State agencies should consider the sea gypsies' historical and cultural evidence in solving the land dispute in Rawai beach of Phuket, according to academics.
"The dispute shows the judicial system only focuses on evidence provided by the state," said Permsak Makarabhirom of Mahidol University's Research Centre for Peace Building.
"Without paying attention to historical and cultural evidence, local communities will always lose in such disputes," he added. He was speaking at a seminar on the land dispute in Bangkok yesterday.
On Jan 27, the sea gypsies clashed with a group of men as they were locked in dispute with the land owner, Baron World Trade Co Ltd. About 20 sea gypsies were injured in the incident. Talks between the two sides brokered by the provincial authority failed to produce a solution.
The sea gypsies claimed they had used a path through Rawai beach to reach their ritual site on land now claimed by the company, which plans to build seaside villas in the area.
However, according to the Department of Special Investigation, DNA tests of human bones collected in the area found the gypsies had occupied the area for over 100 years.
Chayan Vaddhanaphuti, head of Chiang Mai University's Centre for Ethnic Studies and Development, said documents show the previous generation of sea gypsies attended a local school starting in 1937 before land title deeds were issued in the 1950s to 1960s.
The puzzle is how the deeds were approved on residential land already occupied by the gypsies.
A study by the Thai Community Foundation said many Rawai gypsies obtained Thai ID cards prior to the deeds being issued. Their families have also lived in the area for at least seven generations.
Preeda Kongpan, of the foundation, said the disputed land is valued at over 60 million baht.
Land disputes involving sea gypsy communities along the Andaman coast are nothing new. However, the rapid growth of tourism in the last few decades has worsened their plight as coastal land has become a prime commodity.