Soldiers Watchful As Thai South Schools Reopen

[webfact]

SOUTH CRISIS

Soldiers watchful as South schools reopen

NAKARIN CHINNAVORNKOMON,

NARONG NUANSAKUN

THE NATION

The new school semester kicked off in the southernmost provinces yesterday amid tight security.

YALA: -- At least five Army Rangers were stationed in front of a local school in Yala's Muang district to prevent violent incidents, as unrest continues in the deep South.

Since the latest wave of violence erupted in the southern border provinces nearly a decade ago, at least 154 teachers have been killed.

The high number of casualties and frequent arson attacks on schools have hurt the morale of local teachers and students. Attacks on the first day of the semester are common, and security agencies did their best yesterday to ensure that the start of the semester went smoothly.

"We feel safe with the security officials' presence," Ban Ta Sap School's director Wanpen sae Tae said yesterday, adding that 80 per cent of students showed up for class yesterday.

She expected the growing sense of security to persuade all students to show up by Monday.

In Narathiwat, police, soldiers and administrative officials were seen accompanying teachers to schools and watching over parents bringing their children to school yesterday morning.

Police and soldiers also manned checkpoints along major and secondary roads.

Meanwhile, a police investigator disclosed that an assault rifle seized during a police raid in Yala's Raman district on Wednesday belonged to a police sergeant who was killed in an ambush in this deep South province in July.

The raid resulted in the deaths of two suspected insurgents, Mana Masaejuenarong, 35, and Usaman Waree, 26, while two policemen were wounded. Police seized the M4 rifle and two 9mm handguns from the scene.

The source said the rifle, bearing the number A 0249726, belonged to Pol Sergeant Wichanon Nampakdee, one of five policemen killed in an attack while patrolling in Tambon Wangpaya, Raman district on July 25.

Mana was a Narathiwat native with outstanding arrest warrants issued in security cases.

He was alleged to have been involved in many insurgent attacks, including the killing of three Army Rangers, and wounding a number of soldiers in shooting attacks.

Wednesday's raid took place after officials received a tip-off that Mana was hiding in Raman district and plotting a new attack.

After an hour of gunfire between officials and insurgents at an unnumbered house in rural Raman, Abdulrorse Dengsamae, 56, surrendered to police.

-- The Nation 2012-11-02

[asiawatcher]

It would be a very traumatic thing for children to have to run a gauntlet every day to school knowing they could be blown to pieces. What sort of psychological ramifications would that lead to later? They most certainly would be willing to continue to fight these separatists thus a resolution all but impossible through continuing and ongoing fear and possibly hatred.

[cup-O-coffee]

Something is wrong with this picture. I did not even bother to read the redundant article.

Wake up Thailand. You are in a defacto war situation and you are too dam_n stupid to act accordingly.

You are frogs in the soup. The water was comfy and warm in the beginning when you had time to get out of the situation, but instead you played paddy fingers while the World Islamic Movement went ahead as scheduled (territorial takeover: All quarters asked for, no quarters given). Now it is too hot and you cannot get out of it.

Armed soldiers at a toddler school!!! <deleted>!!! Dumb, stupid, idiots for not being able to see your white is now black..

[OzMick]

Something is certainly amiss in Southern Thailand. May i suggest that it may be the ethics and moral code of people who find it appropriate to attack schools, teachers and children to make their political point. After all, that is the topic, that government schools are prime targets.

May I then suggest that those carrying out these attacks most likely attended a muslim madrasa, where their education was religion focused, which tends to leave them a bit short-changed when it comes to getting a job, and as observed, morally challenged to boot. Something definitely wrong there.

I may be judging by a different society's standards, but having worn green for a couple of years, I can't imagine any situation where I would feel justified in shooting an unarmed 56yo janitor and his young sons. In fact I consider doing so reprehensible, dishonourable and even cowardly. Which leads us to why do those 3 little kiddies pictured need armed guards? Is the fault theirs, their parents' for wanting them the best education they can afford, the school's, or elsewhere?

[sunshine51]

It would be a very traumatic thing for children to have to run a gauntlet every day to school knowing they could be blown to pieces. What sort of psychological ramifications would that lead to later? They most certainly would be willing to continue to fight these separatists thus a resolution all but impossible through continuing and ongoing fear and possibly hatred.

The really sad thing is...is that the children had to run the gauntlet before the schools were closed.

One "attack" and the schools will likely be closed again.

Sad situation.

Compounded by those in BKK who could care less.