An activist and civic leader has urged the government to take into consideration some 100,000 slum dwellers who will be affected by the planned Khlong Toey Port development project.
Prateep Ungsongtham-Hata said the opinions of these informal settlers must be heard before the Transport Ministry pushes through with their plans.
Earlier, Transport Minister Jarupong Ruangsuwan revealed plans to relocate some government agencies to the Khlong Toey Port. He explained that agencies housed in office buildings on Ratchadamnoen Avenue can no longer be expanded due to lack of space. Khlong Toey currently covers about 2,300 rai.
Minister Jarupong said plans for the Khlong Toey development have already been sent to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
For her part, Ms Prateep, a 1978 Magsaysay Award winner, insisted that the slum dwellers must be informed about the project before contractors start working on the land where they are living. She noted that informal settlers at Khlong Toey have been dealt with harshly in the past, and that they would like to see a win-win situation this time around.
According to the Bangkok Post, the government is planning to move Khlong Toey’s informal settlers to high-rise buildings. This is something that government and the people have to discuss at length because of other considerations such as sources of livelihood and proximity to schools for their children.
