Thai Rebels Say Govt "narrow-minded" In Ending Muslim Unrest

[Thaising]

BANGKOK : A group of separatists from Thailand's Muslim south accused the government Thursday of being "discriminate and narrow-minded" in its efforts to end three years of bloody unrest.

The Patani United Liberation Organization criticised the government for failing to staff a regional mediation body that was revived late last year in hopes of resolving the unrest that has left more than 1,800 people dead.

Military-installed Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont said last month the government had struggled to attract officials to work for the Southern Border Provinces Administration Command.

But PULO said the government should hire locals to staff the center instead of bringing in officials from other parts of the country who would not speak the local dialect of Malay.

"At the same time as corruption is widely spread, officials with no bonds of responsibility towards the people are sent to govern them, turning locals into a second-class society with no voice in decisions regarding them the most," PULO said in a statement.

"Instead of actually using the resources the country possess, they remain discriminate and narrow-minded. Why not use local inhabitants for building up their own region?" it said.

PULO also urged the government to follow through on its effort to open talks with militants, which so far has received no response from the fighters on the ground.

"We emphasise the need for further discussions with representatives of movements operating in the south, lest the situation should grow worse," it said.

The Muslim-majority provinces of Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala on the Malaysian border were an autonomous, ethnic Malay sultanate until Thailand annexed it a century ago.

Separatist violence has erupted periodically ever since.

PULO emerged in 1968 and became the biggest insurgent group in the region over the next two decades, but it largely fell apart in the 1990s.

Analysts have cast doubt on whether PULO retains any operational control over forces on the ground, saying that organized crime, local corruption and religious extremism also play a role. - AFP

[Scott]

How dare they say such a thing about this gov't. It's been so liberal and open and.....

[jbowman1993]

What is there to mediate? They keep demanding to break away from Thailand. Thailand keeps saying no. If they don't change their tune, they are not going to get anyone to listen to them.

And killing innocent teachers certainly doesn't help either.... idiots.

[Chang_paarp]

Funny how anyone that does not comply to their demands is narrow minded. Just like some others in the fight .....

[Totster]

I draw your attention to the following forum rule..

3) Religious or racial slurs, rude and degrading comments towards women, or extremely negative views of Thailand will not be tolerated.

This topic will be closed at the first sign of this rule being ignored.

totster

[alexth]

Spreading bloodshed among south of Thailand, bombing the place, trying to steal it and then accusing the govt (wich personally I think that can be acused of many other things until this one) and calling it undemocratic. What's so democratic about stealing a part of a country? What's on next? More bombings? Farangs for example are invited to leave if they don't like it? Why don't THEY leave if THEY feel discriminated? How dare they say such things? Makes you wonder if is there ANY God in all of this

Edited January 26, 2007 by alexth

[singa-traz]

Spreading bloodshed among south of Thailand, bombing the place, trying to steal it and then accusing the govt (wich personally I think that can be acused of many other things until this one) and calling it undemocratic. What's so democratic about stealing a part of a country? What's on next? More bombings? Farangs for example are invited to leave if they don't like it? Why don't THEY leave if THEY feel discriminated? How dare they say such things? Makes you wonder if is there ANY God in all of this

Steal?

They, who ever they are, just want to get it back.

A bit of reading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pattani_kingd...om_of_Ayutthaya