Occasionally progress can be a wonderful thing, fortunately KohTao has maintained its relaxed atmosphere, ]it is,it's] still nigh on impossible to find a crowded beach. Around 1947, Khun A-Paiwong, Thailands Prime Minister at that time, requested and got a royal pardon for the islands prisoners and thanks to a gracious act by His Majesty the King. They were repatriated and transported to Suratthani on the nearby mainland and the island was discarded once again. This was the same year that the first people laid claim to a big part of terrain on what is currently known as Sairee Beach. These were the two brothers Khun Ueam and Khun Oh who reached Koh Tao by a boat from the next island of KohPhangan. Surrounded by crystal clear waters, Kohtao evolved in the grown into a divers top destination in Asia. The first generation of today's community (began,started] settling when they brought their families and began to harvest & cultivate the rich) soil and natural resources Ko Tao still being under Royal Patronage, plots of land were claimed, and cleared for coconut plantations. You will still see plenty of evidence of the huge coconut plantations all over the island.
