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November 22, 2005
Thailand: Two Muslims Shot Dead in South
Two Muslims have been shot dead in southern Thailand, states Radio Australia.
In a village in Narathiwat province, a Muslim villager had his house entered by two assailants, who then shot him. The killers then placed his body on a prayer mat while his wife looked on. She was then shot in the leg to stop her escaping.
In Yala province, a village chief was ambushed and shot eight times as he returned home from evening prayers. The men who killed him lay metal spikes in the road to prevent security forces from following them.
Police say that Islamists are behind both attacks. The Yala incident, where spikes are laid in a road, is reminiscent of previous tactics by Islamist attackers. The incidents happened as Mahathir Mohamad, the former prime minister of Malaysia across the border, is on a visit to discuss the unrest in the Thai southern provinces.
Yesterday, Mahathir met the Thai PM, Thaksin Shinawatra for an hour at Ban Phitsanulok and again at dinner last night, but neither revealed any details of their conversations.
However, today's Bangkok Post states that Mahathir Mohamad had suggested in another meeting with former Thai PM, Anand Panyarachun, that the era of "megaphone diplomacy" between Thailand and Malaysia should come to an end, and the two nations should be engaging more in frequent consultations on issues regarding the troubled south of Thailand and the Malaysian border.
The deep South was once an independent Islamic sultanate called Pattani. It was conquered by Bangkok in 1786 and placed under the central bureaucracy in 1902. A separatist movement has simmered in the region for decades, but took a more serious turn in early 2004.
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at November 22, 2005 6:28 AM
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