ID :
133534
Mon, 07/19/2010 - 12:56
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/133534
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Indebted farmers protest at Government House
BANGKOK, July 19 – Three hundred farmers gathered mid-day Monday at Government House, demanding that the Abhisit Vejjajiva government tackle their debt problems, while the administration plans to seek an additional budget of Bt12 billion to help farmers.
Farmers led by Prayuth Veerakitti erected a stage outside Thailand's seat of government threatening to prolong their protest if their demands are not met.
They demand that the government speed the transfer of their debt to the Farmer’s Reconstruction and Development Fund and help restructure the remainder of their debt.
Protesters called on the government to help block any attempt by creditors and state-owned banks to file bankruptcy lawsuits against the farmers and their guarantors. They also urged the government to set resolution of the farmer debt problem as a national agenda.
Representatives of indebted farmers met with Prime Minister's Office Minister Sathit Wongnongtoey who is acting secretary-general of the Farmer’s Reconstruction and Development Fund but no conclusion has been reached.
Mr Sathit said the Cabinet earlier allocated a budget of Bt2 billion to finance the fund but conceded that the funding might not be enough.
The government will seek another Bt12 billion budget to help resolve the farmer debt problem by means of the fund.
The Cabinet last month approved a debt restructuring scheme to help 80,000 farmer members of the Farmers' Reconstruction and Development Fund.
The government has worked with state banks including the Government Savings Bank, Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), Krung Thai Bank and the Government Housing Bank to halve the debt by 50 per cent on condition that debtors must enter occupational retraining and do not create new debts.
The repayment period for the remainder of their debt was extended to 15 years with the interest rate set at the Minimum Retail Rate (MRR) of three per cent. (MCOT online news)
Farmers led by Prayuth Veerakitti erected a stage outside Thailand's seat of government threatening to prolong their protest if their demands are not met.
They demand that the government speed the transfer of their debt to the Farmer’s Reconstruction and Development Fund and help restructure the remainder of their debt.
Protesters called on the government to help block any attempt by creditors and state-owned banks to file bankruptcy lawsuits against the farmers and their guarantors. They also urged the government to set resolution of the farmer debt problem as a national agenda.
Representatives of indebted farmers met with Prime Minister's Office Minister Sathit Wongnongtoey who is acting secretary-general of the Farmer’s Reconstruction and Development Fund but no conclusion has been reached.
Mr Sathit said the Cabinet earlier allocated a budget of Bt2 billion to finance the fund but conceded that the funding might not be enough.
The government will seek another Bt12 billion budget to help resolve the farmer debt problem by means of the fund.
The Cabinet last month approved a debt restructuring scheme to help 80,000 farmer members of the Farmers' Reconstruction and Development Fund.
The government has worked with state banks including the Government Savings Bank, Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), Krung Thai Bank and the Government Housing Bank to halve the debt by 50 per cent on condition that debtors must enter occupational retraining and do not create new debts.
The repayment period for the remainder of their debt was extended to 15 years with the interest rate set at the Minimum Retail Rate (MRR) of three per cent. (MCOT online news)
