Land Titling in Thailand
• Land titling in Thailand started in 1984 with the support of the World Bank, in 1997 get World Bank award of Excellence
• Aims to secure land for holder and increase land value, what happened
• 90 % of the population own less than 0.16 hectares per person, while 10% of the peopleown more than 16 hectares per person
• 70% of land for which legal ownership has been abandoned, left vacant, or put to productive use at a level of under 50%
• 40 % of Thai farmers are landless or own less than 1.6 hectares (2006), about 10 million farmers are facing with land holding
Main concept of Land Titling and Impacts
• Neo liberal principle, putting people in national economy, part of world market
• No control of land holding
• Centralization to Go agency, on land titling
• Huge land grabbing, buying cheap land and do illegal land titling
• rich people use farmer’s right to access land reform
No land security both in state and private land
• In private land, land titling did not secure land holding for small farmers, 30 million rai of land are mortgaged at state and private banks and in risks to besold to private company
• No land tax to push burden for big land holders, so land grabbing,speculation, buying cheap land and pursue for illegal land titling is increasing
• in state land, Go do not accept land rights of the people who occupy stateland,create conflictand legal cases
Land Reform in Thailand
• should come under concept just land distribution and decentralization
• land tax to put burden for land holders, high for land left vacant andprogressive for big land holders
• accept land rights of people who live and use state land
• provide community land title, reform or give rights to people who use stateland, with support and control by joint committee
Supporting Landand Agricultural Policy
• Land Bank, local and national, supporting land holding exchange at locallevel, seek for land left vacant, provide to landless, as no profit organization
• Announce for agricultural land protection area, specific use for agriculture, nospeculation allowed
• Support organic farming, guarantee price higher than production cost, greenand direct market between consumer and producer, strengthen localorganization and local economy
Land Reform by People Movement
• Insist on land rights of people who use or occupy state land
• Examine private land, vacant and illegal titling
• Build up concrete on sustainable land and resource use
• Strengthen local organization and network
• Campaign for just land distribution, link with other sectors
• Build up alliances,people movement, mass media, academician and push forland policy
Article by pongtip samranjit
