Homeowners near Suvarnabhumi airport plan new protest

BANGKOK, Oct 18 (TNA) – Residents near Suvarnabhumi airport plan a new round of protests at Bangkok's main airport as they claimed a specially-convened tripartite committee has failed to make any progress in solving problems relevant to compensation payments to homeowners affected by noise pollution.

Prasert Boonkaew, a leader of the local residents said that the tripartite committee, comprising representatives from the Transport Ministry, the Lawyers Council of Thailand and homeowners, has worked slowly. Homeowners claimed that the Transport Ministry has been buying time by setting up the committee, which has yet offered no clear-cut solutions to tackle the controversial problem.

The residents' leaders then decided to reject the work of the tripartite committee and planned to stage a new protest on October 28 to put pressure on the government.

They will gather at Romruedee village before deciding whether to move to Suvarnabhumi airport or not. They believe more than 5,000 residents will congregate.

Meanwhile, Transport Permanent Secretary Chaisawat Kittipornpaiboon said in his capacity as chairman of the tripartite committee that the government is not simply buying time but negotiating property prices to satisfy both the Airports of Thailand (AoT) and the residents.

Without satisfactory results from the negotiation, there has been no progress.

Mr. Chaiwsawat said that the gathering of homeowners at the airport, if it occurs, won't help resolve the problem. (TNA)-E004