The history of Tarutao is tied to the history of democracy in Thailand. The need for an isolated and forbidding environment to lock away enemies of the state caused the Corrections Department to build a penal colony there in 1939.
Two important revolutionary groups were imprisoned here: the Bowondet coup group and the Petty Officers' coup group. Their coup attempts were unsuccessful, but ushered in change nonetheless, and soon a democratic constitution was drafted.
The first prison was located at Talo Udang Bay, but hundreds of new prisoners came every month, so Talo Wao Bay became the second site. Prisoners were forced to build a road 12 km. long and 6 m. wide between the two bays.
From interviews of old guards and prisoners, it was learned that almost 1/3 of the convicts died on the island. Malaria was the main cause of death; but cruelty from guards and starvation were also other major factors.
Escape was a disheartening prospect, due to crocodiles, sharks and fierce guards. But not all prisoners were miserable. The political prisoners were naturally respected due to their social status, rank and education; and enjoyed an "open prison" atmosphere away from the common prisoners. They whiled away their time in useful projects, including agriculture, plant propagation and translation and dictionary-writing. After their return to the real world, many returned to high government posts.
Order eroded in the camps during WW II. Supplies no longer came from the mainland, and starvation ensued. Both guards and prisoners soon became the most feared pirates in the area, preying on merchant ships in the Strait of Malacca. This quote describing earlier piracy sums up the boat owners' terror:
"Not only on land, but perhaps more so at sea, the Western traveler feared for his safety ..... countless white travelers recorded their fears of, and warnings about the savage marauders of the archipelago who thrived on massacre, violation and rapine. In many eyes, the rich and beautiful islands seemed to have become mutated into some nightmarish landscape -- the indented coasts, estuaries, creeks, rivers and narrow channels affording concealment for the pirates' murderous pillage, with 'no vessel ..... safe, no flag ..... respected.' (Raffle)"
[from Western Impressions of Nature and Lanscape in Southeast Asia, Victor R. Savage, Singapore University Press, Natl. Unibersity of Singapore]
After WW II ended, British naval troops were sent to Tarutao to clean out the pirate groups. After the Corrections Deparment closed the prison on Tarutao, villagers from nearby provinces began to settle on Tarutao, in the valleys and inland of the bays. There were fishermen and farmers who planted rice, fruit trees, rubber trees, coconuts and jackfruit. In 1972, the government decided to make Tarutao a national park and surveyors were sent to the island. In 1974, Tarutao and Adang-Rawi islands were declared a national park; Thailand's second marine national park.
The making of a national park: Insight into early park conditions is available from Tarutao's first director, Mr. Boonruang Saison. Mr. Boonruang is well-known throughout Thai and foreign conservation circles for his sacrifices in struggling to establish national parks. He studied at Prae Forestry College, Kasetsart University and the SUNY School of Forestry and Environmental Science. In his field career he carved out no less than four national parks: Thung Salang Luang, Khao Yai, Doi Inthanon and Tarutao.
When he first came to Tarutao in 1973 to establish the park, there were 1,000 villagers living primarily at Jak Bay, Talo Udang Bay and Talo Wao Bay. The settled residents were not pleased at the new land status and relations were very bad between the villagers and the park workers. One or two workers were killed in ambush, and there was much other conflict. Finally the villagers realized that they could not continue fighting, so most moved away. At last only 17 families remained. The Royal Forest Department started a restitution program -- the richest villager, Mr. Ju, received the most compensation money; 25,000 ฿ for his Molae Bay coconut plantation.
Mr. Boonruang explains that sea gypsies are the oldest residents of the park, living in harmony with the sea long before prison days. Originally they were true' gypsies,' migrating from beach to beach and living in temporary houses. Their traditonal fishing methods caused no detrimental impacts on their environment. Only later when mainland people moved out to the islands to buy land and finance more intensive business activities did sea gypsies become culprits in illegal trawling, dynamite fishing, piracy, log and wildlife poaching. The relation between park workers and the outer islanders were bad, many workers died in shoot-outs. But Mr. Boonruang stresses that the sea gypsies themselves were not responsible; most were not involved in the conflicts.
At first the park had only one small boat to patrol the wide park waters, and even later could not match the boat power and weapons of illegal fishermen. During one famous incident in 1981, 10 park workers in a long-tailed boat were surrounded by illegal trawlers and dynamite-fishing boats. As their boat became riddled with bullet holes, they broke away and returned to Laem Sone at Ko Adang. When the illegal boats followed them and surrounded the area, they were forced to radio for help. Finally a helicopter carried them out of the predicament.
Other obstacles for the pioneering rangers were bad weather and storms, capsizing boats, malaria and loneliness. Sometimes the men stayed by themselves in distant guard stations for long periods of time. Boonruang says he always tried to provide proper health care and security programs for his workers to make up for the dangerous conditions. He knew he could never expect his men to risk their lives if their own boss wasn't brave, so Boonruang is known for his daring exploits as well. During one very stormy monsoon period, the park was almost out of provisions, so he took the boat out to Pakbara himself to buy rice and food, on the verge of capsizing all the way. The intense training in weapon use, swimming and park protection was successful in his era. One heroic worker with one small boat and a gun one night managed to arrest 7 trawling boats and bring them into headquarters. The wild days of Tarutao are almost over, but somehow a whiff of danger and intrigue still is in the air.