. Our own investigations reveal that foreign companies are involved in the current land development boom on Samui. Big advertisements for property projects have appeared in Thai and foreign media to draw foreign buyers. Some of these projects are operated by foreigners who use Thai proxies to set up companies here. With a lot of money at their disposal, these foreign property developers buy land along the beaches and on the hills. We urge caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to look into this matter and take action against anyone found to have violated the law.

    • Anonymous commented : nts are investigating alleged forest-land incursions by the country's top land developer and a local businessman. A member of the Land Department's inquiry panel said although an initial inquiry had shown that the land plots were unlawfully obtained, authorities might neither confiscate the land, nor revoke the land ownership documents in the near future. ''We have to be sure that our decision to take legal action against the land owners will not backfire. We must not lose the case if the land owners counter-sue,'' said Prateep Charoenporn, deputy Land Department chief. Mr Prateep said another internal committee would be set up to review the result of the investigation before the case is sent to court. The process might take at least a month. This internal committee, however, is likely to come up with similar findings to the Forestry Department's inquiry team. The land in question includes a 96-rai land plot on Khao Duang Nok and a 451-rai plot on Khao Dang in the northeastern part of the resort island. The inquiry into the alleged illegal land acquisition started last month after an owner of The Peak project advertised the land for sale at prices up to eight million baht per rai covering more than 500 rai of land on Khao Dang mountain. Caretaker Natural Resources and Environment Minister Yongyuth Tiyapairat last week said the ownership of 96-rai plot on Khao Duang Nok was unlawful and he would revoke the land ownership document. Mr Yongyuth, also chairman of the national land committee, said the case had brought to light a conspiracy between state officials and land development investors involving the illegal issuance of land right documents on Samui island. According to a source in the Samui land scam inquiry panel, officials earlier believed that the 96-rai plot was part of The Peak project, located on nearby Khao Dang, because the land's owner had claimed he worked for the operator of The Peak project. However, they later learned the 96-rai plot might not be part of The Peak after all. The land under investigation comprises five land plots. Four plots had land title deeds, while the other plot is secured under a sor kor 1 land occupation paper, which was in the process of being upgraded into a title deed, said the source. But an examination of aerial photographs found the sor kor 1 paper belongs to other land plots outside the 96-rai area, the source said. The combined size of the sor kor 1 lands was also smaller than the actual land area. Land ownership of the 96-rai land plot should be revoked, and the land seized by the state, he said. Regarding the investigation of the 451-rai plot under The Peak project, officials found that over 100 rai was open to question. Customers, all foreigners, were now reluctant to lease The Peak's land plots, a staff member from The Peak project said. The controversy over land development projects resulted from the government's unclear policy on public land management, and inconsistencies in the process of issuing land right documents, he said. Samui natives tended to make false claims about the amount of land under their occupation to avoid paying large amounts of land taxes. ''We have already become the culprit even though the investigation is not yet complete,'' he said

    • Anonymous commented : found massive encroachment of forest land on the island. A survey found that over 1,700 rai out of 6,900 rai of forest area on the island had been cleared, and some of the encroached areas had been turned into a land development project. The inspection followed an uproar over an advertisement by The Peak property project, on a website and in a property trading guide, placed by foreign firm Samui Property Solutions. The project, which spans 514 rai on Koh Samui's Kao Dang mountain, sells land for eight million baht a rai, amounting to more than 4.1 billion baht. The project developer had named two Thai companies, Great Hills International and Ratchathani, which are subsidiaries of Bangkok-based Piyavate Hospital Group, as owners of the land. An inquiry was being conducted to see if the two firms were owned by Thais. A group of local residents yesterday submitted a complaint to the minister opposing the distribution of ownership documents on mountainous areas of the island. They claimed investors had brought several fully-grown coconut trees onto the land to show it was being utilised and to claim ownership over the encroached plots on Kao Dang mountain.

    • Anonymous commented : cerns over spreading land and forest encroachment by tourist resorts. The move follows an uproar over an advertisement by ''The Peak'' property project, left on a website and in a property trading guide, placed by foreign firm Samui Property Solution. The project, which spans 514 rai on Kao Dang mountain, sells land for eight million baht a rai, amounting to over 4.1 billion baht. The governor said the checks would take some time. Paitoon Lertgrai, of the provincial land office, said the checks would show how each land holder had acquired property and see if any land plots fell into the hands of foreigners, including those registered as entities. Under the law, only a company with foreigners holding up to 49% of shares and Thai partners holding 51% can acquire land. Mr Paitoon said his office has asked the Commercial Ministry to check the shareholdings of property firms on the island to ensure foreign shareholdings do not exceed the legal limit. Land would be taken back from any firms that breached the law. Meanwhile, Koh Samui district chief Decha Kangsanant and land official Charoen Chanpan claimed that ''The Peak'' operator defied an order by the Surat Thani provincial office that construction work be suspended pending the land ownership probe. Concrete roads have been laid through the mountain, though construction was allowed only on the 198-rai low-lying areas. Project administrator Suthep Wangdan claimed to have obtained permission from tambon Koh Samui municipality. He also claimed to have obtained a Nor Sor 3 land ownership document over the plot as long ago as 1989. Mr Charoen said the district land office was gathering rights papers for inspection. Caretaker Natural Resources and Environmental Minister Yongyuth Tiyapairat will take an investigation team to inspect the area tomorrow. He raised concerns about forest encroachment on the island, saying local authorities were moving too slowly to tackle the problem. A regulation to curb mountain encroachment would be introduced. It would apply in areas higher than 150 metres above sea level, and restrict the height of the buildings to no more than six metres, with each development plot limited to 75 square metres.

    • 119 replies, 367,763 views

    Forum

    Thai Marriage Laws

    By Anonymous, Created on: 18/05/2007, Last updated on: 11/08/2010

    » I am trying to understand why Westerners living and married to Thai nationals are denied permanent residency status once they are legally married in the kingdom. In the west a Thai national receives residency once they are officially married to a western citizen. Procedures are followed and intensive...

    • Aussie John commented : to destroy the once pristine forest not to mention the language and long cultural history. Maybe when you get an Issan Prime Minister your family and mine will get the equal opportunity they have been struggling for. Then maybe they can move forward together although I doubt it with the nature of class in the kingdom. I am not a rascist as you keep assuming or an imperialist or coloniser I just want to support my family in an honest and ethical way. I have many freinds in Isaan who agree with my opinions. They'd love me to come and live in Thailand. Stop blaming this generation for the sins of past generations. Millions of Russians have died for causes not to mention Jews, Chinese, Africans almost all nations have been affected by brutalities from the past. As a new generation with the ability to communicate we should be able to find resolutions to the sins of the past and learn to live together in a moral and hopefully ethical way. Time is the only answer. Thanks. Khun John

    • taurus commented : to destroy the once pristine forest not to mention the language and long cultural history. Maybe when you get an Issan Prime Minister your family and mine will get the equal opportunity they have been struggling for. Then maybe they can move forward together although I doubt it with the nature of class in the kingdom. I am not a rascist as you keep assuming or an imperialist or coloniser I just want to support my family in an honest and ethical way. I have many freinds in Isaan who agree with my opinions. They'd love me to come and live in Thailand. Stop blaming this generation for the sins of past generations. Millions of Russians have died for causes not to mention Jews, Chinese, Africans almost all nations have been affected by brutalities from the past. As a new generation with the ability to communicate we should be able to find resolutions to the sins of the past and learn to live together in a moral and hopefully ethical way. Time is the only answer. Thanks. Khun John[/quote:29vz5im8] Just a shame John that Zimbabwe's multi- billionaire socialist leader Robert Mugabe do's not think like you ain't it , were before under Ian Smiths capitalist regime it was the "breadbasket of Africa ", now they are starving by the millions and dependent on UN food aid ,with the highest inflation in the world and the lowest life expectancy , http://www.slate.com/id/81386 Australia would be just the same if they give it back to the "rightful owners" and they took over government

    • 68 replies, 108,200 views

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