<< Continued from the Privatization of the Common

The Boatman and his Canal:
Samrong Canal, Songkla

“Hop in! The water is low today” says the Boatman who is pulling in across the canal. He starts to secure his boat against a make-shift dock; making sure that I would not fall into the water below. Black waves of sewage-like water splashed in a rhythmic motion; lazily stroking the white sandy bank in the afternoon sun. I boarded and sit peacefully in the boat.

Since we are going against the current, the Boatman charts his course literally inches away from the bank; hugging the protruding dwellings so as to make use of easy water near the edge of the canal. We could tip over if we accidentally strike one of those wooden piles along the bank, and I would once again be practicing my aquatic skill. I try to recall the last time that I have to swim across a body of open water.

The Boatman clears his throat, spits forcefully to his rear, and says: “There are 138 households here in this community. And 69 of them are squatters in a long stretch of land that belongs to the Harbor Department. But any dwelling built on a land above the water level – but beyond the setback line - belongs neither to the Harbor Department nor the local government. No bureaucrats wanted them to be in their jurisdiction… you know” The total length of the canal is 9 kilometers long. Because those dwellings are not in any jurisdiction, there would be no electricity, no clean water, and no sewer line available for them. So the canal is being used as a source of ‘clean’ water and an open sewer at the same time.

In the Rim Klong community, where the Boatman lives, attempts were made to make improvement to the problem of sanitation. “Several years ago, people here had tried to set up a financial cooperative, but it went bankrupt twice” says the Boatman. “They wanted to use their collective saving for various infrastructure improvements, you know…..like a new sewer system, and a paved walkway. So in 2001, they had finally been able to set up another financial co-op.”

The financial co-op has since been working well, and it is instrumental in providing loans to community members (8% interest rate), as well as health care, educational, and even funeral funds. The community now has 3 teachers for the after-school tutoring program along with ‘good student’ prizes for kids who do well in school. Each member must put in 1000 baht per year for the community’s medical expenses and 800 baht per year for educational expenses. These small financial cooperatives - scattered throughout many informal settlements - operate like micro-socialist societies shielding each individual member from the high cost of health care and education in an increasingly privatized economy.

As we row along the canal, I can see many people washing their dishes or taking a bath in protruding bays on both sides of the canal. Protruding bays are popular among the people here because they offer more living space for the already crowded dwellings. And since most people here are already ‘squatting’ on the Harbor’s land, expropriating more space from the canal is not going to elevate their status beyond being squatters.

The canal is being used much like a back alley for the residents: a space where anything goes. Traditionally this is not the case however. In Thailand, the canals use to be the main commercial streets. But after 1957, American planners were sent to Thailand to plan roadways – strategically of course – for the transportation of large cargos (cold-war military equipments). As a result, many commercial canals were buried and replaced with roadways; a few canals that had survived were relegated to open storm drains.

“This is the extent of the Rim Klong community” says the Boatman. We glide silently for a few hundred meters full of vegetation and a few detached mid-income houses; then the Boatman suddenly drops his head and oar down to the level of the boat. I imitated him out of survival instinct and find that we are passing under a concrete bridge with 2 inches gap between my head and the cement. If the water rises, the bridge would surely be underwater.

We’ve come to a bend in the canal where suddenly a huge cell-phone tower appears on the scene. It was planted in a backyard of an old wooden shack. “That old man got paid 10,000 baht a month for sharing his backyard with the cell-phone company…..he’s now a rich man” says our guide. Across from the shack – or rather the tower – is an equally surreal sight: a luxurious European style mansion belonging to an ex-governor of the province. It is one of his many mansions which happened to land near this canal.

Our boat then glides smoothly pass a large wooden shack from which the Boatman announces “This is one of the poorest families here, but one of their sons has just passed the civic examination and will be working as assistance to the sheriff soon….their life would change…” he says. I peek into the house – whose windows are a few inches away from my wide-brimmed hat – and saw many books sprawling on the unkempt floor. The Boatman is still rowing silently; reflecting; his eyes fixed on the horizon.

The Boatman and I have reached a dead end – a commercial fishing net. Yes there are fish even in this dark water – many of them too. Like their human counterpart, these fish cherish their freedom even though they lack security. They are wanderers living with the constant threat of being ‘evicted’. We glide along the canal for a few meters; trying to find an appropriate point to dock our boat so that we could continue our journey on foot.

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* In early 2008, CODI had determined that the Boatman's community of Rim Klong should be eligible for over 1.7 million baht worth of financial assistance. The financial cooperative will be able to obtain grant money to support the improvement in public sanitation.