ABOUT 300 people in the village of Kamala, north of Patong on Phuket's west coast, staged a protest on Friday over a plan to develop the bank of a canal beside the local temple.

It was the latest in a succession of protests on Phuket about property developments in area perceived to be public land.

The gathering, near the well-known intersection where the right-turn over a bridge carries vehicles along the Kamala shorefront, brought the director of Kathu sub-district, Sriripat Pattakul, to the scene.

A person who claims to own the land beside the canal is anxious to develop the site as a resort or hotel. But locals called the ownership of the land into question, saying that the area had been used as a place for locals to repair and maintain their longtail boats for at least a couple of generations, especially during the monsoon season.

Khun Sriripat decided to suspend the land title chanote pending further inquiries into its legitimacy.

The Kamala temple and the klong alongside it was struck by the 2004 tsunami. That December 26 was a Sunday, so Kamala's shorefront school was empty, but 68 people died in the village. With assistance from local expats and an Australian television show, the temple was restored.

Since the tsunami, the development of the ''Millionaire's Mile'' close to the canal and the Kamala temple has pushed up the value of nearby land close to the coast.