Thailand lifts emergency decrees in some southern provinces

Thailand has recently taken steps to lift the long-standing emergency rule in several districts in its restive southern provinces, where a persistent Muslim insurgency has plagued the region for over two decades. Critics have also voiced concerns about the severe human rights abuses that have been associated with these emergency measures.

Some 6,000+ people have died in the Southern Insurgency this century.

The emergency decree, initially imposed in 2005, covered the country’s three southernmost provinces – Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani – which have a significant population of ethnic Malay Muslims. This measure granted security forces the authority to detain suspects without charges for up to 30 days and provided legal immunity for actions carried out in the line of duty.

By Peter Roche