Disabled Family in Buriram Loses Rice Paddy to Police Lender After Repaying Loan

Key summary

Nang Tuk, a 59-year-old woman with hearing impairment from Prakonchai district, Buriram province, borrowed 20,000 baht from a police officer around 2014 to pay off a village fund loan. The loan carried a condition of 5% monthly interest until the principal was repaid. After 3-4 years, she borrowed 40,000 baht from the Department of Agricultural Extension (D.O.K.S.) to repay the officer's claim, including interest totaling 40,000 baht. Although her father-in-law accepted the payment on behalf of the police officer and no debt documents were issued, the officer later seized one rai of her three-rai rice paddy, claiming the repayment was insufficient. Despite requests to redeem the land, the officer avoided them for over 10 years while occupying the land. The family, consisting of eight people including six disabled members (Nang Tuk, her blind sister, deaf brother, husband with mental illness, son, and intellectually disabled grandsons), relies on this paddy for survival as their income from collecting scrap and disability allowances is insufficient.