Campaigners against the construction of a court housing project at the foot of Doi Suthep in Chiang Mai are using social media to increase pressure for the return of the forest.
The Network for the Return of Doi Suthep Forest used the Facebook account @DoiSuthepMountain Sunday to urge residents in Chiang Mai to step up their opposition to the scheme.
"If you believe in the the social power of Chiang Mai people, you can do it," a message reads.
The page shows pictures of people joining the social campaign by posting signs opposing the project or displaying a green ribbon, a symbol of their fight to see the housing project scrapped and the forest returned to pristine condition.
It also showed pictures of some shops with the sign, "Forest destroyers are not welcome."
Civic groups and the government are locked in a dispute over the project, which will include housing for the Region 5 Court of Appeal office on land plots owned by the Treasury Department in Mae Rim district of the northern city.
The court building itself has not aroused the ire of locals. They object to 13 flats for staff and 45 houses built higher on the foothills of the mountain for judges and senior officials.
Following the criticism, the government finally agreed not to use the residential buildings for their original purpose.
But the fate of the residential buildings is still under dispute between locals and authorities.
The executive committee of the Courts of Justice earlier decided to forward the fate of the controversial housing and office building project to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha for advice.
The committee said it could not comply with the demands of the project opponents that work cease or the structures be demolished, out of concerns over the likely legal repercussions. However, the government said it would let the stakeholders talk and decide.
Meanwhile, former Region 5 Court of Appeal chief Chamnan Rawiwanpong said on Saturday the court had done nothing wrong.
The court staff should be allowed to live in the houses and should be responsible for reforestation and forest rehabilitation at the same time.
"Don't destroy the houses yet. Please let the court [staff] live there and let them improve the environment until we see if after 10 years the forest is restored," he said.
The campaigners insist on the demolition of the buildings and placing the disputed plots in an environmental protection zone.
A panel set up by the government, however, is reluctant to flatten the project given the potential legal complications with the contractor and the cost incurred by the state to date.
