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Laying down the ‘dictator law’ for money

By Paritta Wangkiat

The prime minister, who seized power in May 2014, wants all Thais to have a better life and increased income, despite looming economic problems.

But to achieve his goal, there’s one condition. Gen Prayut has to use Section 44 of the interim charter, the so-called dictator law, which allows him to bypass checks and balances to fast-track development projects.

The hope is that as a result of the orders, 12 new SEZs and dozens of mega projects will pump trillions of baht into the economy by the end of the year.

Thai Ministry of Natural Resources confirm order will not put pressure on EIA approval process

By Paritta Wangkiat

Environmental scholars and a network of Civil Society Organizations protested against NCPO’s order no. 9/2559 which permits the state enterprises to select private companies to initiate their projects before an environmental impact assessment (EIA) gets approval. On March 10, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment as the primary agency responsible for the preparation for EIA reports, clarified regarding the concerns raised by academics and the CSO network that called for review and cancellation of the order.

POLICY BRIEF: Women’s participation in EIAs in Vietnam: what are the benefits?

By Paritta Wangkiat

Center for Environment and Community Research (CECR) conducted policy research to investigate the nature, extent, constraints and outcomes of women’s participation in two development project sites in Vietnam. These project sites were the Trung Son Hydropower Project funded by the World Bank and the Phu Hoa Landfill Project supported by the Asian Development Bank. Both projects have undergone EIA processes.

Thai junta slashes EIA procedures on state projects

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The Thai junta enacted a new order to cut short the process to conduct Environmental Impact Assessment on mega project constructions.

On Tuesday, 8 March 2016, the public website of the Royal Gazette published the latest order of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), Order 9/2016.

The title of the NCPO’s Order 9/2016 reads ‘Additional Laws on Promotion and Protection of the Quality of Nation’s Environment’

The order was authorised on Monday by Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, the junta leader and Prime Minister, who invoked authorities under Section 44 of the Interim Constitution which gives the regime absolute power, to enact it with immediate effect.

Statement of Kachin people on “Natural Resource Governance in Kachin State”

By Paritta Wangkiat

Kachin Organizations On March 1, 2016, 103 leaders of Kachin State from 61 organizations from civil society organizations, political parties, and religion organizations met at Myitkyina, Kachin State to discuss “Natural Resource Governance in Kachin State”. The following statements were agreed collectively at the forum. 1) To institute federalism, self-determination in no time with administration, […]

Linking rural development with SDGs

By Avatar photoParitta Wangkiat

The 2030 agenda for sustainable development undoubtedly proposes an exciting vision, and promises a future of peace and prosperity; but these goals will not be easy to achieve unless we develop effective global partnerships and learn from the outcomes of Millennium Development Goals (MDG). We need to investigate both the successes and failures of MDGs, set our focus on result-oriented development, and encourage government and their development partners to think about the linkages between plan, policy, delivery and monitoring in resource mobilisation and management.

PM Pledges 1M Hectares of ELC Land to Poor

By Paritta Wangkiat

Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday declared an end to the government’s review of Cambodia’s economic land concessions (ELCs), pledging that nearly 1 million hec­tares of reappropriated property would be handed over to poor families. He also announced a major reorganization of the two ministries involved in granting ELCs.

Environmental and human rights groups have identified ELCs as a cause of some of Cambodia’s most pressing problems in recent years, from rampant deforestation to forced evictions across the country.