The Plaintiffs were a group of ethnic Karen villagers living in Kaeng Krachan National Park. The Plaintiffs were forcibly evicted and burned residences and assets by the Park officials in May 2011. The Plaintiffs said that they had been living in the said areas before it was declared as a national park in B.E. 2524 (1981), therefore, they should have had the right of possession. The Supreme Administrative Court decided that the Karen villagers illegally encroached into protected areas. The competent officers of the Defendant No.1 had the right to enact measures to destroy and demolish houses and assets of the Plaintiffs under Article 22 of the National Park Act, B.E. 2522 (1961). However, the provision did not allow the competent officers to abuse their discretion in choosing administrative measures. The action of the Defendants was undertaken with knowledge of destructive effects and constituted the use of excessive force without any reasonable response. The Supreme Administrative Court held that the Defendants were liable for compensation to the Plaintiffs and the Court could not issue an order for returning to their previous lands since the Plaintiffs did not have the document of land rights or the utilization certificate.

Academic_101023_134310.pdf (76.5B)