Samak to relocate 1,700 slums out of Bangkok

BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said Friday that his government would relocate 1,700 slum communities out of Bangkok in the near future.

He said the communities would be turned into parks instead.

He was speaking at a seminar organized by the National Economic and Social Development Board on the visions for Thailand for 2027.

-- The Nation 2008-08-15

And how are they all going to get to work at below minimum wage swinging off rickety scaffolding? Oh yes, the free trains. Anyone check if Samak and his cronies have been buying up large tracts of land recently?

has the book " How to announce government policies for dummies " just been translated into Thai ?

Proof he lacks any understanding of economy.

Good news people, living expenses for those still remaining in the city will go up with 35%, fast. Never mind that the relocated people will have no jobs nor money to survive on.

This reminds me of the time Toxin said he would fix Bangkok's traffic problems within one year.

I am pretty sure he was serious.

I wonder where the slums will be relocated to from this latest 'hub'?

Sounds like he took a page out of Robert Mugabe's policies.

Don't be too quick to judge. Why must we always assume the worse?

Samak hasn't said he is throwing them out on the streets. Let's see what they have in store for these people first.

The residents of these impoverished areas may end up with a better standard of housing (Baan Ua Athorn for example) than where they are today.

Besides Bangkok really does need more parkland. If done well (and I know this is the critical bit) it has the potential to improve the standard of living for Bangkok residents and these communities.

I might be being too quick to judge but I wouldn't mind betting the real reason behind such a move is the high value real estate that would be released and it aint going to be turned into parks that's for sure.

I know anything would beat living in a slum, however, those "baan ooh athorn" style government houses are not that much of an improvement.

Speaking of pre-judging, I personally think that a great weight has recently come off the bloke's shoulders, and we may actually see some "governing", good or bad (probably bad ) from the guy.

I'd be interested to know where relocating slums has worked before. My experience with public housing projects is that they aren't very successful and quickly evolve into a slum again.

Exactly, and those Toxin-inspired Ban Uua-Athorn housing estates, built by TRT crony companies on TRT crony-supplied over-valued land are rapidly going to become the Thai slums of the future. Many were already heading that way even before completion. Another Toxin project failure. Meanwhile, the poor moved from their city centre slums are disenfranchised and cowed into worse poverty once more. The best solution for slum-dwellers is to give them more rights, security and economic opportunities in situ. Moving them away is the worse solution, always inspired by ulterior motives by those in power. Now, as ever.

A good idea. It will help Bangkok to be more vibrant. Redevelopment only leads to better areas from what I have seen. Im sure the slum residents will get a good deal also from the governement. Offcoarse we will get the same old negative grandpa rants from the anti-government people on this forum.... Some things will never change....

Leave central Bangkok? Is he kidding, these guys in the slums are sitting on prime real estate and they know it, not only that its their life, moving them out to the middle of no where just isn't going to happen without a fight.

As for ''Parks'' the only Parks Samak will build are Car Parks!!!

It's hard for them to "fight" a well planned four alarm fire.

Improving the lot of the poor is always a good idea, if it can be done fairly and provide equal opportunities.
People who live in slums in large cities like Bangkok, are usually very poor and the idea of moving them out into sanitized housing is all fine and dandy, but where will they work, how will they get to where they work at present. Assuming of course they have some form of job in the first place.
Redevelopment is a good idea as long as it's oriented towards improving housing for the less advantaged in society.
I live in Thanyaburi area, east of Rangsit, where there are several "ghost moo baans", mainly small townhouses, built in the 1990's before the "crash".
They are deserted because, unless you have a vehicle, there is absolutely nothing for poor people to do.
Bangkok is a vibrant city but shopping malls and Starbucks etc., don't make it so. It is vibrant because it has character. Do away with Khlong Tooey and what do you have? More high rises, condos and subsequently more vehicles.
The Din Daeng residents didn't want to move out of their accommodation because they like the area, even though it's probably high value real estate.
I'm not sure the government is in the business of giving good deals to the poor.
End of grandpa rant.

There was a manifestation by students shown on tv this evening, they are protesting the building of the new parliament building and it was also mentioned that 1700 people were to be moved because of it, could this be the same slum Samak is taking about?
The students are asking a 2 year delay for the building of the parliament as their school will also be moving then, trying to avoid disturbances, dust and noise until then.

I can smell burning?

Moving slum dwellers. Prime real estate vacated. Problem for PPP in the post Thaksin period is where is the funding coming from. Sure this makes sense and expect a bunch of mega-projects and probably some shrewd invetments from that economic advisory team that get to keep all their stocks and shares adn can use what they plan in their meetings to make a killing.
All makes sense now.

Guess the slum dwellers will have to return to some tin hut compound to get their work on a construction site back redeveloping the land they got kicked off of. Marvelous how the world works.

Just how will he remove all of Saphan Kwai and the entire length of Sukhumvit out of town?

The same way Chuwit moved whatever was there before.

(dump trucks)



This post has been edited by Heng: 2008-08-16 12:57:11

*correction.

These high school students will be relocated because of the construction of the new parliament, there is no plan for a new school.

I like the slum where I live, and don't want to move. Wonder if the list of 1700 slums to be moved is available. Never realised BKK had that many.

What's the criteria for a "slum comunity"? If it's a neighborhood encompassing at least several blocks, I too am taken aback that there are 1,700 of them in Bangkok.





This post has been edited by sriracha john: 2008-08-16 14:54:49

About 50 habitants of slums in Bangkok protested in front of the Government House on Monday morning, asking Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to revise and withdraw his plan to relocate their slums to other areas outside the capital.
Bangkok Post / 18-08-08

Well not everyone is going to be happy with being relocated thats just natural. But if Bangkok wants to become a more dynamic and vibrant we need to redevelop these poorer down town areas. Just look at Singapore for example. It had a lot of slums in its down town areas a few years ago until the residents got relocated and redevelopment revitalised the areas. If you like to continue to see down town slums well it dosent say much about your views for making this a better place....