A deep investigation into the mysterious M.3 Kor land title 'forest land grab' scheme that has devastated Ranong’s century-old pristine forest by cutting through mountains and clearing land. Who authorized this legally? The team maps and investigates.
What many see as a once-thriving forest is now claimed by certain groups holding land titles asserting ownership. SEE TRUE news team takes you behind the scenes to reveal the truth.
At Pak Triem forest, Suk Samran District, Ranong Province, a once-beautiful, resource-rich forest is now destroyed by certain groups who have excavated mountains to create roads for logging. Despite official inspections, legal actions have not proceeded because parts of this forest have land use certificates known as M.3 Kor. The question is: how did such forested land pass verification? Our team went on site to investigate.
The news team’s survey found a damaged forest, fragile tensions between land users and officials, and M.3 Kor land certificates protecting owners. The issue is who issued these titles and whether they complied with the law.
The Director of Natural Resources said that issuing M.3 Kor titles requires proof of prior cultivation. Officials inspected following complaints. Productive use should include crops like betel nut, coconut, palm trees, or housing. However, the area appeared forested with wildlife refuges and green trees. The land’s slope exceeds 35%, with tall, mature trees indicating continuous forest conditions.
The team’s survey found severe damage to this natural forest: wide clearings, felled trees, and mountains cut through. Compared to aerial photos from 2022, within just four years, the once lush forest with century-old trees has suffered extensive destruction.
SEE TRUE obtained information that 105 M.3 Kor land plots were issued between 1989 and 1994, mostly owned by three companies sharing the same owner, who rented land out for utilization.
A land tenant said he knew the land had M.3 Kor titles and was recovering from the tsunami. He entered in 2022, including some community land, not just company holdings. He came to develop the area by planting oil palms.
Asked about the felled wood’s use, the tenant said villagers took it for boat and house repairs, leaving a 50-meter forest strip as steps. No full clearing occurred. No problems arose in the past four years. He holds documents and officials inspected before operations.
“I must say, I am not the issuer of these documents. I purchased them legally and pay taxes properly. I lease over 200 rai in this area,” he said.
The root of this issue lies in the issuance of M.3 Kor land titles starting in 1989 by the Suk Samran District Land Office. Our team tried contacting officials there for answers, but was asked to submit a formal request letter first.
On the day of the team’s visit, officials said they were occupied with explaining the matter to the parliamentary commission. Interviews require approval from the Director-General of the Department of Lands, which is underway.
The Director of Natural Resources concluded that the investigation must clarify how M.3 Kor titles were issued, under which legal provisions, and by what methods the Land Department proceeded. If unlawful, civil and criminal actions should follow because environmental damage is incalculable, taking millennia to recover, yet humans destroyed it in years. Crucially, if state officials were complicit, they must be retrospectively investigated, as such offenses have no statute of limitations. All evidence is available for review.
What happened in this forest may not be mere encroachment but reflects systemic questions about whether current mechanisms truly protect the nation's resources. Areas that should remain untouched now hold land titles that even officials cannot act against.
Thus, the question is not merely who benefits from the land but who made it “legal.” “Legal.” If this question remains unanswered, this may neither be the first nor the last time the country’s valuable forest resources are gradually taken away before the eyes of all Thai people.
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