Foreign Office Warning

[cojones]

The Sunday Times - Travel

October 31, 2004

Directions: Thailand crisis: main resorts 'still safe'

The far south of Thailand has been declared off limits for tourists after terrorist attacks and rioting in the Narathiwat region last week. On Monday, 78 people died of suffocation in police vans after being arrested during a protest march, and on Thursday, one person died when a bomb exploded in Sungai Ko-Lok, a tourist town popular with Malaysians. More than 400 people have died so far this year in the conflict between Thailand’s Muslim community, based in the southern provinces of Narathiwat, Pattani, Yala and Songkhla, and the central government in Bangkok.

The UK Foreign Office (0870 606 03290, www.fco.gov.uk) is now recommending against all but essential travel to the provinces. The far south of Thailand is not yet a well- developed package-holiday destination, said Thailand Tourism: “The nearest westerners’ resort is Trang (more than 150 kilometres from Songkhla) and we’re confident these troubles will stay in the far, far south.”

In an indication that British travellers may be becoming more sanguine about the relative threats of terrorist attacks, Thailand Tourism claims that no travel operators have reported any customer queries regarding the unrest.

However, the overland crossing between Thailand and Malaysia has become a very popular independent traveller’s route. The Rough Guide to Thailand, published before the troubles began, describes Songkhla as having “fine restaurants and excellent accommodation, a stimulating place in which to hole up for a few days”, while Narathiwat is described as “increasingly popular with travellers stopping off on their way to or from the border, an easy-going place in which to soak up the atmosphere for a few days”. Before the troubles erupted, the region was beginning to develop, installing airstrips and regional tourist offices.