CHIANG MAI, Thailand – Local networks and villagers have launched a “Dhamma Yatra” advocacy march from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai to protest toxic contamination in five major rivers, urging the government to elevate the issue to a national agenda and address transboundary pollution. The march, organized by the River Protection Citizen Network, began on May 31 at the Tha Ton Bridge in Chiang Mai’s Mae Ai district. Participants are walking along the Kok River toward Chiang Rai, passing through several riverside communities to hold public discussion highlighting the hardships faced by residents for over a year. The movement covers five key waterways: the Kok, Sai, Ruak, Mekong, and Salween rivers.
Residents of a riverside village in Chiang Rai, say the contamination has severely disrupted their daily lives. “We can no longer fish in the river like we used to,” said one affected villager, noting that the Kok River has been contaminated with arsenic. “Anyone who steps into the water develops itchy rashes and red bumps. No one will buy or eat the fish we catch, and we cannot use the water for our crops. If this transboundary issue is not resolved, our traditional way of life will only exist in photographs.”
Suebsakul Kijnukorn, an academic from Mae Fah Luang University, said the march aims to pressure the government into declaring the pollution of these five rivers a national priority. He called for urgent negotiations with neighboring countries to inspect and clamp down on illegal mining operations, which are identified as the source of the toxic runoff. The network has issued a formal invitation to the Prime Minister to visit the affected areas, discuss solutions, and implement concrete relief measures for the local population. (TNA)
