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Where is this?

Sunday afternoon at Limpini Park

well I hope it helped :)

I'm praying for Peace in the South of your country as well. :master: :master: :master:

:angel1:

I heard on the t.v. that kids in Thailand are folding either 8,000 or 80,000 (forgot which) crains and releasing them over the skies in the south as an offer for peace

Paper crane drop - December 5, 2004

Origami crane box - November 29, 2004 - Box at Silom Complex for the public to donate paper cranes to be dropped over the South.

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ด.ญ.ชาวอ.รือเสาะเก็บนก"ทักษิณ"ได้


ด.ญ.วัย12ขวบ อำเภอรือเสาะ เก็บนกกระดาษสันติภาพของ"ทักษิณ"ได้ เจ้าตัวเผย ตื่นเต้นจะได้พบนายกฯ พ่อ ระบุ ลูกสาวอยากไปเที่ยวทำเนียบ ขณะที่นายอำเภอ ยืนยันเป็นนกนายกรัฐมนตรีจริง และประสานเลขาฯนายกรัฐมนตรีเรียบร้อยแล้ว

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เมื่อวันที่ 7 ธันวาคม นายธนวัฒน์ บูรณะพิภพ นายอำเภอรือเสาะ จังหวัดนราธิวาส เปิดเผยว่า หลังจากนกกระดาษสันติภาพ จากพี่น้องชาวไทยทั่วประเทศ ถูกโปรยลงสู่มือพี่น้องชาวไทยใน 3 จังหวัดชายแดนภาคใต้ เมื่อวันที่ 5 ธันวาคม ที่ผ่านมา ล่าสุด ปรากฎว่า อำเภอได้รับการประสานมาจากผู้ปกครองของ ด.ญ.นูรีตา มาลัยมาน อายุ 12 ปี อยู่บ้านเลขที่ 309/55 ซ.นราสุขปราสาท หมู่ 1 ต.รือเสาะ อ.รือเสาะ จ.นราธิวาส ซึ่งเป็นบุตรสาว สามารถเก็บนกกระดาษสันติภาพ ซึ่งเป็นของ พ.ต.ท.ทักษิณ ชินวัตร นายกรัฐมนตรี โดยมีข้อความบนปีกนกทั้งสองข้าง รวมถึงหมายเลขโทรศัพท์ติดต่อกลับ

นายอำเภอรือเสาะ กล่าวอีกว่า หลังจากได้รับการประสาน จึงขอตรวจสอบนกกระดาษสันติภาพตัวดังกล่าว เนื่องจากที่ผ่านมามีผู้อ้างชื่อและนำไปกลั่นแกล้งจนชาวบ้านหลงเชื่อ คิดว่าเป็นผู้โชคดีสามารถเก็บนกกระดาษนายกรัฐมนตรีได้หลายราย

"จากการตรวจสอบปรากฎว่านกตัวดังกล่าวเป็นของนายกรัฐมนตรีจริง เนื่องจากข้อความบนปีทั้ง 2 ข้าง ตรงกับที่ที่นายกรัฐมนตรีระบุ โดยเฉพาะหมายเลขโทรศัพท์ที่บันทึกลงบนปีกนก (01-5673153) จึงได้โทรเพื่อขอยืนยันกับหมายเลขดังกล่าว และได้รับทราบคำตอบว่าเป็นนกกระดาษของ พ.ต.ท.ทักษิณ ชินวัตรจริง"นายอำเภอรือเสาะ กล่าว

นายธนวัฒน์ กล่าวอีกว่า ขณะนี้ได้ประสานกับนายยงยุทธ

A girl in Rueso district in Narathiwat got Prime bird paper.

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Pattani _ Officials in this southern border province got a surprise yesterday when a nine-carriage train from Bangkok delivered another batch of more than 20 million paper cranes to a railway station in Khok Pho district.

The paper cranes were left over from the massive airdrop on Dec 5. When they arrived, district officials, defence volunteers, soldiers and villagers were mobilised to unload and take them to the district auditorium.

Some officials at the scene said they could not understand why the birds had been delivered to the area, since such a massive number of them had already been air-dropped over the three troubled southern provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat on Dec 5.

Yala Baikaden, assistant chief of Khok Pho district, said he would ask the provincial office what should be done with the origami birds.

About 100 people greeted the train. Many were there in the hope of finding the paper bird which Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra folded and signed.

Mr Thaksin said anyone who found his bird would be invited to meet him at Government House. The finder would also be offered a scholarship or a job.

Many others tried to look for birds folded with banknotes, or with telephone numbers and promises of gifts on call.

After they searched, paper birds were scattered all over the train station.

A source said left-over paper birds were also sent from Bangkok in six carriages to Tanyongmat railway station in Narathiwat and another six carriages to Yala.


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PM, Anand agree to disagree

Thaksin to keep all options open

KUNSIRI OLARIKKACHAT

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Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra last night pledged never to put aside peaceful means and the principle of reconciliation in favour of the use of state power and force to end the violence in the far South.

Mr Thaksin dominated last night's live television appearance with Anand Panyarachun, chairman of the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC), to calm a storm of controversy over the enforcement of the emergency decree in the region.

Mr Thaksin lifted the cloud of suspicion over whether his government had abandoned peaceful means, saying the decree was a security necessity but the government would exercise self-restraint and ensure a balance between human rights, civil liberties and national security.

He said the government could not afford to condone mistreatment of innocent people in Muslim-dominated Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat by state authorities now local cooperation in giving information that could lead to the arrest of trouble-makers was what it needed most.

"We are determined to walk the reconciliation path but violence still continues. We now have to use the law but that is not because we have prejudice against the people there, but because we need to restore order before we can bring peace back to them," he said.

Mr Thaksin said major factors behind the eruption of southern violence included distortions of history to win local support for secession from Thailand, the government's war on drugs, crime and dark influence and poor education system.

Mr Anand, a former prime minister, argued, that he did not think the three provinces wanted a split from Thailand. He held official failure to recognise cultural and religious differences responsible.

"Some government mechanisms can not build trust among the southerners but on the contrary make them feel marginalised and oppressed.

"There really are people who want secession. We cannot reconcile with them. But most people in the far South do not back separatism. They only ask for respect for their identity and religion and acceptance that they are Thais," Mr Anand said.

Mr Thaksin said it was true there were not enough separatists to make the attempt to break the three provinces away succeed, but their number was high enough to cause daily violence, and they must be dealt with under the law.

Mr Anand compared the southern violence to an illness where two kinds of drug must be prescribed _ the application of law and order and reconciliation principle.

He rang a warning to Mr Thaksin against enforcing the law in breach of people's rights and freedoms, including abducting and oppressing innocent people.

Mr Anand said the NRC remained worried authorities might use the decree to arrest the innocent or muzzle the free press, feeling they had a "licence to kill" because the law also shielded them against criminal and civil punishment.

Mr Thaksin, however, said court warrants were needed in the arrest of suspects and officials would not be protected if they could not prove they had acted in self-defence or without malice.

As for the media, the government was now banning only the distribution of VCDs in the far South whose contents could sow hatred against the authorities and incite unrest, he said.

The prime minister denied having any conflict with Mr Anand and pledged to continue giving cooperation with the NRC.

At the end, Mr Anand said he could not tell when the violence would be brought to an end but believed the situation would get better if the government avoided using violence itself.

Mr Thaksin pledged to pursue peace through respect of human rights and education development and pleaded for people's cooperation in restoring peace.

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It seems to me that we needanother Serithai to dela with this kind of Insurgency:

A drive from Sugei Golok to Hat Yai, took us pass
Buket Tamong,Yala, Na Thawi, and Klong Ngae,
Doted en route, one cannot helped but notice the burnt
Budhist temples, closed schools and empty houses in
small township and villages abandoned by
non-Muslims.
An atmosphere of terrifying fear enveloped what used to
be timeless, peaceful village life.
Anxious rumours whispered in Thai told of burning temples
and beheading of the monks in the next village the previous
night.
Most non-Muslim villagers had left, leaving behind the
old and sick with no place to go, but waiting to be
slaughtered or beheaded.


As our car approached Muslim townships, groups of
bearded youth with head bands approached us carrying
long bags (parangs inside). On seeing our Muslim friend
in the car and the Singapore car registration, they waved
us pass.
It was very unnerving....we were warned at Sungei Golok
that it was not safe to drive, but our Malay friend assured
us that it was ok.
We flew back to Penang, and our Muslim friend drove back
alone.


Southern Thailand had go to the dogs...Apparently,
when the beheading started a few months back, it signalled
the start of the exodus non-Muslims from this board town
ships and villages.
Effectively, these south most villages are now under the rule
of Islamic clergy. Outside the township like Hat Yai, the
local Muslims obey the new rule by Islamic clergy and
Shariah laws, and they completely ignore the authorities
from Bangkok. The police, many of whom are non-Muslims,
fear for their own life. They are not capable of protecting the
life and property of non-Muslim.


Southern Thailand(south of Hat Yai) for all intent and purposes,
is a defecto Islamic State, independent of Thailand.


Bad boy.

Army prepares peaceful, efficient southern border rotations in October

BANGKOK, Aug 9 (TNA) -- The Army Commander-in-Chief, Gen. Prawit Wongsuwan, is preparing all military units in Thailand's southern border provinces to carry out their routine rotations with peaceful efficiency and readiness to respond appropriately to any need in October.

During a meeting of units under the army's command, Army Spokesman Col. Akkra Tipayaroj said Gen. Prawit wants a smooth, efficient and peaceful transition in the troubled southern border region later this year.

Gen. Prawit specifically instructed new units due for October border assignment to begin their duties in the assigned areas from September to prepare for any eventuality in all aspects of manpower, equipment and special equipment.

Army units should get a headstart so that they could get to know the local people, their culture and tradition to ensure "continuity in the people's trust", said the spokesman.

New units should also make a special point of studying the successes and failures of their predecessors, he said.

The army chief, according to the spokesman, also assigned troops to inform the people that they can carry on making a living as usual after Friday prayers, explaining that this does not contradict religious teaching.

To prime all units to be ready to handle any situation, the Royal Thai Army is conducting a training course on 8-11 August for all units of the Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command (SBPPC) and the Fourth Army Area Command.

The course will train local officers on various scenarios of crisis, riot and attack in different degrees of intensity to ensure law enforcement officers' rapid response in looking after the well-being of the public. (TNA)-E007



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Queen again calls for peace in South

Inhumane cruelties must be condemned

KUNSIRI OLARIKKACHAT

Her Majesty the Queen has made an unprecedented third plea for an end to violence in the deep South, demanding a stop to the killing of innocent people and all ``intolerable cruelties''.

Speaking to more than 16,000 well-wishers on the eve of her 73rd birthday today, the Queen first put smiles on their faces by announcing some good news, then switched to the southern unrest.

In her speech, broadcast live, the Queen made an impassioned plea for all Thais to put their best efforts into restoring peace to the deep South and to show the southern people that they care.

``Let's show that our hearts bleed for our fellow countrymen,'' she said.

The Queen, in a more forceful tone, said Thais can no longer afford to be indifferent to some people's inhumanity to others in the deep South. She called on the people to jointly condemn violent attacks on innocent people and to make it clear to the perpetrators of such barbaric acts that they do not fear them.

The Queen had twice before called on the entire nation to denounce such inhumane acts. But this was the first time she addressed the subject in her birthday speech. ``This suffering is really severe, everybody must turn towards one another and cooperate. I want the whole nation to unite,'' she said.

``Even Buddhist monks have been killed. I don't want people to sit still. Even I myself have to come out and speak out.''

The Queen said that after the July bomb attacks in London, all sectors of British society came out to condemn the bombings, and a similar condemnation of violence was needed in Thailand.

``To be indifferent is not right, because it will damage the nation,'' she said.

``I have asked for your cooperation twice before, which is unprecedented ... but I cannot stay idle any longer.

``I ask the Thai people to condemn these inhumane acts ...The unrest has been going on long enough.''

The Queen thanked the people for all the birthday wishes given to her, saying she wished for the country to be safe both from natural disasters and dangers from cruel people. ``I wish that peace, happiness and smiles return to Thais,'' she said.

The Queen has started several relief projects for families affected by the southern violence.

She said she had bought 707 rai of land in Ban Rortunbatu in Narathiwat province with public donations made on her birthday last year, for the sufficiency economy village project where 150 houses are being built for Buddhist and Muslim families who lost their breadwinners in the unrest.

Each family will be given two rai to grow vegetables, raise chickens or fish or do some other farming, and its members can also work on ``model farms'' which she also helped set up, the Queen said.

A rice bank has also been set up to lend grain to families in need, she added.

Three representatives of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) visited the village project in June and were delighted Thailand has taken good care of Muslim people in pain and suffering.

The Queen said she has also helped arrange for two highly revered monks in Tak and Nong Khai and their disciples to stay in temples in Narathiwat to boost the morale of southern Buddhists, after a large number of monks left the region for their own safety. She said they volunteered to go there and are now safe under soldiers' close protection.

Other assistance for southerners included the building of artificial coral reefs, using old train cars and boats, as breeding grounds for marine life after small-scale fishermen complained to her about the depletion of marine resources.

On another environmental issue, the Queen warned about fresh water shortages, now a major global concern, and asked the people to begin saving water for future generations.

The Queen also told the nation about an honorary medal awarded to her early this week by the World Health Organisation in recognition of her efforts to promote food safety.

``That will help increase other countries' confidence in Thai food,'' she said.

Thai PM on surprise visit to troubled south

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Thailand's prime minister has begun a surprise visit to three provinces in the Muslim-majority south following a new call for peace by the nation's queen, and fresh intimidation by militants.

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra began his two-day tour by visiting a Buddhist temple in Pattani, and then meeting with local religious and business leaders.

Later he was heading to Yala, for more talks with local leaders, but officials declined to announce his agenda, citing security concerns.

Before leaving Bangkok, Thaksin urged residents in the provinces along the Malaysian border to remain resolute and not bend to demands of militants, who for two weeks have distributed anonymous leaflets threatening death to Muslims who work on Thursdays and Fridays.

Friday is the Muslim holy day.

"My fellow countrymen in those three southern provinces must show their strength, show that they want to live better lives and that they do not want to live under the demands of others," he said in his radio address early Saturday.

The visit comes two days after respected Thai Queen Sirikit made an impassioned plea to end violence, in a message to the nation marking her 73rd birthday.

Thaksin called on the country to respond to the queen's plea for peace, which she has repeated three times in rare national addresses since the violence erupted in January 2004.

"Her majesty is very concerned, so all Thais across the nation must unite to stop the violence," he said.

Anonymous handwritten leaflets distributed in Yala province last week threatened to kill or chop off the ears of Muslims in neighboring Pattani and Narathiwat provinces who work on Thursday or Friday.

No attacks linked to the threat were reported Thursday or Friday, but most Muslim shopkeepers shuttered their stores for fear of reprisals.

Local officials estimated that only 20 percent of businesses opened Friday in Yala, mostly those owned by Buddhists who comprise the majority of Thailand's population.

One Buddhist gas station owner, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of his safety, told AFP he received an anonymous telephone call threatening to kill him unless he closed his station.

"The caller asked me if I wanted to be shot by a rifle or a pistol," he said.

Transport in the three province came to a standstill Friday. Only government-run trains remained in service.

More than 850 people have died in near-daily attacks in Thailand's Muslim-majority southernmost provinces since January 2004. Authorities and analysts blame the killings on separatists as well as organised criminals and narcotraffickers.

Let them watch cable: Thailand to install TVs in restive south

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Thai authorities have announced their latest plan to stem rampaging violence in three Muslim southern provinces: get residents hooked on cable TV.

The government's latest southern scheme, a cooperation with private cable television operator United Broadcasting Corporation (UBC), would see TVs set up in community centres and shops across Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat provinces hit by violence that has left 850 people dead since early 2004.

"Initially some 500 to 1,000 television sets will be installed at places such as local tea shops," Interior Minister Kongsak Vantana told reporters.

"Programming at first will be limited to sports and news, but officials will survey what kinds of programmes (southerners) prefer and this should add more color to their lives," he said.

Kongsak said the tactic could encourage local teenagers to become interested in sports and exercise rather than become obsessed with fomenting unrest, and brushed off suggestions it would encourage youths to gamble on football matches.

"I am convinced that there will be no gambling because they do not even have money to buy television sets," he said.

UBC presently has no programming in Yawi or Malayu, the Malay dialects commonly spoken in much of the ethnic-Malay Muslim south, but Kongsak said the broadcasts would be dubbed into local languages with Thai subtitles.

The language issue in the south flared at the weekend when Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra reportedly urged southern Muslims to speak and study Thai, prompting critical reaction from religious leaders.

Sawadi Sukumalayasak, Thailand's top Muslim leader known as the Chularatchamontri, said embracing Yawi does not make southern Muslims less Thai.

"Southerners speak Yawi and are not considered Thai, but as second-class people. This is not fair," he said in the Bangkok Post.

The Thai government has come in for serious criticism for its iron-fisted approach to handling violence in the deep south, which has been in the grips of a separatist insurgency and other unrest since January 2004.

Last month Thaksin's administration enacted a tough new emergency decree, authorising detention of suspects for up to 30 days without charge, search and arrest without warrants, and phone tapping.

The measures were criticised by human rights groups and a United Nations rights panel, and Thaksin has pledged to come up with gentler solutions to ease the violence.

The kingdom's three armed forces will provide the highest level of security for Her Majesty the Queen during her visit to the South, which begins on Sept 12.

The services have also vowed to provide the government their full support in line with Her Majesty's suggestions for bringing peace to the deep South.

Defence spokesman Gen Suraphan Phumkaew said the Defence Council, comprising the chiefs of the armed forces and chaired by Defence Minister Thammarak Isarangkura na Ayudhaya, agreed that the military must provide the best possible security for the Queen when she begins her trip.

Gen Thammarak has also instructed all units under the Defence Ministry and the three branches of the armed forces to fully support the government in fast tracking projects in line with Her Majesty's suggestion.

Gen Thammarak urged all Thais to join forces to end unrest in the South.

Gen Suraphan said that the council voiced support for the emergency decree which would facilitate work by concerned officials and help ease the unrest more quickly.

No practical problems related to the decree had been detected yet, he said, but the Defence Ministry would evaluate enforcement of the law every three to six months and ensure political approaches and the principles of reconciliation lead military strategies in tackling problems in the far South.


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HE CAGED BIRDS SING
Thai Muslims from the deep South bring their doves — about 300 in all — to join a dove singing contest in Muang district, Pattani. The prize for the winner was 1,000 baht, with bicycles and electrict fans for the runners-up. — Jetjaras na Ranong

Govt ‘in secret talks with separatists’

Published on August 29, 2005

The government entered secret talks with the Pattani United Liberation Organisation (Pulo) in Switzerland last week, a spokesman for the separatist movement said yesterday. In a stunning U-turn by an administration which has favoured an iron fist over reconciliation, the government last week held four days of talks with Pulo in Lausanne, claimed a senior separatist figure who did not want to be identified.

“The Thais do not want people to know about this,” he said.

Wan Kadir, an ageing separatist figurehead from the 1970s and 1980s now in exile in Sweden, was not party to the talks, the spokesman said. “Wan Kadir doesn’t know what’s going on. He has no way of controlling what is going on in the South,” he said.

There was no immediate comment from the government.

Colonel Somkuan Sangpattaranate, spokesman for the Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command, yesterday declined to comment on the Pulo claim.

Reuters, The Nation

^
huh? they finally show up..this is gonna be fun!

Govt ‘in secret talks with separatists’


Government denies talking peace with Pulo in Switzerland
YUWADEE TUNYASIRI WASSANA NANUAM


Authorities have strongly denied yesterday's Reuters report that the government discussed southern violence with members of the Pattani United Liberation Organisation (Pulo) in Switzerland last week.

Defence Minister Thammarak Isarang-kura na Ayudhaya said the report only reflected that Pulo was "struggling". The government was introducing the right policies to restore peace in the far South and many insurgents were now cooperating.

"We have not had negotiations with any party. I think we are moving on the right path," Gen Thammarak said.

"We are solving problems relating to operations and the safety of individuals and property, and providing access to poverty solutions."

It was policy to welcome insurgents who wanted to help develop the nation, but there was no room for negotiation. This policy had been introduced successfully in the past when the state had dealt with communism, the minister said.

Government spokesman Surapong Suebwonglee also said there had been no such discussions as the government did not recognise Pulo. He also denied southern violence had anything to do with Malaysia, saying Thailand and its neighbour had good ties.

The government was focusing on other reconciliation processes and the arrest of offenders to solve problems in the three southern border provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, he said.

"We have not had a chance to talk with Reuters which released the news report and the government does not give weight to the report because it did not name a source. So it is unreliable," he said.

The report quoted an anonymous Pulo spokesman.

Deputy Prime Minister Chidchai Wannasathit said he felt the report was released only to give the organisation prominence. He also said the government had not had any negotiations with Pulo.

Chidchanok Rahimmula of Prince of Songkhla University's Pattani campus said Pulo was unlikely to have claimed responsibility for southern violence as the report said because Pulo, on its own website, did not recognise the use of violence.

The director of intelligence of the Fourth Army, Col Charin Amornkaeo, said it was not possible for authorities to enter into talks with southern insurgents because they were young people from a new network and had not revealed their identities.

The new network comprised new members of Pulo, the Barisan Revolusion Nasional (BRN) and the Geragan Mujahideen Islam Pattani (GMIP).

New Pulo carried out the public relations, BRN was building the network and GMIP did the bombings.

Old Pulo members were not playing an active role in the separatist violence in the far South, he said. The new network had about 15,000 men trained in bombing and causing unrest, with the same old objective of separatism.

The men were Islamic teachers and their students, mostly aged 25-35.

They were planning a major attack in October or November. Their July 14 operation, when they caused blackouts and planted bombs in Yala was a "dress rehearsal", he said.

Of 1,660 villages in Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani provinces, 257 were under the influence of the new separatist movements. Most of them were in Narathiwat.

Let them watch cable: Thailand to install TVs in restive south

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Tue 30 Aug 2005 12:28 AM ET
By Ed Cropley



BAN SAWO HILIR, Thailand, Aug 30 (Reuters) - In the wilds of southern Thailand, where people believe Islam first took root in Southeast Asia, plans to dish out cable TV with free English soccer to quell ethnic Malay unrest have not gone down well.

"The kids will just watch TV and leave the Koran and their school books behind," said Haji Mustafa Bin Haji Abdul Latif of Ban Sawo Hilir in Narathiwat, one of three provinces rocked by 20 months of violence in which more than 800 people have died.

"I don't think it's a good idea," he says, taking a long drag on a hand-rolled cigarette at his run-down tea-shop in the exclusively Muslim village deep in the jungle.

Around him, a handful of customers give similar verdicts on the proposals by Interior Minister Kongsak Wantana to use Thai TV, karaoke stars and European soccer to wean Muslim youths away from violence.

The plans, they say, illustrate clearly the lack of cultural sensibility from Bangkok's Buddhist government which critics say is fuelling resentment in the far south, where 80 percent of the population are Muslim, ethnic Malay and non-Thai speaking.

Former Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun, who heads a southern National Reconciliation Commission, has said often Thailand's "mono-culture" must adapt to allow for the deep spiritualism and traditionalism of the south's ethnic Malay Muslims.

"It would be better to have TV from Indonesia or Malaysia -- TV from Muslim countries," said Haji Midbin Bin Haji Ouali, a toothless 60-year-old. "Even with the television we have now, we have to chase the children to get them to go to school."

In Ban Sawo Hilir, where there is no mobile phone reception, villagers say they can get Malaysian terrestrial TV, but the reception is fuzzy and they claim to watch it sparingly.

"During the fasting month, people like to watch the Koran reading competitions or classic Malaysian movies," said Midbin.

"MORE PITCHES"

Despite this, everybody at the tea shop confesses to supporting either Liverpool or Manchester United and can reel off a list of top-flight players -- suggesting a slightly greater love of European soccer than they would like to admit.

Others in the south, where Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has inaugurated a youth football league, say sport can be a force for good, but argue that piping in cable TV is just a cheap, quick-fix solution.

"It's a good idea in principle because the kids round here love football," said Adun Abdullah, a food company executive who coaches youth soccer in his spare time.

"But the government just doesn't understand the situation. We already have lots of cable TV football. What we need are more and better pitches," he told Reuters in a teashop which doubles as a clubhouse, with team photos and trophies adorning the walls.

Underlying it all is the fact that Buddhists from Bangkok do not understand or appreciate the Malay Muslim way of life, said Adun, a non-Malay Muslim from the province of Nakhon Si Thammarat, 250 km (155 miles) to the north.

"How can those who drink beer solve the problems in a place where people only drink tea?" he said.

Everything that they're doing looks like bribes

Sports heroes, stars, ministers to pay visit
WASSANA NANUAM & MUHAMMAD AYUB PATHAN


Entertainers and Olympic medal winners will accompany cabinet members to the deep South today to boost locals' morale.

Buntham Pikulsri, adviser to Tourism and Sports Minister Pracha Maleenont, said about 10 stars and athletes, including singers Ruangsak Loychusak, Chanit Yaisamer (Tah Boyscout), Duangchan Supannee, boxing Olympic gold medallist Manas Bunchamnong and Olympic taekwondo bronze medallist Yaowapa ''View'' Burapolchai would travel to the deep South today. They would be accompanied by Mr Pracha, deputy prime ministers Visanu Krue-ngarm and Pol Gen Chidchai Wannasathit.

They are scheduled to visit 11 government-organised Friday markets in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat. The markets were organised to boost confidence among nervous traders following insurgents' threats against people trading on Fridays.

Meanwhile, army leaders believe insurgents launched a wave of bomb, arson and gun attacks in Narathiwat and Pattani on Wednesday night to disrupt the army's plan to grant amnesty to suspected insurgents who surrendered.

''The insurgents tried to intimidate their sympathisers who want to surrender. So far, more than 40 suspected militants have surrendered,'' said Lt-Gen Kwanchart Klaharn, Fourth Army chief and director of the Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command.

Army commander-in-chief Gen Pravit Wongsuwan said many separatist sympathisers had cooperated with the state by giving information on the insurgents.

Ten suspects were yesterday arrested in connection with explosions that took place in Narathiwat's Sungai Kolok district on Wednesday night.

One suspect, Maroning Armor, was seen leaving a bag containing a bomb in front of a karaoke shop. Police searched his house and found electric wires, mobile phones and wire-cutters.

In Yi-ngo district, seven youths suspected of involvement in the attacks were caught and two others arrested in Bacho district.

Two more bombs exploded in Narathiwat yesterday morning, wounding seven people. An Islamic religious teacher was shot dead and a researcher shot and wounded in gun attacks in Yala and Pattani.

The first bomb, planted on a roadside in Sungai Padi district, exploded around 8.05am, wounding two teachers and two soldiers. Shortly afterwards, another bomb went off in front of an electrical shop in Narathiwat municipality. Three people were injured in the blast.

In Yala, a religious teacher was shot dead on his way to school in Muang district

Abdulloh Malee, 38, of Pattana Witthaya Lammai School, was attacked on his way to work around 8.45am by a pillion rider on another motorcycle.

In Pattani, Satopa Arawae, 39, a researcher, was wounded in a gun attack in Muang district about 10.30am.

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The visiting celebrities included pop singer Ruangsak Loychusak, Olympic boxing gold medallist Manas Bunchamnong and Olympic taekwondo bronze medallist Yaowapa Burapolchai.

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Singer Ruangsak "James" Loychusak gets a warm reception from visitors to a Friday market fair in Ban Bannangdama in Yala's Kabang district. The singer was one of the celebrities who accompanied Tourism and Sports Minister Pracha Maleenont to the South to boost the morale of locals. — Jetjaras na Ranong

JOHOR BAHARU, Sept 3 (Bernama) -- The Thai government should take the initiative to win the hearts and minds of the six million Muslims in southern Thailand and avoid using force which had proved ineffective in solving the region's troubles, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said.

He said Bangkok should hold negotiations with the leaders of the Muslims to resolve the problems in the region.

"What is clear is that the situation in the four Muslim provinces in the south should be resolved quickly before the problems spilled over into Malaysia.

"We hope Thailand will undertake efforts to win the hearts and minds of the Muslims there because it is clear that there is fear (among the Muslims) which shows there is conflict among various groups there," he said.

Syed Hamid was speaking to reporters after handing over prizes to winners of a religious song singing competition organised by the Johor Umno here Saturday.

He said a spillover due to the instability in southern Thailand was "real" because there were more than six million Muslims living in the region.

"We may be facing a serious problem (due to the spillover)," he said.

On the 131 Thai Muslims who entered Malaysia illegally, he said Malaysia required time to check their background before deciding on what to do with them.

He said Malaysia hoped Bangkok would understand that the steps taken by Malaysia were based on humanitarian reasons.

Meanwhile, Malaysian and Thai marine police began joint patrols along Sungai Golok, the river which separates the two countries, to prevent Thais fleeing the violence in their homeland from entering Malaysia illegally.

DSP Ahmad Abu Bakar, the commander of the Pengkalan Kubor marine police base near Tumpat in Kelantan, said the vessels of the two police forces patrolled from Pengkalan Kubor to Kampung Kubang Pak Itam, about 20km upriver.

He told Bernama that his contingent had been reinforced with an additional two vessels for the patrolling operation.

No arrest had been made so far, he added.

-- BERNAMA

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Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar

เมื่อวันที่ 9กันยายน พล.อ.ธรรมรักษ์ อิศรางกูร ณ อยุธยา รมว.กลาโหม ให้สัมภาษณ์ถึง ความคืบหน้าการช่วยเหลือคนไทยอพยพเข้ามาเลเซีย ว่า ขณะนี้กระทรวงการต่างประเทศกำลัง แก้ไขอยู่ ซึ่งเป็นเรื่องการเมือง แต่ตนกำลังสนใจการเคลื่อนไหวที่เกาะลังกาวี เพราะมีอดีตนัก การเมืองมาเลเซียอยู่ที่นั่นและมีผู้นำก่อเหตุในฝั่งเราไปประชุมที่นั้นหลายครั้งแล้ว เราไม่อยากพูด แต่เมื่อเขาพูด ตนเลยพูด เพราะเขาไปประชุมกันหลายหนเกี่ยวกับสถานการณ์ในภาคใต้

บิ๊กแอ๊ดแฉลังกาวีที่นัดสุมไฟ
ต่อข้อถามว่า แสดงว่ามาเลเซียไม่ได้จริงใจในการแก้ปัญหา รมว.กลาโหม กล่าวว่า เขา ไม่ได้อยู่ในรัฐบาลแล้ว ซึ่งเกาะลังกาวีนี้มี ดร.มหาเธร์ มูฮัมหมัด อดีตนายกรัฐมนตรีมาเลเซีย เป็นเจ้าของเกาะ
ต่อข้อถามว่า ก่อนหน้านี้มาเลเซียเคยเสนอแนวคิดตั้งศูนย์กักกัน แสดงว่าเขาพยายามแทรก แซงใช่หรือไม่ พล.อ.ธรรมรักษ์ กล่าวว่า ไม่ใช่ทั้งหมดมีเพียงบางคน แต่ที่ตนติดตามด้านการข่าว พบว่ามีการประชุมที่เกาะลังกาวีมาหลายหนแล้วและมีนักการเมืองของไทยเขาไปร่วมประชุมด้วย แต่ไม่ขอบอกว่าเป็นนักการเมืองระดับไหน แต่เรื่องนี้ไม่ผิดกฎหมาย เพราะไม่ได้มีการไปอัดเทป แต่ไม่ค่อยดีด้านความสัมพันธ์เท่านั้น

เมื่อถามอีกว่า มีคนไทยจำนวนมากหรือไม่ที่เข้าไปสร้างปัญหาเรื่องนี้ รมว.กลาโหม กล่าว ว่า ต้องมี แต่ยังไม่อยากพูด ถ้าเผื่อเป็นคนไทยจริง หรือมีสองสัญชาติก็ให้เลือกไปชาติใดสัญชาติ หนึ่ง แต่ถ้าเป็นคนไทยเรายืนยันว่าจะดูเรื่องความปลอดภัยให้

UNHCRปิดผลสอบคนไทยอพยพ
แหล่งข่าวจากเจ้าหน้าที่ชุดประสานงานไทย-มาเลเซีย เปิดเผยถึงกรณีชาวไทยมุสลิมที่ถูก กักกันอยู่ในมาเลเซีย จำนวน 131คน ว่า หลังจากเจ้าหน้าที่ของคณะข้าหลวงใหญ่เพื่อผู้ลี้ภัยแห่ง สหประชาชาติ(ยูเอ็นเอชซีอาร์)จำนวน 12คน ภายใต้การนำของ นายวอลเกอร์ เติร์ก ร่วมกัน สอบปากคำผู้อพยพชาวไทยนั้น ล่าสุด ได้สอบสวนปากคำคนไทยครบทั้งหมดแล้ว แต่ผลสอบสวนเจ้า หน้าที่ยูเอ็นเอชซีอาร์ปิดเป็นความลับ โดยไม่รายงานให้ นายซัลดิฟลี อับดุลเลาะห์ ผู้บัญชาการตำ รวจรัฐกลันตัน ซึ่งเป็นตัวแทนรัฐบาลกลางมาเลเซีย รวมถึง นายสุโข ภิรมณ์นาม กงสุลใหญ่ของ ไทย ประจำเมืองโกตาบารู รัฐกลันตัน ซึ่งเป็นตัวแทนประเทศไทย ได้รับทราบแต่อย่างใด

เจอตอโจรใต้ค่าหัว5แสนลี้ภัย
ด้านแหล่งข่าวตำรวจตรวจคนเข้าเมือง ประจำด่านกักกัน อ.ตาเนาะแมเราะ รัฐกลันตัน รายหนึ่ง กล่าวว่า หลังคณะตัวแทนยูเอ็นเอชซีอาร์สอบปากคำผู้อพยพชาวไทยเสร็จสิ้นพบว่า มีราย ชื่อในเอกสารสำคัญ จำนวน 2ฉบับ ซึ่งมีรายชื่อไม่ตรงกัน ชื่อแรกคือ นายฮามือเยาะ สะอุ แต่ใช้ ชื่อว่า นายฮามือเยาะ มือลี ซึ่งคณะตัวแทนยูเอ็นเอชซีอาร์ ได้รับรายงานในทางลับจากเจ้าหน้าที่ ไทยระบุว่า นายฮามือเยาะ สะอุ หรือ นายฮามือเยาะ มือลี อยู่ในทำเนียบหมายจับที่ร่วมก่อคดี ในพื้นที่ 3จังหวัดชายแดนภาคใต้ โดยทางการไทยตั้งรางวัลนำจับไว้ 5แสนบาท ขณะนี้คณะยูเอ็น เอชซีอาร์ อยู่ระหว่างการหาข้อเท็จจริงเกี่ยวกับประเด็นดังกล่าวว่า เป็นบุคคลที่ทางการไทยต้อง การตัวจริงหรือไม่ เพื่อนำไปประมวลกับเหตุการณ์ที่เกิดขึ้นทั้งหมดว่า มีมือที่สามพยายามสร้างภาพ โดยนำเหตุไม่สงบในชายแดนภาคใต้ของไทยมาเป็นเครื่องมือจริงหรือไม่ต่อไป

"ทักษิณ"ปลื้มข้อมูลปชป.ดับไฟ
พ.ต.ท.ทักษิณ ชินวัตร นายกรัฐมนตรี กล่าวถึงการหารือกับ ส.ส.พรรคประชาธิปัตย์ เพื่อ ร่วมแก้ไขปัญหาความไม่สงบในชายแดนภาคใต้ ว่า การพบปะคุยกันเป็นเรื่องที่ดี เขาสะท้อนความ รู้สึกในฐานะที่เขาอยู่ในพื้นที่และรู้จักพื้นที่ดีมากๆ ซึ่งต่อไปเราจะร่วมกันทำงาน เพราะเป็นเรื่อง ของประเทศ โดยข้อเสนอฝ่ายค้านที่สำคัญคือ เจ้าหน้าที่จากส่วนกลางไม่ได้ลงลึกถึงข้อมูลของข้า ราชการในพื้นที่ ทำให้ขวัญกำลังใจพวกเขาไม่ดี ซึ่งหลังตนกลับจากสหรัฐอเมริกา เมื่อมีเวลาจะ ลงไปอยู่ที่นั่นนานหน่อย เพื่อที่จะได้ลงลึกและจะชวนฝ่ายค้านไปด้วย

ยันย้ายผวจ.ปัตตานีเหมาะแล้ว
เมื่อถามว่า ทำไมปรับย้าย ผวจ.ปัตตานี จังหวัดเดียว ในขณะที่ จ.ยะลาและจ.นราธิวาส ไม่ปรับ พ.ต.ท.ทักษิณ กล่าวว่า บังเอิญ ผวจ.นราธิวาส ยังฟิตอยู่ เพราะเพิ่งไปอยู่ปีเดียว ส่วน ผวจ.ยะลา เหลือปีเดียวจะเกษียณ ซึ่งรู้พื้นที่ดีและยังไหว ส่วน ผวจ.ปัตตานี ที่ปรับย้ายนั้น ก็ให้ ผวจ.ปัตตานี คนใหม่ ซึ่งทำงานภาคใต้มาตลอด จึงให้มาดำรงตำแหน่งแทน เป็นการสับเปลี่ยนกำ ลังกัน ปีหน้าก็ค่อยเปลี่ยนที่ จ.ยะลา เพราะท่านใกล้เกษียณแล้ว

ยอมรับเก็บส่วยเถื่อนส่งโจรจริง
ต่อข้อถามว่า ข้อมูลที่พรรคประชาธิปัตย์ระบุว่า อ.เจาะไอร้องและอีกบางแห่งในจ.นราธิ วาส เจ้าหน้าที่รัฐไม่สามารถเข้าไปได้เลยจริงหรือไม่ นายกฯกล่าวว่า ความจริงคงไม่ถึงขนาด นั้น เพียงแต่เวลาเข้าไปก็ต้องระมัดระวัง เพราะพื้นที่นั้นเป็นพื้นที่ของ นายเจ๊ะกูแม กูเต๊ะ แต่ไม่ แน่ใจว่า พวกนี้เคยเรียนหนังสืออยู่ที่มาเลเซีย ซึ่งเขาบอกว่าเป็นคนมาเลเซีย โดยยอมรับว่าใน พื้นที่ดังกล่าวมีการเก็บภาษีเถื่อน ซึ่งเราต้องเข้าไปกวาดล้าง

การันตีผบ.ทบ.คนใหม่ดีกรีถึง
สำหรับการแต่งตั้งโยกย้าย ผบ.ทบ.ที่เป็นมุสลิม มองว่าให้มาช่วยแก้ไขปัญหาภาคใต้หรือไม่ พ.ต.ท.ทักษิณ กล่าวว่า ขอให้เข้าใจว่าประเทศไทยไม่ได้เลือก เราให้เสรีภาพในการนับถือศาส นา เมื่อเขารับราชการมีความเหมาะสมที่จะได้รับแต่งตั้ง เรื่องศาสนาต้องไม่เป็นอุปสรรค ซึ่งบัง เอิญว่าผู้แข่งขันในตำแหน่งนี้มีอยู่ 2-3คน โดยมีธรรมเนียมอยู่ว่า ต้องจบโรงเรียนนายร้อยจปร. ซึ่งก็มีอยู่คนเดียวและการแต่งตั้งก็ไม่เกี่ยวข้องกับการดับไฟใต้ แต่เป็นเรื่องของคุณสมบัติถึง ส่วน พล.ท.พิศาล วัฒนวงษ์คีรี อดีตแม่ทัพภาคที่4 ที่ถูกสอบสวนจากเหตุสลายม็อบตากใบ จ.นราธิวาส ยังได้รับแต่งตั้งเป็น พล.เอก.นั้น ถือเป็นตำแหน่งที่ไม่มีตำแหน่งอะไร ไม่ใช่ตำแหน่งประจำ เขา ถูกสอบสวนและลงโทษแล้ว คือให้ออกจากแม่ทัพและถูกประจำ ถือว่าถูกลงโทษหนักมากตามธรรม เนียมทหาร ซึ่งทางผู้บังคับบัญชาเห็นว่าเป็น พล.โท.มานาน จึงให้เป็น พล.เอก.ซึ่งไม่มีอะไร

บุกจับอบต.ท่ากำชำบึ้มสะพาน
ขณะเดียวกัน พ.ต.อ.สุวิทย์ เชิญศิริ ผกก.สภ.อ.หนองจิก จ.ปัตตานี นำหมายศาลจังหวัด ปัตตานี เข้าจับกุม นายอดิศักดิ์ แวยูโซ๊ะ นายกองค์การบริหารส่วนตำบล(อบต.)ท่ากำชำ ข้อหา มีอาวุธสงครามและยาเสพติดไว้ในครอบครอง แต่ นายอดิศักดิ์ หลบหนีไปก่อนหน้านี้แล้ว โดยจาก การตรวจค้นบ้านพัก พบปืนพกสั้น ปลอกกระสุนปืนเอ็ม-16 เฮโรอีนและยาอี จำนวนหนึ่ง โดยนาย อดิศักดิ์ ยังต้องสงสัยร่วมก่อเหตุวางระเบิดสะพาน 3แห่ง ในพื้นที่ จ.ปัตตานี

วันเดียวกัน พล.ร.อ.ตัน สลี ดาโต๊ะ โมฮัมหมัด อันวา ผบ.สส.มาเลเซีย ได้เข้าพบหารือ อย่างไม่เป็นทางการกับ พล.อ.ชัยสิทธิ์ ชินวัตร ผบ.สส.เพื่อปรึกษาหารือแลกเปลี่ยนข้อมูลเกี่ยวกับ ปัญหาชาวมุสลิมข้ามแดนไปยังมาเลเซีย

ชัยสิทธิ์ปิดปากผบ.สส.มาเลย์พบ
พล.อ.ชัยสิทธิ์ กล่าวหลังหารือว่า ไม่ขอพูดถึงหัวข้อในการเจรจาในวันนี้ เดี๋ยวไหม้ลุกลาม กันหมด แต่แน่นอนว่าการหารือวันนี้ต้องเป็นผลบวก ตอนนี้ต้องขอทำงานกันก่อน

สำหรับเหตุร้ายรายวัน เกิดขึ้นเวลา 11.30น.โดยคนร้ายขี่รถจักรยานยนต์ไล่ยิง นางสีตี นอ เจ๊ะอารง อาสาสมัครสาธารณสุขประจำหมู่บ้าน(อสม.)และเป็นลูกจ้างโครงการเร่งด่วนของ กระทรวงมหาดไทย ขณะขี่รถจักรยานยนต์ในพื้นที่ ม.4 ต.ปะลุรู อ.สุไหงปาดี จ.นราธิวาส กระ สุนเจาะศรีษะเสียชีวิตทันที เชื่อว่าเป็นการสร้างสถานการณ์ในพื้นที่เวลาไล่เรี่ยกัน คนร้ายขว้างระ เบิดเพลิงใส่รถเก๋งของ นางนามีนะ กาเซ็ง ครูโรงเรียนบ้านลูโบ๊ะกาเยาะ ม.5 อ.ระแงะ จ. นราธิวาส ขณะจอดอยู่ใต้ร่มไม้ในสนามหญ้าหน้าโรงเรียนทำให้ฝากระโปรงหน้ามีรอยไฟไหม้ เชื่อ ว่าเป็นการสร้างสถานการณ์ในพื้นที่


ที่มาจากหนังสือพิมพ์

A road map for peace

Civil society leader and peace advocate Prawase Wasi offers a blueprint for peace in the deep South that includes a serious rethinking of how we view the past

SANITSUDA EKACHAI

History can be an important key to peace in the three southern-most provinces, says civil society leader Prawase Wasi, the rest of the population will only look beyond an ethno-centric history of Thailand that depicts ethnic minorities as outsiders, and try to understand the historical pain of ethnic-Malay Muslims.

A review of the recent history of state policies aimed at the deep South will also help clarify where things have gone wrong.

In outlining his first blueprint for peace strategies in the South, Prawase also issues a grim warning: An attempt to contain current domestic conflicts through the use of violence could attract international jihads by external extremist groups and plunge the country into deeper chaos.

If the fire at home is linked up with the fire outside, our whole country will become an inferno, he cautions. ''The country will be engulfed by emotional storms that will fan the violence even further. Our country will enter a dark, violent era for a long time.''

In light of the possible dangers ahead, Prawase offers his peace-strategy blueprint as a systematic analysis of the complex problems in the South, one that urges all parties to work together towards peace and reconciliation. But, he says, this analysis is missing from state policies, making peace difficult to achieve.

One of the main architects of the 1997 Constitution, Prawase might describe himself as an ''old doctor'' with deep concerns for the country. But his political clout, as a reputable civic leader who represents a voice of Buddhist compassion, makes it foolish for any government to dismiss his words.

To pre-empt the violent storms stemming from ultra-nationalism, Prawase suggests that people rethink the ethno-centric Thai national history that fosters hostility among the dominant Buddhist population against ethnic minorities.

''The first strategy to extinguish the southern fires is to help people in the rest of the country understand and sympathise with the entire history of southern conflicts,'' he stresses.

While some people view ethnic-Malay Muslims as aliens on Thai territory, the reality is that the ethnic-Malay region of Pattani, with its own distinct race, language and religion, was an independent kingdom before it was defeated and annexed by the kingdom of Siam during the reign of King Rama I.

''The two centuries of Pattani being under the Thai kingdom has been a source of bitterness for the ethnic-Malay Pattani people,'' he says. ''Try putting yourself in their shoes. The Burmese ruled the Thais for only 15 years after the first fall of Ayutthaya in 1569, and only for a few months after the second fall in 1767. And they only took over Ayutthaya, not the whole kingdom. Yet, we have harboured a deep bitterness against Burma that still exists today.''

During the Plaek Phibulsongkhram regime, the government adopted a forced-assimilation policy to dissolve ethnic-Malay identity. This policy _ which included bans on Islamic dress, study of the Koran and application of Shariah law _ gave rise to widespread resentment and resistance within the Muslim communities in the South.

''Throughout the Bangkok era, the bitterness of being treated as second-class citizens in their own homeland has created various resistance movements, in differing degrees of intensity, in the deep South,'' he explains. ''But whether local resentment will explode further into violence, or not, will depend very much on state policy itself.''

A look at the history of state policies confirms that violence begets violence.

The policy of reconciliation and cultural sensitivity during the reign of King Rama VI and during the administration of former statesman Pridi Banomyong resulted in relative peace in the deep South, he points out.

This peace was shattered during the Phibulsongkhram regime when the government aggressively violated the locals' way of life and religious beliefs, resulting in a bloody crackdown that killed more than 400 southern Muslims.

During the '80s, Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanonda made inroads in bringing peace to the South. Recently, the unrest has flared up again under the Thaksin administration.

Prawase says that violent incidents in the deep South increased from a mere 50 in 2001 to over 1,000 cases in 2004, and are showing no signs of abating.

''The question is why violence has skyrocketed [during the term of] this government.''

Some might attribute it to the emergence of new fundamentalist movements, but, he says, ''most will agree that it stems from the government's flawed and aggressive policies''.

The violence escalated when faulty intelligence led the Thaksin government to disband two important security agencies set up during the Prem administration to prevent state terrorism through abduction/murder and other forms of persecution.

While a state reconciliation policy is crucial for peace, he says it is important to understand that there are other players at different levels of society who can shape a path for either peace or war.

These players include instigators, who have the ability to wield great damage; their sympathisers, whose numbers rise and fall depending on state policies; peace-loving Muslims, who suffer both from state and terrorist violence; armed security personnel; the government; the general public, whose views influence government decisions; and the international community.

''If the government is seen as violating basic human rights, it will be condemned by the international media and human rights organisations, which will, in turn, weaken the government's own moral legitimacy. And the Islamic world, made up of more than 1.2 billion people, thinks that Thailand is persecuting Thai Muslims, it may result in an explosion of violence to the extent that it will bring an international jihad movement into Thailand,'' he warns.

The daily killings and bombings are ways for the instigators to provoke rage within the government, he cautions. So the more the government wages its violent, across-the-board crackdowns in return, the more innocent people will be hurt. This method could also attract more sympathisers for the separatists.

The National Reconciliation Commission's warning against these crackdowns is, however, often misinterpreted by the media and by ultra-nationalistic members of the public as signifying a lack of sympathy for security personnel and for innocent citizens who have lost their lives.

''This is not the case, but we must make sure that we don't make mistakes and fall into the trap of violence,'' stresses Prawase, who is also a key member of the commission.

When incidents occur, the failure of the government to arrest the culprits also gives the instigators more ammunition, allowing them to spread rumours that members of the government are to blame for these violent incidents, thus creating a deep sense of mistrust in the system among the public.

The media, he adds, has also become a tool of the instigators, allowing them to advertise their violent activities and thus provoke more public anger or a desire for a separate state.

But how to end this cycle of violence?

Calling it ''a triangle strategy'', the physician and peace advocate says we must tackle the immediate violence through the following means:

- Establish an efficient state-intelligence system with honest officials who are able to foster good relations with the local people.

- Use forensic-science methods in gathering evidence in order to arrest the instigators of violent activities.

- Win over separatist sympathisers with positive measures.

- Help communities set up their own neighbourhood-safety systems.

Second, the government must address the needs of people in the South by:

- Issuing an amnesty for separatist sympathisers.

- Eschewing violent methods; ending abductions/murders by security personnel, once and for all.

- Establishing positive communication tactics to end mistrust (which is possible by implementing correct policies and through media-for-peace efforts).

- Empowering communities to map out their own development plans so that local people can run their own affairs and manage natural resources in accordance with their way of life.

- Gaining the understanding of the international community, especially the Islamic world.

Third, in order to neutralise the violence the government must:

- Support the Muslim movement for peace.

- Initiate comprehensive judicial reform.

- Foster acceptance and respect for cultural diversity.

- Implement political decentralisation so that the locals can manage their own education, communications and judicial systems in accordance with their culture and way of life.

_ confronting the painful truths and open ones heart to forgive wrong-doers



- Open political channels for peace negotiations.

But how to move ahead?



We shouldn't leave it all up to the government, Prawase stresses. He says national-level public hearings should be held for all sectors of society, so that they can help develop and take part in non-violent strategies to bring peace to the South.

Public pressure for political reform succeeded in forcing the government to promulgate the 1997 Constitution, Prawase says, and he believes that, with media support, strong social movements can succeed in restoring peace in the deep South.

Meanwhile, he urges Thaksin Shinawatra to consider a policy of reconciliation and to promote unity and co-ordination among security personnel.

''The prime minister is like a conductor. He must understand the whole composition and every instrument and musician, so that they play in tune and in the same direction.''

Failure to do so will have grave consequences, the outspoken academic warns, concluding with a word of caution for the PM about his current handling of the situation in the South: ''This is not only a national crisis, it is also a crisis in your political career.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/en/080905_Outlook/080905_out01.jpg http://www.bangkokpost.com/en/080905_Outlook/080905_out02.jpg

Mr. John reports: Mr. Yongyuth Tiyapairat, Natural Resource and Environment Minister is the chairperson of a ceremony setting up the Peace Bird at the fountain roundabout in Kromluang Narathiwat Ratchanakarin Park, Narathiwat. This is a memorial statue showing the concern of Thai people who folded paper birds for peace in the deep south on December 2, 2004.

http://www.2bangkok.com/images/south38.jpg
(Photo: Mr. John for 2Bangkok.com)

wow... lol

Deep South to get smart cards next month

YUWADEE TUNYASIRI

The first 1.3 million ``smart'' citizen ID cards should be ready for distribution to residents of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat provinces by Oct 1, Information and Communications Technology Minister Sora-at Klinprathum said yesterday. Mr Sora-at denied the ministry is rushing the production of smart cards to meet the October deadline set by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Mr Thaksin has threatened to sack all concerned if they could not distribute smart ID cards to residents of the three largely Muslim southernmost provinces by early next month, in line with the government's move to separate law-abiding Thai nationals from separatist militants holding dual citizenship.

So far, law enforcement authorities have had little success in hunting down separatist suspects. The government's reasoning is that most separatist militants hold dual citizenship, which allows them to escape into neighbouring Malaysia after launching attacks on state officials and civilians.

Mr Thaksin has said repeatedly that his government would no longer allow Thai people to hold dual citizenship.

Mr Sora-at said Interior Minister Kongsak Wantana has already confirmed that the first batch of 1.3 million smart cards, out of a total of 12 million, would arrive in the three southernmost provinces by Oct 1.

About four million smart cards would then be produced monthly after that, Mr Sora-at said.

After the killign of 2 Marines at Tanyong Limo by PULO with Henious Plan by uisign Huamn Shield and other delaying plan ... the Public Outrage grows while thosewholive in Tanuyong Limo are under the dilemma ... threatened by both PULO-BRN whohave come upiwht henious plan and Armed Forces ...who want to revenge

So PULO has claimed they mastermind this incident?

I heard the leader of the village is local female who was probably brainwashed by the separatists or some sort of international organization.

Until now, I still don't know why the muslim down there hate the thai authorithies, or do they hate being thai citizens? or they are just being used as a tool? that's f*cking sad!

Thaksin and his govt should hunt down those mofo and bring them to justice asap.

Talking about Thaksin, this guy just got my heart once again, i really like the speech he gave to the UN on how UN is now being used and pulled into this. The guy rocks. :righton:

Militants may join Thailand insurgency
By SUTIN WANNABOVORN
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- A veteran leader of Thailand's insurgency has issued a warning: militants from Indonesia and Arab nations might join the fight for a separate homeland if the Thai government continues a crackdown that's provoking a new generation of Muslim fighters.

In his first interview with a news organization, Lukman B. Lima told The Associated Press that violence could spread from Thailand's southern provinces to the capital unless the government accepts an offer to negotiate an end to the conflict.

Although he suggested peace talks, Lukman lashed out at the government of Thaksin Shinawatra, likening the prime minister to Stalin and Hitler.

"If the government opts to kill and kill without reason, perhaps fighters from Indonesia and Arab countries will help us because, according to Islam, real Muslims cannot just stand by when their brother Muslims are being slain," he said.

The 21-month-old insurgency - in which more than 1,000 Muslims and Buddhists have been killed - is getting moral and financial support from abroad, especially from Islamic sympathizers in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, according to Lukman. But weapons have been obtained locally and wielded by Thai Muslims, he said.

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"I assure you that many among the young generation are being trained to use the weapons to defend themselves. We train them in the mountains, jungles and sometimes in villages but only inside Thailand," Lukman said.

Malaysia denies Thai suspicions that rebel training camps exist on its soil. However, it has long served as a sanctuary for Thai Muslim dissidents and a source of funds from sympathetic Muslims.

Lukman is vice president and acting head of the Pattani United Liberation Organization, or PULO, one of several groups involved in the century-old struggle to gain independence for the predominantly Muslim far south of Thailand, a Buddhist country.

The PULO works "hand-in-hand" with groups involved in the fighting, Lukman said, with his organization focused on the political arena although it also has fighters on the ground. It's unknown, however, to what extent his comments reflect the views of the shadowy insurgent groups or how much influence he and PULO exert over rebel military operations.

Lukman offered negotiations with the Thai government on condition that it removes all the more than 20,000 troops from the south; revokes tough emergency measures aimed at the insurgency - thought to be about 2,000 fighters strong; stops killing innocent people; and frees the PULO's imprisoned president and military chief.

Thai Defense Minister Thammarak Isarangura na Ayutthaya said informal talks with the insurgents were possible - but not formal negotiations. "We don't want to elevate their status," he told the AP in Bangkok this week.

Prime Minister Thaksin recently set up a reconciliation council - comprising military officers, academics, Muslim community leaders, and other concerned parties - to explore peaceful solutions to the conflict. But he's been criticized at home and abroad for trying to resolve the problem with military force. In two separate incidents last year, nearly 200 Muslims died when security forces gunned down militants, protesters and bystanders and put some into army trucks, where they suffocated.

Lukman blamed Thaksin for the surge in violence, saying previous governments were more flexible in dealing with Muslim aspirations. A one-time police officer, Thaksin recently replaced martial law in the south with an emergency act which critics describe as a "license to kill" because of the powers and immunity it affords security officials.

"The wrongful policy of Prime Minister Thaksin instilled fear and forced people to fight back," Lukman said. Asked why some Muslims were also being targeted by insurgents, he called them government spies and collaborators who had to be eliminated.

"I would like to send Thaksin this message: don't touch our pondok (religious schools), don't touch our religious teachers or otherwise the bloody days will continue, and I cannot stop this young generation from turning their aggression against other parts of Thailand, like Bangkok," he said.

Lukman spoke Monday on condition that the interview not be released until he left Indonesia on Friday. An exile in Sweden, Lukman didn't say why he wanted the delay. He's not a wanted man in Indonesia or Thailand, although as an avowed separatist he could become a government target.

Wearing a bluish-gray robe, the soft-spoken and professorial-looking 54-year-old was interviewed in English for an hour at a luxury Jakarta hotel.

"I've never been on the battlefield. Killing people is not my objective. I prefer to fight for my right to return back to my country, which is occupied by Thailand, through the diplomatic way and dialogue," he said, adding that he had been an activist for 34 years.

A native of Pattani province, Lukman said he went abroad to finish high school in Pakistan. He then studied medicine in Cairo, attended military schools in Arab countries and Poland, and continued his studies in Sweden and the United Kingdom.

Lukman said he had approached the Foreign Ministry in Norway to act as a mediator in any peace talks. But Foreign Ministry spokesman Anne Lene Sandsten told the AP, "We are not involved in that." When pressed about whether Norway had even been approached, she refused to comment further, saying, "That is all I have."

Lukman also called on members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to play a more active role in a peace process. Thailand, he said, should learn from Indonesia's resolution of conflict in East Timor and a separatist rebellion in its province of Aceh, where rebels recently signed a peace agreement with the government.

In offering peace talks, Lukman said he was speaking on behalf of all the insurgent groups, but this was not possible to confirm. Some analysts speculate that radicals among the separatists have no interest in a dialogue with Bangkok.

Thaksin, meantime, has said he would not give up one inch of Thai soil.

Lukman estimated negotiations could take five years, saying the provinces of Pattani, Narathiwat, Yala and parts of Songkhla could become an independent Islamic republic by 2010 - more than a century after Thailand annexed what was once the autonomous sultanate of Pattani.

Ministry takes bilingual route to revoke ban
SIRIKUL BUNNAG

The Education Ministry will lift its ban next year on the Yawi language at state schools in the three southernmost provinces and begin teaching a Thai-Yawi bilingual programme to integrate Muslim children into Thai society. Education permanent secretary Khunying Kasama Voravan said the four-decade-old ban had been aimed at forcing Muslim students in Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani to learn Thai, but had failed.

She admitted yesterday the approach caused children to reject the Thai language and their parents eventually pulled them out of state schools.

Ministry staff discussed the issue with linguistic experts from universities as well as teachers and executives at schools in the South. The officials agreed an acceptance of Yawi and a bilingual approach to education would gradually convince Muslim students to learn Thai.

Khunying Kasama said 12 state primary schools in the three provinces, where Yawi is the mother tongue of 80% of people, will pioneer bilingual studies next year.

The selected schools have a high proportion of students who do not speak Thai and the teaching approach will start in the first year of primary school.

In the first year, students will learn mainly in Yawi. Students will gradually begin to learn Thai, and the proportion of Thai curriculum will increase in subsequent years, Khunying Kasama said.

Pranee Kulavanich, of Chulalongkorn University's arts faculty, supported the plan, saying authorities had to accept Thai was a second language in the South.

In principle, she said, people can learn a second language easily after becoming well-versed in their mother tongue.

Adinant Pakbara, director of Yala Education Zone 2, said 28 primary schools in his area had already tried Thai-Yawi teaching for about 18 months and it had been praised by students and parents.

VIOLENCE IN THE SOUTH / DEATH OF A FOOTBALL TEAM, REFUGE IN MALAYSIA, TANYONG LIMO
'Overreaction' led to death of 19 young men

The deaths of 19 young Muslims in Songkhla's Saba Yoi district on April 28 last year were the result of an overreaction by the authorities, a National Human Rights Commission report concludes.

The report said there was evidence to believe the young men, 18 of whom played football together, had surrendered. Police should have arrested them instead of using force, which led to their deaths.

The 21-page report, released yesterday, quoted a witness who recalled seeing the young men captured by about 30 policemen. The men, aged 19-25, held their hands up in the air in surrender before being pushed back into a restaurant. They were later shot dead.

The men, who all attended the same ponoh school, were shot by police in Susoh village during clashes between militants and security forces in several areas in the deep South on that day.

Their bereaved parents have demanded those responsible be brought to justice.

The parents and those who knew the footballers personally, including teachers and a prayer leader, testified to the commission that the men were well-behaved and often teamed up to play football. The killings took place during a school break.

The men, all Muslims, had joined the evening class to study religion for an hour.

The commission said local administration officials believed the men were highly unlikely to have engaged in any violence.

The official felt the police may have overreacted to the situation as the wounds indicated many of the young Muslims had been fatally shot in the back as well as in the back of the head.

The commission made several observations. It said some policemen ought to have sustained injuries or even been killed if the men were armed and tried to fire shots as the police claimed.

A post-mortem examination report also did not state where the gunshots had hit the bodies of seven men. As for the others, the autopsies found the shots cut through the heart and destroyed their brain stems due to massive internal bleeding.

The panel questioned whether the police shooting in self-defence could be so precise as to have inflicted such wounds.

Now,we have already seen that the contry has been wrecked havoc by thsoe
Political Eunuches aroud the leaders whcih I can listed as follows

1) Eunuch Pheng -> Wreckign Havoc on BKK mass Transit System
2) Eunuch Newin ->Wrecking Havocon the Para rubbers and agriculture deal ....
and heis goign to wreck BKk Traffic management
3) Eunuch Watthana -> Wrecking Havocby pleasign mocycleGangs to make a noise arounf the streets whuile grant a sanction to rape and pillage the people by usign Motorcycle racings
4) Eunuch Yongyut -> Wreckign Havocon Natural Resources by Wholesale laying off 40000 forest voluntters
5) Eunuch Doctor who wreck havoc on Ministry of Publci Health to Quell Suydart Facgtion
6) Eunuch Visanu who sack Supreme Patriarchsoas to allowDhammakaya to run the Buddhist Affiars
while elevating the Leader to be the First President of Thailand.
7) Eunuch Chitchai who listens ONLY the police soas to give a wrong Soutehrnpolicy to the leader ... siphoning the budget for Soutehrn security into the Gang of Khaki.
8) Eunuch Khongsak who wreck havoc on BTS extensions while help Chitcvhai wreckign on the Southern Security ....

4,000 teenagers blacklisted
WASSAYOS NGAMKHAM

About 4,000 youngsters have been blacklisted for alleged involvement in separatist violence in the deep South, a high-ranking source at the police forward command said yesterday. Attacks against security forces were mostly the work of these youths, known as pemuda, who are scattered throughout the villages and work under the BRN Co-ordinate, the source said.

Police were compiling profiles of these young adults and would try to talk them out of the separatist movement.

``Police will go to their villages. They may talk to the teens or their parents, many of whom have no idea what their children are up to,'' the source said.

Arrests would be made only when there was substantial evidence linking them to the attacks.

According to the forward command, pemuda, which translates as male teenagers, are selected by high-ranking militants who call themselves ulama.

Pemuda are the cream of the crop, and hand-picked only from ponohs, private Islamic schools and state-run institutes.

``They're brainwashed little by little and taught to believe in the independent state of Pattani. After that, they're sent out to conduct `simple' operations such as cutting down trees or planting spikes,'' said the source. The brightest were sent overseas for further military training.



Abdullohman Abdulsamat, chairman of Narathiwat Islamic Committee, said he had never heard of such an organised youth group and called on state authorities to stop making blanket accusations.

The state had driven away religious teachers and clerics by accusing them of sympathising with the militants.

``Now they have turned to making groundless accusations against Muslim youths. That's not right. What the state should do is educate the youths in the deep South instead of branding them as troublemakers,'' he said.

Thailand to limit cell phones in restive south

http://sg.yimg.com/xp/afp/20051011/3952443583.jpg

BANGKOK (AFP) - Unregistered mobile phones will stop working in Thailand's insurgency-plagued southernmost provinces by mid-November, in an effort to curb bomb attacks triggered by cell phones.

"Starting November 15, no matter if you're travelling from Bangkok or Malaysia, you must have registered your number ... in order to be able to use your mobile in the three provinces," Deputy Prime Minister Chidchai Vanasathidya told reporters on Tuesday.

"Otherwise your signal will be cut."

Since May only users of pre-paid mobile services have been required to register with authorities, but Thai communications authorities have expanded that programme to include all cell phones.

The plan aims to stop bomb attacks triggered by mobile phones in the three southern provinces bordering Malaysia -- Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala -- where an insurgency has raged since January 2004 and claimed more than 970 lives.

"We wanted the three southern provinces to be a special zone, and for the sake of public safety, in summary we must know all telephone numbers in the area," said Chidchai, who is also justice minister.

Chidchai said a special "gateway" technology that screens phone signals in the three provinces would be completed by November 15.

"This measure will help prevent militants using mobile phones to trigger the bombs, but for time bombs and remote control bombs we will have to find a way to stop them," Chidchai said.

The new ban will also include telephones using roaming services from neighbouring countries, especially in Malaysia, Chidchai said, adding users of such phones also must register with the government.

Among 21.5 million pre-paid mobile phones, just eight million, or 37 percent, have registered with the authorities, according to the Information and Communication Technology Ministry. The registration period expires in December.

More than 970 people have been killed since January 2004 in increasingly deadly unrest in Thailand's Muslim-majority south.

Analysts and authorities have said the near-daily shootings, bombings and arson attacks in the southern provinces are a mix of Islamic separatists, organised criminals and local corruption.

Move to send Isan settlers South panned
Muslims, politicians decry Kosin's proposal
POST REPORTERS

A suggestion that people from the Northeast be resettled in the troubled South has been roundly condemned by southern leaders, politicians and academics. Cabinet ministers were quick to distance themselves from the idea floated by Kosin Kethong, assistant to Interior Minister Kongsak Wantana, on Wednesday.

Mr Kosin also proposed that army conscripts be ordained as monks and sent to guard temples in the region.

Nidae Waba, chairman of the Islamic Private Schools Association in the deep South, said Mr Kosin's idea would create even more problems in the region. Most Muslims saw the proposal as having a malicious motive.

``If northeastern people are resettled here, the insurgents would take it as an excuse for more violence.

``They would claim the government wanted outsiders to fight native residents for the land,'' said Mr Nidae.

His suggestion was similar to a policy during the regime of military strongman Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat, which generated a climate of distrust between local residents and government officials at the time.

Nimu Makaje, deputy chairman of the Yala Islamic Committee, said former prime minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's proposal was more acceptable _ promoting peaceful co-existence between Thais of all cultures and religions, participation of all sides in talks and the setting up of Nakhon Pattani, a special administrative zone similar to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration.

Three Democrat MPs demanded Mr Kosin's resignation.

``His idea is unacceptable and he must take responsibility. He must resign. If such a plan were to be approved, cabinet ministers should send their own relatives to the deep South first,'' said Jae-arming Tortayong, a southern Democrat MP.

Deputy Democrat leader Withoon Nambutr blasted Mr Kosin and the government for looking down on the poor people of Isan, who he said would be risking their very lives if they were moved to the South.

Issara Somchai, deputy Democrat spokesman, said the idea was wrong.

``Northeastern people are not second-class citizens the government can use as a political tool,'' he said.

Senator Thongbai Thongpao, from Maha Sarakham, said Mr Kosin had no thought for the safety of the people he wanted to send to the South.

Somkiart Pongpaibul, a lecturer at Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University, said settling northeasterners in the Muslim provinces was tantamount to interfering in the Muslim culture.

Interior Minister Kongsak insisted it was just one person's suggestion. He admitted a working panel was set up to study the idea, but that did not mean the ministry agreed with it.

Defence Minister Gen Thammarak Isarangkura na Ayudhaya said Mr Kosin's idea was out-dated.

PM's Office Minister Suwat Liptapanlop said encouraging conscripts to enter the monkhood and stay in the deep South was not discussed at the policy level.



Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Chidchai Wannasathit declined to comment.

Army chief Gen Sonthi Boonyaratglin said the idea could help end the problems in the South and combat poverty.

Many factors contributed to the southern problem _ such as separatism, political conflict and social injustice _ and they required different solutions.

wish peaceful in south, but 2 years have gone, why not come the peace?
what do those south muslim want to do ?

wish peaceful in south, but 2 years have gone, why not come the peace?
what do those south muslim want to do ?

เสือก.

I wish to see an independent Tibet. Why no independent Tibet? Two can play this game.

เสือก.

I wish to see an independent Tibet. Why no independent Tibet? Two can play this game.

small country is not affordable to play this kind of game
Situation in Tibet and South of Thailand are completely different.people are dying eveyday in the deep south,the trains were derailed,muslims want the soldiers get out,they want an independent country,
so why not leave them alone or put the issue on a referendum

เสือก.

I wish to see an independent Tibet. Why no independent Tibet? Two can play this game.

I wonder how much do you know about Tibet, and more want to know why you want to see an independent Tibet?

Why don't we want to see an independent Tibet?

small country is not affordable to play this kind of game
Situation in Tibet and South of Thailand are completely different.people are dying eveyday in the deep south,the trains were derailed,muslims want the soldiers get out,they want an independent country,
so why not leave them alone or put the issue on a referendum

This is a very sensitive issue here, and if you don't know what's really going on in this situation, you better keep your mouth shut. We will never give away our land to some people that are not even considerred as Thai.

I wonder how much do you know about Tibet, and more want to know why you want to see an independent Tibet?

I wonder how much you do know, period.

Tibet has historically, racially, politically, and culturally been separate from China. It is an absurd world if a country like Bhutan is independent but not Tibet.

As for the South, you can't simply say, "What do those Muslims want." Shows ignorance, they've made known what they want, the country needs to negotiate its way to a better position.

This Thread is " PEACE FOR THE SOUTH" There has nothing to do with Tibet.




Please stick with the topic, thank you.

As for the South, you can't simply say, "What do those Muslims want." Shows ignorance, they've made known what they want, the country needs to negotiate its way to a better position.

none can know everything,then why can't ask something about SOUTH?
Can I ask another: how this sad situation take place? and why more and more violences in the last 2 years? who should be responsible for that?:nuts:

^^ people who don't think.. kinda like you?


....


Southern Thailand was never a nation of their own..

^^ people who don't think.. kinda like you?


....


Southern Thailand was never a nation of their own..
Please respect yourself, and aim to issue not me!thanks!
Can you introduce the history of South? espically before 1900....

Please respect yourself, and aim to issue not me!thanks!
Can you introduce the history of South? espically before 1900....

Can you look it up yourself? What the point in answering that question when you can just read it on wikipedia. Or is the English there too complicated?

Please respect yourself, and aim to issue not me!thanks!
Can you introduce the history of South? espically before 1900....

why respect those who don't respect others?

why respect those who don't respect others?

from this point, I have a clue of how the voilence take place in SOUTH.
where there exists oppression, there will be resistance!:banana:

Can you look it up yourself? What the point in answering that question when you can just read it on wikipedia. Or is the English there too complicated?

I can't believe you still regard what wikipedia said as truth .....

^^ Guys, stop wasting your energy responding to this troll. He is just trying to get on your nerve. Better just ignore him.

^^ Guys, stop wasting your energy responding to this troll. He is just trying to get on your nerve. Better just ignore him.

Please respect yourself, and don't wasting your troll's energy aiming at our forumers!:bash:

เฮ้อ! จะอยู่คอยหาเรื่อง อีกนานไหมเนี่ย :(

^^ Guys, stop wasting your energy responding to this troll. He is just trying to get on your nerve. Better just ignore him.

Nah, he's so stupid its funny. His attempts at winding people up are just :lol:

Its comedy, actually. He's trying to be nationalistic but he's just disgracing his own countrymen.

Nah, he's so stupid its funny. His attempts at winding people up are just :lol:

Its comedy, actually. He's trying to be nationalistic but he's just disgracing his own countrymen.

nah, someone is more stupid than him.

why not discuss the situation in nowadays South.
I have read that there are more than 2200 people killed within 2 years.
How can stop those Thais to kill other Thais? :ohno:
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http://www.zaobao.com/yx/yx070604_507.html

示威进入第4天 泰南千名回教徒要求军人撤离


　　（北大年综合电）因泰南局势日益恶化，至少1000名回教徒连续4天在泰南北大年府的回教堂举行示威，要求军人撤离泰南地区，并结束当地紧急状态。
　　示威者大部分是年轻男女，他们将脸蒙上，高举“真正的恐怖分子是军人”的标语，并高喊口号。

　　泰南实施紧急法令近两年，根据该法令，军人有权进行搜寻和逮捕行动，并在不提控的情况下，扣押嫌犯长达30天。人权组织谴责这项法令有违基本人权。

　　上个月31日也拉府的一起攻击事件，造成12名军人丧命。这是自2004年以来，分离主义分子对军方最血腥的攻击事件。

　　目击者说，军方已加强保安，在通往回教堂的主要道路设置检查站，该地区的流动电话通讯网路也被切断。

　　泰国军方已派遣约3万名军人到泰南，并计划再增派军人，以平息日益恶化的暴力事件。

　　另外，前天在陶公府，一个警察车队疑遭分离主义激进分子以炸弹攻击，造成两名军人轻伤。一个小时后，一名23岁的女宗教教师被射杀，引发60名村民示威，声称是军人射杀该名女教师的。

　　当地一名警察说，约80名警察和军人到现场，并和村民发生冲突，一名村民因涉嫌企图向保安部队抛掷手榴弹而被射杀。

　　昨天，在陶公府和也拉府分别发生爆炸，造成21人受伤。

　　在陶公府，一个放置在路边的炸弹将四名正在该处巡逻的军人炸伤；也拉府一所学校的操场发生爆炸，当时有两支当地足球队在进行友谊赛，爆炸造成17名球员和观众受伤，其中三人伤势严重。

I think we better stop arguing now it is kind of retarded and if I'm right your mouth is for good purpose not talking shit

the chinese government's stance is clear:we don't interfere other countries' internal affairs and 'we will never accept interference by other countries in its internal affairs' :lol:

http://english.people.com.cn/200705/28/eng20070528_378643.html

"The Chinese government will maintain its friendship with Thailand despite changes in the international situation and the two countries'domestic situations.

China regarded Thailand as a close, trustworthy and cooperative friend, and respected the development path chosen by the Thai people, Chinese President Hu Jintao said Monday afternoon while meeting with visiting Thai Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont. president Hu met with Thai PM Surayud"

11 injured in Thai southern gun attack
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At least 11 people, including 10 students were injured when a school bus was under fire attack by suspected insurgents Sunday afternoon in Thailand's southern province of Yala, police said.

The mini-bus with more than a dozen students and school staff was under gunfire attack in Yala's Yaha district while the bus was carrying students home. An unknown number of insurgents fired at the bus and injured 10 students and a staff worker of the school, a local police source was quoted by Thai Radio FM 100 as saying.

The insurgents ran away before local police launched a manhunt.

All the injured were rushed to a nearby hospital. Several of them were in critical condition.

Thailand's three southernmost provinces -- Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani have been troubled with insurgency-related violence which has claimed more than 2,200 lives since it re-emerged in early 2004.

Source: Xinhua http://english.people.com.cn/200706/11/eng20070611_382813.html

It seems like the bas--rd junta gov't doesn't have any efficient plan to stop the insurgency in the south. How about you guys. Doesn any of you guys has a plan or idea that you think would be sufficient to bring peace to the south? Please share your ideas here.

I might have said this before, but bear with me. The Deep South needs:

1. Rule of law
The entire damn country needs better enforcement of the rule of law, but especially the South. Judges, police, soldiers, lawyers and everyone involved should up their game. Stop thinking like you did in the 50s.

We need speed, efficiency, and fairness. That is, cops/soldiers need to be professional and efficient: forensics, witness interrogation, etc. Judges need to be quick and impartial, lawyers need to do their job as well.

2. Proper military intelligence
The military needs to get its act together. At the moment, no one knows who the hell these insurgents are. Well, fucking find out. Don't wait for them to show up, as if... You must know your enemy.

3. Economic development
The government needs to support investment in the region as well as capitalize on its unique strengths--ie. the Muslim population and the Malay connection. The govt itself should build more infrastructure.

4. Reconciliation
Once we know who these bastards are, we either eliminate them, negotiate, or fix their issues. Obviously when we can address the rule of law and economic deprivation issues, the population will be much happier and the grass roots support for the insurgents will be reduced. Currently, they are using their sense of injustice to fuel the insurgency, if we eliminate this, we eliminate all support for the insurgency.

So to conclude, the fucking military, police, and justice system of our country should be overhauled. If we can do this, not only will there be peace in the South, but our country will become more competitive, more just and fair, and more attractive to investors. I'm surprised not many people call for this major major institution to be reformed.