Malaysian facilitator Zulkifli Zainal Abidin, flanked by Thai chief negotiator Gen Wallop Raksanoh (left) and BRN representative Anas, during the press conference in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.

 

More separatist groups will be invited to join the BRN in peace talks with the Thai government, the Malaysian facilitator of the peace process said on Wednesday.

 

BenarNews quoted former Malaysian military chief Zulkifli Zainal Abidin as saying that representatives of the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) have given their consent to other rebel groups taking part in future peace dialogue.

 

Zulkifli said that he hopes the other groups, from the Malay-majority in Thailand’s Deep South, will be present at the next round of negotiations in March, which would mark the first time they have participated in peace talks since 2018.

 

Full Story: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/brn-agrees-to-have-other-rebel-groups-join-peace-talks/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2023-02-23

 

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As I recall it has been a main criticism of the Thai governments (aside from the Yingluck government) that it couldn't properly negotiate peace because BRN didn't represent all the insurgent factions.

That seemed in effect a convenient excuse as no Thai military-backed government would agree (the Yingluck regime being the exception) to any kind of autonomy for the former Muslim Kingdom of Patani.

The government's negotiating policy it seems has been that the Kingdom of Thailand's sovereignty over the indigenous Malay Muslims would be lost. Such would amount to a bloodless defeat of the Kingdom of Thailand that is contrary to Thai history (well, aside from Thailand's quasi-alliance with Japan in WW2).