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May 22, 2006

Thailand: Buddhist Shot, Set On Fire In Muslim South

News from the BBC reports that today, a Buddhist man riding his motorbike in Pattani province in Thailand was shot dead, and then his body set alight. The man was an employee of a state telephone company. The incident took place in Saiburi district.

According to a police spokesperson: "The attackers opened fire on him and then set fire to the motorcycle to burn the victim. It was a very cruel act by the insurgents."

We will update this story as news comes in.

The three southern provinces of Pattani, Narathiwat and Yala, whose populations are predominantly Muslim, have been the scene of an insurgency which commenced on January 4, 2004. The insurgency has claimed more than 1,200 lives.

The Bangkok Post states that in Yarang district in Pattani on Sunday night, the house of one Prom Suwansamlee was sprayed with bullets, and in Narathiwat province, militants have placed fake bombs to deter visits from security forces. The hoax bomb and bomb-making material was discovered in Rangae district.

It was in Rangae district on Friday, in the village of Kuching Lepas (Kujing Ruepa), that two Buddhist teachers were singled out by Muslim villagers and subjected to severe beatings. The two women were both Buddhists, and had been chosen for beatings because of their faith. We reported on the attack on Friday, with an update yesterday.

In the Thai south, schools returned to duty last week after a spring break of two months, but as we reported on Thursday, schools were on high alert as the insurgents have been mounting campaigns against schools and teachers.

Today the Bangkok Post reports that the army commander-in-chief, General Sonthi Boonyaratkalin has launched an official investigation into the long time it took for security forces to rescue the two teachers, one of whom has received blood clots to the brain and is in a coma. She is not expected to survive. The Post states that the majority of the villagers who stormed the school where they taught was female.

General Sonthi stated that this tactic, of using women to carry out attacks, was to be expected as the insurgents found their old methods became ineffective. He urged teachers to stick together, and promised that the military will do its best to solve the problem.

In an editorial today, the Bangkok Post states:

It is as shocking as it is inexcusable that a mob could be incited to single out, kidnap and then brutally assault entirely innocent women teachers. No excuse or apology ever could justify such action. The women teachers played no role whatsoever in any violence or in the arrest of Mrs Karima's husband. Villagers who could take such an atrocity right into the schools of their own children need to be dealt with firmly, to the extent of the law. Among other measures, qualified authorities should determine if such men and women are fit parents.

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In separate news, today Reuters reports that Thaksin Shinawatra, the Thai prime minister, will be returning to take power tomorrow. As we reported earlier, Thaksin stepped down on April 4, amid allegations of corruption. Elections were held on April 2, but these were marred by violence in the south, and unconstitutional practices. The results of the elections were officially annulled by the Constitution Court.

Thaksin, of the Thai Rak Thai party, will be at the chair's table at a meeting planned to discuss revitalising the nation's economy. His return could spark a return of the moths of street protests which led to him stepping down on April 4.

Thaksin gave his deputy prime minister, Chidchai Vanasatidy, the role of "caretaker". According to the Bangkok Post today the Supreme Administrative Court accepted a case brought against Thaksin for dereliction of his official duties. Apparently General Chidchai has spent much of the past six weeks indulging in private leisure activities such as shopping, golfing, and travelling abroad.

According to TNA English News yesterday, there is growing pressure to remove Sawas Sumalayasak, the "Chularajamontri" or official leader of the nation's Muslims. His post was created by the government more than five years ago, and has passed its official expiry date. On Saturday, a group of Muslim representatives from five southern provinces demanded Sawas' resignation. They said his term had expired, and said that he was personally responsible for not quelling the unrest in the south.

UPDATE on main story - 23.30 GMT: The Bangkok Post reports on the case of the Buddhist man set on fire. His name was Somsak Prasarnsilp and he had been riding his bike through tambon Bangkao of Sai Buri district. Two men on another motorcycle approached, and the pillion rider shot 31-year old Somsak. His bike skidded off the road, and the assailants then took petrol from his bike's tank and doused him and the vehicle, then setting it alight. The Sai Buri-Panare road is often a scene of such attacks because it is sparsely populated, and has few army patrols. Somsak's job was collecting coins from public telephones.

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at May 22, 2006 10:15 AM

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