LOPBURI – The monkey problem in Lopburi province has flared up again, with a woman filing a police report after being attacked and injured by a monkey.
Ms. Arikanta Kanchanasimetha, 36, from Tambon Thanon Yai, Mueang district, Lopburi, reported to Pol. Maj. Pipak Muangchang, an investigator from Tha Hin Police Station, said that she was injured by a monkey on her hip and knee at around 7:30pm on March 6, 2024 when she was walking past Phairoj Sports Shop in Tambon Tha Hin. She filed the report to claim medical expenses under the Protection Act.
In this incident, Mr. Prachaya Pepatrang, Deputy Governor of Lopburi, represented the governor in visiting the injured woman at Phra Narai Maharat Hospital. He presented 2,000 baht and discussed with the hospital director about providing special care for the victim.
However, the province has no power to interfere with the woman’s complaint, as monkeys are protected animals. The “owner of the monkeys” is the National Park Authority. The provincial administration has promised that the municipality will take care of the lighting in the area, as Ms. Arikanta said it was very dark and she did not see the monkey.
The deputy governor of Lopburi said that after the National Park Authority signed a memorandum of understanding with Lopburi Municipality at the end of 2023 to relocate the monkeys to a well-maintained cage, Lopburi Municipality is currently improving the cage to make it more stable and stronger.
This will take time and money. It is expected that if successful, the number of monkeys can be greatly reduced. However, there will still be monkeys as a symbol of the province.
The deputy governor said the hot weather and lack of food sources could be factors that make the monkeys irritable and aggressive. They can bite each other, fight, destroy property, snatch things and attack tourists.
Mr. Chamroen Salachip, Mayor of Lopburi Municipality, who also visited Ms. Arikanta, said that in his opinion the memorandum of understanding with the National Park Authority was just an illusion as monkeys were still protected animals. He had told Mr. Srettha Thavisin, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, during his earlier visit to Lopburi how to solve the problem.
“The solution is not difficult. It is to remove the monkey from the list of protected animals. Once the monkey is removed from the list, the area where the monkeys live should be handed over to the municipality for maintenance. The municipality should set up a budget for the care of the monkeys and manage them themselves. If a monkey bites or injures someone in their area, that area should be responsible,” Chamroen said.
Mr. Phadej Laithong, Director of the Wildlife Conservation Office, National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, said that the injured woman can sue the National Park Department. However, according to the Wildlife Conservation and Protection Act B.E. 2019, although the crab-eating macaques are protected animals, the law only allows compensation for victims of elephants and gaurs.
In the past, there have been no lawsuits for damages caused by monkeys attacking people. However, in the future, there will be discussions on whether to add another animal, namely monkeys, to the list so that people can be compensated.
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