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DAM-L LS: AOP Thailand: Catalogue of woes goes on/Pak Moon dam
subject: LS: AOP Thailand: Catalogue of woes goes on
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Catalogue of woes goes ever on
CONFRONTATION: Past experiences suggest that the confrontation between the
Assembly of the Poor and the government is far from over
Supara Janchitfah
Why is there a tug-of-war between the Assembly of the Poor (AOP) and the
government over the issue of where a public forum should be held?The answer
is that the AOP's distrust seems to stem from previous bad experiences.
After years of protests and negotiations, so far the government has given
them nothing but empty promises. Thus skepticism prevails. The assembly
accepts the findings of a government-appointed committee, but not the
cabinet resolution of July 25, 2000, which the AOP does not consider to be
a lasting solution to the problems raised by the assembly.
Among other things, the cabinet resolution called for the opening of
watergates at Pak Moon Dam. In fact, the gates had already been opened due
to floods in Ubon Ratchathani, notes Mr Somkiat Ponpai, one of the Pak Moon
Dam protest leaders.
He demanded to know why there was no plan to revive the communities and
ecology along the Moon River.
"In various ways, government officials have indicated that problems there
have been solved, but this is not true," he said.
EARLY PRECEDENTS
Groups of villagers affected by the construction of dams as well as other
state-initiated development projects began their early struggles under the
umbrella of the AOP, also known as the Forum of the Poor, in 1995. The
AOP's first demonstration was held from March 26 to April 22 in 1996 to
remind the Banharn government of its unfulfilled promises.
The 26-day event involved over 10,000 members from 21 provinces who
presented the government with 47 cases under 4 categories.
The Cabinet came up with a resolution to endorse problem-solving actions.
"The problems remained unsolved because of inflexibility-or even irregular
practices-of government officials. Sometimes it was sheer bureaucracy,"
said Wattana Nakpradit of the Friend of the People group.
"Sometimes officials, who are the decision-makers, gauge the political
atmosphere according to who is in power before making a decision," she added.
BROKEN CONNECTION
The second rally was a 99-day protest from January 25 to May 2 in 1997.
"This was because all we got from the previous government was empty
promises," said Mrs Sompong Viengchan, another leader of Pak Moon Dam
protesters.
This time, the AOP grew in number to over 20,000 members from 48 provinces.
In a sit-in protest in front of Government House, they brought to the
government's attention 121 cases under seven categories.
After 99 days of demonstrations in 1997, the Chavalit government held 38
official discussions, which resulted in nine cabinet resolutions and 12
government-appointed committees being formed to follow up the
problem-solving processes.
However, the Chavalit government was forced to step down from power before
the agreements could be implemented. Local officials sat on pending
projects and nothing happened. Then the Chuan government came along and
cancelled many of the Chavalit's cabinet resolutions, including the ones on
April 17 and 22, 1998 and replaced them with a new resolution dated June
30, 1998.
HOLLOW PROMISES
The Chuan II government and the Assembly of the Poor held 42 official
discussions within six months in 1998, and 15 committees were appointed to
monitor the problems. "Past experiences have taught us not to resume talks;
they only end in hollow promises," said Suriyon Thongnoo-eid, an adviser to
the AOP.
The public was hardly even aware when the Assembly of the Poor protest
resumed in March 24, 1999. That was when their first protest village,
dubbed Mae Moon Mun Yuen village I, was erected at the Pak Moon Dam site.
More than 5,000 people gathered to demand that the government solve 16
problems at the site. At present, seven protest villages have been set up
all over the northeastern region. The media has rarely covered the issue,
according to Dr Ubonrat Siriyuwasak of the Communication Arts Faculty at
Chulalongkorn University. Dr Ubonrat, other academics, and former Prime
Minister Anand Panyarachun were invited to join a public forum to mark
their one-year marathon protest at Pak Moon Dam site last April. This time,
the media gave some attention to the event, due to the presence of leading
figures.
ONE STEP FURTHER
On May 15 this year, the protesters went a step further: they occupied the
Pak Moon Dam's parking lot to demand that the eight sluice gates of the dam
be opened to allow fish to spawn upstream.
After some representatives of the AOP negotiated and demonstrated in
Bangkok, the government created another committee to look into the
protesters' demands.
This neutral panel was set up by Interior Minster Banyat Bantadtan in June.
The government and the AOP proposed five academics to represent each party.
The committee announced its findings and recommendations in early July,
after a month of work. However, the Chuan government refused to act on the
committee's recommendations, claiming it had no power to order the Pak Moon
Dam's sluice gates to be opened.
And so the Assembly of the Poor decided to come to Bangkok to demand that
the government take action on the recommendations of the academic panel
which the government itself had appointed.
On July 16, the night of the Buddhist Lent, the protesters tried to break
into Government House. Riot police beat up the villagers and charged 225 of
them with trespassing.
"Why did they trespass? What a stupid thing to do," was the general
reaction. A group of villagers gave a joint answer: "If you had been
through 80 official discussions in seven years of protest and nothing
happens, how would you feel? "It was not easy for any government to agree
to talk to villagers," said Sompong, who has participated in numerous
rounds of negotiations with the government as a representative of Pak Moon
Dam villagers.
"The government has been pushing us to the end of the road. Our backs are
against the wall. There is nowhere to go but to fight," she said.
GETTING NOTICED
It is at Government House that the highest legal body in the country works
to produce policies for the nation. Sompong has been there many times to
discuss various issues with ministers, officials involved in the project
and AOP advisers. By now, the villagers know that before even getting to
the stage of negotiations, a protest involving large numbers of people must
be launched. This is the only chance they have of being heard.
"The gates of Government House may be opened to most members of the public,
but not to members of the Assembly of the Poor," said Sompong.
In any official discussion, the panel should comprise of government
representatives, officials, villagers and AOP advisers who are supposed to
sit and discuss equally.
But things didn't quite turn out that way, noted Sompong.
"Some officials look at us scornfully. They ask questions which sometimes
we cannot answer immediately. "Sometimes it is hard for me to write down
official information and defend our case in the proper language," said Sompong.
Prior to each agreement, Sompong had to discuss developments with all the
villagers and seek their opinions. Then she had to renegotiate with the
officials. "Some ministers and officials have to consult with their
organisations too. Why didn't they honour what we agreed upon earlier? "We
have put a lot of effort, energy and money into this. Why waste it?" asked
Sompong.
"It's too easy for the cabinet to cancel previous resolutions and
agreements, why don't they think about the process before each agreement
can be reached?"In public administration, conflicts precipitate many kinds
of resolution processes.
In Thailand, the most popular conflict resolution is to set up a committee.
However, not all such committees are successful.
After a number of years, protesting villagers began to suffer from the
proliferation of various committees that do not solve problems. Most
committees are set up to prolong the problem and legitimise the
powers-that-be, according to Naruemon Tabchumpol, a political scientist
from Chulalongkorn University. "If the people at the policy level really
did their job, villagers would get some benefits through these committees,"
she said.
"But if there is no clear signal from the policy level. These committees
remain paper tigers," she added.
"Look at the committee chaired by Professor Nikom (Chantharavitoon). Even
he had to quit because there was no collaboration from stakeholders such as
the Royal Irrigation Department. After a year or so, the government still
hadn't allocated a budget to facilitate the committee's study," said Naruemon.
"If a committee comprising stakeholders does not work, how about an
independent one? Would it be more effective, can it truly be
impartial?"Naruemon pointed to the latest panel appointed by Interior
Minister Banyat as a case in point. "This commitee comprises all academics.
Although the committee is an independent body, it has no power. Finally the
decision is still up to the government," she said.
CONFLICT OF INTERESTS
The present conflict between the Chuan government and the Assembly of the
Poor comes from the growth-oriented economic development thrust which
exploits natural resources to serve industrial growth to the detriment of
other interests, according to Naruemon.
"These conflicts stem from different views of natural resources management,
not conflicts between individuals," she said.
"It is a structural problem where natural resources are geared towards
serving economic growth at the macro level rather than the micro level,"
she added.
When a committee makes some recommendations, problem-solving processes
mostly get caught in the whirlpool of centralised administrative systems,
"especially the Chuan government, which has shown a double standard in
applying the law with the rich and the poor," explains Suriyon.
Thus the AOP is calling for long-term public participation, including
allowing locals to sit in on Environmental Impact Assessment studies to
find long-term solutions within a specific timeframe.
Respected academic Dr Prawase Wasi also suggested it is time that Prime
Minister Chuan and the Assembly of the Poor should talk with each other.
But at least both sides are now aware how useless empty promises are.
Bangkokpost 13 Aug 2000