This sea gypsy fishing off Phuket's Rawai beach has new hope that he and his relatives will keep their ancestral homes. PORNPROM SATRABHAYA
By Terry Fredrickson
Proof that sea gypsies have occupied a strip of coastal land for generations has convinced the Justice Ministry to seek the revocation of land title deeds held by businessmen trying to evict them.
Click button to listen rightclick to download
Panel upholds sea gypsy claim
Businessmen's Phuket land title 'unproven'
King-oua Laohong
A network of sea gypsies filed a letter to the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security last July, calling for assistance in land ownership solution. JIRAPORN KUHAKAN
The Justice Ministry says it has asked the Department of Lands to revoke title deeds held by several businessmen claiming ownership of 11 rai of coastal land where Phuket's sea gypsy community lives.
The decision came after the businesspeople who claimed to be the landlords failed to prove how they gained ownership of the land, said Chatchawal Suksomjit, permanent secretary-designate for justice.
A panel consisting of the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) and the Central Institute of Forensic Science (CIFS) had proven the sea gypsies had inhabited the coastal land which forms part of Rawai beach in tambon Rawai of Phuket for more than a century.
The panel obtained both archaeological and forensic evidence to prove the sea gypsies' long presence there.
Prawuth Wongsinil, chief of the DSI's consumer and environmental protection office, said DNA tests on human skeletons dug up from the community showed the bones were buried there over 60 years ago.
Sea gypsies normally bury the bodies of their loved ones near their houses.
The DNA of the skeletons also matched that of one specific group of sea gypsies in the community, said Pol Lt Col Prawuth.
This serves as evidence proving the gypsies' habitation of the spot, he said.
One of the businessmen who claimed ownership of the land has been seeking a court order to evict the sea gypsies who claim ancestral rights to the land.
A lower court had ruled in the businessman's favour and ordered nine gypsies off the land.
They appealed against the verdict.
So far, 101 sea gypsies have faced eviction lawsuits. At the time, the fishermen could not find any evidence to back their claims they had lived in the village since before 1955, the year Sor Khor 1 land occupation papers were issued.
The skeletons have become key evidence showing the community was there before the land ownership documents were issued to the businessmen.
The DSI and state agencies took the skeletons for DNA tests and then returned them to the locals for religious rites.
The Justice Ministry recommended the Department of Lands consider revoking the title deeds of 11 rai of land in the sea gypsy community while the ownership of the other 10 rai in the same area was still pending investigation, he said.
Currently, there are about 1,042 sea gypsies living in about 210 homes in the community. They are poor villagers who mostly work as fishermen.
Pol Gen Chatchawal said the panel' s findings should benefit the villagers in their court battles against those businessmen. The pieces of archaeological and forensic evidence were not available when the sea gypsies fought and lost their cases in the lower court, he said.
Vocabulary
agency: a government department that provides a particular service - หน่วยงานราชการ
ancestral: involving your ancestors or something you get from your ancestors, people in your family who lived a long time ago - ที่ได้จากบรรพบุรุษ, ที่สืบต่อมาจากบรรพบุรุษ
appeal: to make a request that a court change a decision of a lower court - ยื่นอุทธรณ์
archaeological: related to the study of the buildings, graves, tools and other objects which belonged to people who lived in the past, in order to learn about their culture and society (the subject is archaeology) - เกี่ยวกับโบราณคดี
assistance: help; aid - ความช่วยเหลือ
available: that you can get, use, find or buy - มีอยู่, หาได้
back: to support - สนับสนุน
battle: a fight; serious disagreement, strong competition, etc. - การต่อสู้
benefit: to give an advantage to someone - มีประโยชน์ต่อ
bury: to put a dead person’s body into the ground during a funeral ceremony - ฝังศพ
century: a period of one hundred years - ศตวรรษ
claim: saying that you have the right to have or own something, especially land or property - การอ้างสิทธิ
claim: to say that you have the right to have or own something, especially land or property - อ้างสิทธิ
coastal: of an area of land beside the sea - แนวชายฝั่งทะเล
community: the people living in one particular area - ชุมชน
consider: to give careful thought to something before making a decision - พิจารณา
consumer: someone who buys and uses goods and services - ผู้บริโภค
currently: at this time; now - ในปัจจุบัน
Department of Lands: the government agency responsible for issuing of land title deeds, registration of real estate transactions in Thailand and matters concering maps - กรมที่ดิน
Department of Special Investigation: a police department investigating serious crimes involving influential people, organised crime, or crimes using highly sophisticated technology - กรมสอบสวนคดีพิเศษ
designate: chosen for a particular purpose - กำหนด
document: a paper or set of papers with written or printed information, especially of an official type - เอกสาร
environmental: involving the place in which people live and work, including all the physical conditions that affect them - เกี่ยวกับสภาพแวดล้อม, สิ่งแวดล้อม
evict: to force someone to leave a building or place where they have been living or working - ขับไล่ออกจากพื้นที่ ไล่ที่
evidence: facts statements or objects that help to prove whether or not someone has committed a crime - หลักฐาน
favour: advantage; benefit - ความได้เปรียบ
forensic: relating to the use of scientific methods to solve crimes or to find out why something happened - เกี่ยวกับนิติวิทยาศาสตร์
habitation: the act of living in a place - การอยู่อาศัย
inhabit: to live in a particular place - อยู่อาศัย
investigation: the process of trying to find out all the details or facts about something - การสอบสวน
issue: to officially give out - ออก
Justice Ministry: The ministry in charge of the criminal justice system in Thaialnd. As well as running prisons and aiding the Royal Thai Police, the ministry also run the government's drug and narcotic control policies - กระทรวงยุติธรรม
key: most important - ที่สำคัญ
land title: an official document that shows who legally owns a building or a piece of land - โฉนดที่ดิน
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
locals: people who live in a particular place - ชาวบ้าน
match: to be the same as or very similar to something else - เท่าเทียมกันกับ, เท่ากันกับ
network: a large system of connected parts, organisations, people, etc. - เครือข่าย
normally: usually; in normal circumstances - โดยปกติ, ตามปกติ
obtain: to get something that you want or need, especially by going through a process that is difficult - ได้มา, ได้รับ
occupation: the act of living in or using a building, room, piece of land, etc - การครอบครอง
ownership: the condition or state of owning things, having things that you "own", that belong to you, that you are the "owner" of - สิทธิการครอบครอง, ความเป็นเจ้าของ
panel: a group of people who make decisions or judgments - คณะกรรมการ
pending: waiting to be dealt with, settled or completed - ยังค้างอยู่, ซึ่งยังไม่จบสิ้น, อยู่ในระหว่าง
permanent secretary: a government official, not a political appointee, in charge of a ministry - ปลัดกระทรวง
presence: the fact of being in a particular place, thing or situation - การเข้าร่วม, การมีอยู่
protection: the act of protecting somebody/something; the state of being protected - การอารักขา, การปกป้อง
prove: to use facts, evidence, etc. to show that something is true - พิสูจน์
recommend: to advise someone that they should do something - แนะนำ
relative: a member of your family - ญาติพี่น้อง
religious: relating to religion, or to the beliefs and practices of a particular religion - เกี่ยวกับศาสนา
revoke: to officially say that something is no longer legal - เพิกถอน
right: something that you are morally or legally allowed to do or have - สิทธิ
rite: a traditional ceremony, especially a religious one - พิธีกรรม (พระราชพิธี)
rule: (of a court or other group with similar authority) to make and announce a decision - ตัดสิน, พิพากษา, ชี้ขาด
sea gypsy: The Moken, a group of people who inhabit the coast and islands in the Andaman Sea on the west coast of Thailand - ชาวเล
serve: to function as; to be used as - ใช้เป็น, ทำหน้าที่เป็น
skeleton: the structure of bones that supports the body of a person or an animal - โครงกระดูก
solution: a way of solving a problem or dealing with a difficult situation - วิธีแก้ปัญหา
specific: involving or relating to only one particular thing or type of thing - เฉพาะเจาะจง, โดยเฉพาะ
spot: the particular place where someone or something is - ที่, สถานที่
title deed: an official document that shows who legally owns a building or a piece of land - โฉนดที่ดิน
unproven: not proved or tested - ไม่ได้พิสูจน์
uphold: to defend or keep to a principle or law; to show that you support something by what you say or do - รับรอง พิทักษ์รักษา ยืนหนัด
verdict: a decision by a court of law - คำพิพากษา
