Land reform in
Thailand with community
ownership
Problems from the start may hinder
progress
By Jon Fernquest 
Land
reform in Thailand has a long and difficult history. This week Sanitsuda Ekachai (@Sanitsuda) provides a progress report in her weekly Bangkok Post column.
Today's article begins after the vocabulary.
Also read previous articles about land reform #1 (10-05-2010) #2 (20-01-2009) and #3 (17-06-2008).
land reform - a
government program to take the ownership of land from large land owners
(the rich, the government) and give it (redistribute) to poor small
farmers (See Wikipedia)
community - the people living in one particular area ชุมชน
community ownership - when the community owns the land that it allows families to use to support themselves, this means that the land will continue to benefit everyone in the community for a long time into the future (typically land is sold off to rich landlords when there is a problem and ceases to benefit the community from this point on)
progress - the process of developing and improving, of achieving goals in a project on the way to project completion
hinder progress - making it difficult to move forward and make progress in a project
community - the people living in one particular area ชุมชน
community ownership - when the community owns the land that it allows families to use to support themselves, this means that the land will continue to benefit everyone in the community for a long time into the future (typically land is sold off to rich landlords when there is a problem and ceases to benefit the community from this point on)
progress - the process of developing and improving, of achieving goals in a project on the way to project completion
hinder progress - making it difficult to move forward and make progress in a project
Opinion
COMMENTARY
A milestone for landless farmers
8/07/2010Sanitsuda Ekachai
Smiles were all around when Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva welcomed elderly rice farmer Chuay Sitthisunthorn at Government House to inaugurate the newly set up office to support community land ownership.
For Grandpa Chuay, it was a dream come true. The threat of landlessness is now over at his Klong Yong community, home to some 200 rice-farming families in Nakhon Pathom. The Treasury Department, one of the country's biggest state landlords, can no longer evict them now that Klong Yong has been selected by the government as the country's first community to take charge of their farmland through community ownership and management. At least 30 more communities across the country will follow suit under the community land title deed programme, which will help protect dwindling farmland and prevent farmers from future landlessness through land speculation.
milestone
- an important event in the history or development of
something เหตุการณ์สำคัญ (ที่ควรบันทึกไว้)
landless farmers - poor farmers who own no land
elderly - (of people) old สูงวัย, อาวุโส, อายุมาก
inaugurate - officially start เริ่มเป็นทางการ
support - help สนับสนุน
dream come true - when people actually get something they wished for or dreamed that they had
threat - a danger อันตราย
landlessness (noun) - not owning land
state - government รัฐ
landlords - the owners of land or real estate (here farmland)
evict (verb) - legally remove someone who is renting real estate (land, building, apartment or home)
take charge - start controlling
follow suit - follow and so the same thing (that someone did before them, setting an example)
title deed - the official government document that shows that you own land
dwindling - reducing in amount, smaller and smaller amount over time
speculation - buying an asset hoping that its price will go up and you will make money, it could go down with a loss of money, assuming the risk of loss in return for the uncertain possibility of a reward (See Wikipedia)
landless farmers - poor farmers who own no land
elderly - (of people) old สูงวัย, อาวุโส, อายุมาก
inaugurate - officially start เริ่มเป็นทางการ
support - help สนับสนุน
dream come true - when people actually get something they wished for or dreamed that they had
threat - a danger อันตราย
landlessness (noun) - not owning land
state - government รัฐ
landlords - the owners of land or real estate (here farmland)
evict (verb) - legally remove someone who is renting real estate (land, building, apartment or home)
take charge - start controlling
follow suit - follow and so the same thing (that someone did before them, setting an example)
title deed - the official government document that shows that you own land
dwindling - reducing in amount, smaller and smaller amount over time
speculation - buying an asset hoping that its price will go up and you will make money, it could go down with a loss of money, assuming the risk of loss in return for the uncertain possibility of a reward (See Wikipedia)
This is a historic landmark for Thailand's land rights movement. Landlessness affects millions of farming families, but until now the call for community land ownership has always been shunned because it is against capitalism based on individual ownership.
Fear is also a big factor. Corrupt land deals are common among the wealthy and the influential. What if villagers across the country rise up and demand to have the land back so they can use it communally.
landmark
- a major event or achievement that marks an important
state in a process and makes progress possible
เหตุการณ์ที่เป็นการแสดงถึงความคืบหน้า
rights - something you are legally or morally allowed to do or have (See Wikipedia) สิทธิ์
land rights - land that people (such as farmers) should legally and morally be allowed to have
movement, social movement - a group of people who share the same aim and work together to achieve it การเคลื่อนไหวเพื่อวัตถุประสงค์ทางการเมือง
shunned - avoided (make effort to not do something you want to do)
factor - a fact or situation which influences the result of something ปัจจัย
common - happen often, are normal events
wealthy - rich, has a lot of money and assets มั่งคั่ง ร่ำรวย
influential - can control events because they are powerful ที่มีอิทธิพลต่อ
rise up - take action against some situation (in extreme case: rebel, uprising)
demand Y - strongly tell someone that they must be given Y
communally - done by a whole community
rights - something you are legally or morally allowed to do or have (See Wikipedia) สิทธิ์
land rights - land that people (such as farmers) should legally and morally be allowed to have
movement, social movement - a group of people who share the same aim and work together to achieve it การเคลื่อนไหวเพื่อวัตถุประสงค์ทางการเมือง
shunned - avoided (make effort to not do something you want to do)
factor - a fact or situation which influences the result of something ปัจจัย
common - happen often, are normal events
wealthy - rich, has a lot of money and assets มั่งคั่ง ร่ำรวย
influential - can control events because they are powerful ที่มีอิทธิพลต่อ
rise up - take action against some situation (in extreme case: rebel, uprising)
demand Y - strongly tell someone that they must be given Y
communally - done by a whole community
When Thaksin Shinawatra was in power, a group of villagers in Lamphun did exactly that. When a landlord stole their commons through corruption, the farmers occupied the commons to get it back to allot it to the landless under community land ownership
Thaksin sent those villagers to jail.
in power - have
political country of a country (through election, coup, etc)
landlord - a person or organisation that owns a building or an area of land and is paid by other people for the use of it เจ้าของที่ดิน
the commons - land shared and used by a group of farmers, not owned by one farmer (See Wikipedia)
occupied the commons - started using a piece of land (here: to assert ownership)
corruption - (See Wikipedia on bribery, corporate corruption, and political corruption)
allot - to give someone part of an amount of something that is available, or to decide that something will be used for a specific purpose จัดสรรเงินทุน
landlord - a person or organisation that owns a building or an area of land and is paid by other people for the use of it เจ้าของที่ดิน
the commons - land shared and used by a group of farmers, not owned by one farmer (See Wikipedia)
occupied the commons - started using a piece of land (here: to assert ownership)
corruption - (See Wikipedia on bribery, corporate corruption, and political corruption)
allot - to give someone part of an amount of something that is available, or to decide that something will be used for a specific purpose จัดสรรเงินทุน
In normal times, the Abhisit government would not have even considered community land ownership. But in this critical time, it is frantically searching for reform ideas that can translate into votes. Community land ownership fits the bill.
Beneath the smiling surface at Government House, however, is a deep worry among land rights activists. Their radical idea of community land ownership may have now been planted in the system. But will it grow.
critical
- extremely important because a future situation will be affected by it
สำคัญยิ่ง
frantically - doing something in a very hurried and urgent way, must achieve goals quickly
reform - improvement, changes to correct situations that are wrong or unfair การแก้ไข การปฏิรูป
bill - a proposal for a new law ญัตติ
the surface of Y - the outside part of something (outside "layer" or "skin")
beneath the surface - the inside of a thing, inside the surface
activist – someone who takes part in activities that are intended to achieve political or social change, especially someone who is a member of an organisation นักกิจกรรม
radical - new and very different
frantically - doing something in a very hurried and urgent way, must achieve goals quickly
reform - improvement, changes to correct situations that are wrong or unfair การแก้ไข การปฏิรูป
bill - a proposal for a new law ญัตติ
the surface of Y - the outside part of something (outside "layer" or "skin")
beneath the surface - the inside of a thing, inside the surface
activist – someone who takes part in activities that are intended to achieve political or social change, especially someone who is a member of an organisation นักกิจกรรม
radical - new and very different
''This is just a small first step towards our goal of land reform,'' admits Prayong Doklamyai, a land rights activist. ''There are still many struggles ahead.''
The decree on community land deeds, he explains, has been mutilated by the Council of State, the government's legal arm. For example, the clause stating the villagers' constitutional right to manage their land has been deleted. The community land deed has also been reduced to a land use permit by state agencies. This means: no state approval, no community land rights. And the land use permit can be suspended any time.
activist
- someone who takes part in activities that are
intended to achieve political or social change, especially someone who
is a member of an organisation นักกิจกรรม,
ผู้ดำเนินการที่มีความกระตือรือร้น
struggles - experiences difficulty and makes a very great effort in order to do something ดิ้นรน
decree - an official order or decision made by the ruler of a country
Council of State - the group of legal advisors that provides advice to the Prime Minister's cabinet on the legality of actions they are planning to take
arm - a part of an organisation that deals with a particular subject or activity หน่วยงาน
the government's legal arm - the government agency that deals with legal issues
constitutional - correct or allowed according to the constitution ถูกต้องหรืออยู่ในขอบข่ายที่ระบุไว้ในรัฐธรรมนูญ
community land deed - the official government document that gives a whole farming community ownership of land
land use permit - official government permission to use for a limited period (temporary)
approval - official permission การอนุมัต
suspended - stopped for a period of time (temporarily)
struggles - experiences difficulty and makes a very great effort in order to do something ดิ้นรน
decree - an official order or decision made by the ruler of a country
Council of State - the group of legal advisors that provides advice to the Prime Minister's cabinet on the legality of actions they are planning to take
arm - a part of an organisation that deals with a particular subject or activity หน่วยงาน
the government's legal arm - the government agency that deals with legal issues
constitutional - correct or allowed according to the constitution ถูกต้องหรืออยู่ในขอบข่ายที่ระบุไว้ในรัฐธรรมนูญ
community land deed - the official government document that gives a whole farming community ownership of land
land use permit - official government permission to use for a limited period (temporary)
approval - official permission การอนุมัต
suspended - stopped for a period of time (temporarily)
Academic Prapas Pintoptang also foresees trouble ahead. Most community-owned farmland initiatives are in forested areas. With fierce resistance from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, their community land reform plans cannot begin.
That's not all. The majority of arable land at present sits idle in the hands of big landlords. But the council has saved them big time by leaving private lands out of the community land ownership arrangement. Such intervention by the Council of State and fierce hostility among forestry authorities against community rights shows that any reform effort is an uphill task when our dinosaur bureaucracy refuses to change.
foresees - see or
expect that some event or situation will happen in the future
initiatives - an important action or government program taken to solve a problem
fierce - very intense and very aggressive
resistance - a refusal to accept something or allow it to happen การต่อต้าน, การขัดขืน
majority - more than half of the people in a group ส่วนมาก
arable - land that can be used to grow crops
idle - not being used; not working; not active อยู่นิ่ง ไม่ให้บริการ ซึ่งยังไม่ได้ใช้การ
intervention - becoming involved in a situation and trying to change it การแทรกแซง
hostility - being unfriendly, displaying anger at people
forestry - the art and science of managing forests and tree plantations so that they produce trees over a very long period of time (See Wikipedia)
authorities - government officials, agencies and departments เจ้าหน้าที่ของรัฐ Reduced contributions to SSF Labour minister Paitoon Kaewthong said he would propose to the SSF board a one-year special reduction of
effort - an attempt to do something ความพยายาม
effort - the energy and enthusiasm that people put into an activity
reform effort - all the work and programs to improve some way of doign things in government
task - a piece of work that someone does หน้าที่, ; ภารกิจ
uphill task - a task with difficult, if not impossible, goals to achieve
bureaucracy - large government departments known for being slow
dinosaur bureaucracy - very big, slow and inefficient government departments
initiatives - an important action or government program taken to solve a problem
fierce - very intense and very aggressive
resistance - a refusal to accept something or allow it to happen การต่อต้าน, การขัดขืน
majority - more than half of the people in a group ส่วนมาก
arable - land that can be used to grow crops
idle - not being used; not working; not active อยู่นิ่ง ไม่ให้บริการ ซึ่งยังไม่ได้ใช้การ
intervention - becoming involved in a situation and trying to change it การแทรกแซง
hostility - being unfriendly, displaying anger at people
forestry - the art and science of managing forests and tree plantations so that they produce trees over a very long period of time (See Wikipedia)
authorities - government officials, agencies and departments เจ้าหน้าที่ของรัฐ Reduced contributions to SSF Labour minister Paitoon Kaewthong said he would propose to the SSF board a one-year special reduction of
effort - an attempt to do something ความพยายาม
effort - the energy and enthusiasm that people put into an activity
reform effort - all the work and programs to improve some way of doign things in government
task - a piece of work that someone does หน้าที่, ; ภารกิจ
uphill task - a task with difficult, if not impossible, goals to achieve
bureaucracy - large government departments known for being slow
dinosaur bureaucracy - very big, slow and inefficient government departments
Meanwhile, the future of the Land Bank to support community land reform is still up in the air. And the land rights movement has another problem within which is political divisiveness among its members. Some are unhappy to be seen as a tool to whitewash the Abhisit government after the May 19 bloodshed. But others feel it is necessary to set community land deeds in the legal landscape so that land reform movement can grow from there. Prayong is one of them.
''We cannot hope for any government to initiate land reform for us,'' he explains. ''We have to do it ourselves by defining our agenda, proposing our solution, and making it happen.
s
''We have to do this no matter whichever government is in power. The path will be rough. But we will have to keep going to reach our goal.''
up in the air - not
sure what will happen
divisiveness - when people in a group cannot agree about things and fight all the time
whitewash - take action to hide an ugly or unpleasant truth
initiate - to start something or make it start ริเริ่ม
agenda - a list of things that people will discuss at a meeting ระเบียบวาระ
agenda - a list of things to be discussed, goals to achieve กำหนดการ, วาระ
do no matter what - a situation or subject which is being dealt with or considered เรื่อง, ภารกิจ, งาน
rough - not calm or smooth มีคลื่นมาก
divisiveness - when people in a group cannot agree about things and fight all the time
whitewash - take action to hide an ugly or unpleasant truth
initiate - to start something or make it start ริเริ่ม
agenda - a list of things that people will discuss at a meeting ระเบียบวาระ
agenda - a list of things to be discussed, goals to achieve กำหนดการ, วาระ
do no matter what - a situation or subject which is being dealt with or considered เรื่อง, ภารกิจ, งาน
rough - not calm or smooth มีคลื่นมาก
Sanitsuda Ekachai is Assistant Editor (Outlook), Bangkok Post
Email: sanitsudae@bangkokpost.co.th
(Source: Bangkok Post, OpinionCOMMENTARYA milestone for landless farmers, 8/07/2010, Sanitsuda Ekachai, link)
