A total of 47 people operating businesses along the edge of the sand were told to bring their land titles and other documents to the meeting at 10:30am.
“The only thing that can prove the right of land possession is government documents. No other explanations will be accepted,” said Cdr Pornprom Sakultem of the Royal Thai Navy Third Fleet Naval Area Command. “Just give me the facts – that will be enough.
“Business owners alone will be allowed to talk with officers. If lawyers try to represent them, we will remove them,” he added.
The business owners were then separated into three groups, to discuss matters with officers from the Land Department, the Marine Office, the Royal Forestry Department and OrBorTor Sakoo, with the military watching over all.
What they officials discovered was a complex tangle of land papers, claims and counterclaims, and plain old-fashioned encroachment on state land.
It was discovered that 14 people have businesses on 10.5 rai of land covered by a single SorKor 1 land paper. The land was bought years ago by the owners of the Indigo Pearl Resort, who have applied for upgrade to Chanote.
None of the 14 managed to prove any right to be on the land. Three agreed to demolish their structures.
“The other 11 did not. They based their claim to be there on a 2004 court decision that ruled they were not on public land,” said Cdr Pornprom.
“However, the Sor Kor 1 paper is being upgraded to Chanote, in the name of the Indigo Pearl Resort, which means they will no longer have the right to use it,” he explained.
The cases of the 11 people will be passed to prosecutors who will decide whether they should be tried and, if so, whether the cases should be heard by the Provincial Court or a Military Court.
More people were found to have businesses on two pieces of land belonging to Dang Laolah.
Seven members of his family (or people who have bought land from them) have guest houses, restaurants, minimarts, tour agencies and other shops on one of the two pieces, and already have a court decision in confirming their right to occupy the land.
However, OrBorTor Sakoo officials will now check whether they have building permits. Some of the buildings are two-storey, apparently contravening height restrictions on land along the edges of a beach.
As for the other piece, this is the subject of a long legal row that is now in the Supreme Court, so the military said they would not touch it at this stage. However, after officers surveyed the land yesterday, part of that land was found to encroach on Sirinart Marine National Park.
Apart from the three people who agreed to remove their businesses from the Indigo Pearl land, another 26 admitted they had no paperwork and agreed to knock down their structures.
“They must finish this by this Friday (August 22). If any are left by Saturday, we will send in the excavators,” said Sumeth Suwannarat, Palad of OrBorTor Sakoo, adding that they had all been given notice to quit last Friday (August 15).
The Phuket News learned that 10 businesses, some with well known names, have already begun demolishing their businesses. They are Rotcharin Seafood Restaurant, Chai Batik, Savoey Restaurant, Wat’s bar, Marina Seafood Restaurant, Blackcat Restaurant, Original Thai Massage shop, Mr Kobi Bar, Linda Restaurant and Hula Shop.
So far untouched are Lee Pizzeria, Kwanta Seafood, Phen’s Restaurant and Fiesta Restaurant.
Other businesses that have not agreed to demolish have received deadline papers from OrBorTor Sakoo giving them 30 days to begin, and another seven days to complete.
“After that we will demolish them ourselves. They will receive the bill for our services and we will also check their tax records,” said Cdr Pornprom.
“Two men, Tawee Ngerndee and Wallop Sae-Lao, will be allowed to stay put. After checking with the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) we are exercising flexibility in these two cases because they have lived here for a long time and are very poor,” he explained.
“If the Highways Department or local government wish to develop the land they are on, they will be provided with housing elsewhere by OrBorTor Sakoo,” he added.
“To sum up, any businesses that do not have land titles must hand the land back to the state. They should understand and do this before it is too late,” he said.