Karen people receive compensation for their destroyed houses in national park

BANGKOK, Sept 24 (TNA) – Six Karen people received compensation from the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation after the Supreme Administrative Court ruled that burning down Karen houses in the Kaeng Krachan national Park by park officials in 2011 violates their basic rights. Surapong Kongchantuek, from the Lawyers Council of Thailand led six Karen ethnic people, including a grandson of 107-year-old spiritual leader, Ko-I Meemi to receive the compensation money of about 50,000 baht each. Grandfather Ko-i, one of the six plaintiffs, suing the national park department in May 2012 is now too old to travel. The Supreme Administrative Court handed down the verdict in June this year that the national park department paid compensation to Karen people after park officials demolished and burnt down Karen houses in a bid to evict them breached their basic rights to life and property. However, Karen forest dwellers said they wanted to return to their land rather than staying at the new place, allocated by the authorities. They also said their travel to the court many times during the legal proceeding cost them more than the compensation money, they received today. (TNA)