Thai Government takes steps to tackle rising insurgency
Terrorist attacks in the villages of southern Thailand have reached an all time high as schools have become breeding grounds for young fighters in the conflict between Muslim insurgents and Buddhists.
Muslim militants in provinces that border Malaysia are attacking Buddhist monks and temples, and fellow Muslims suspected of working with the Thai government. Muslim militants in provinces that border Malaysia are attacking Buddhist monks and temples, and fellow Muslims suspected of working with the Thai government.
The Thai government’s extension of emergency decree powers in the southern Thailand has led rights groups and academics to call for more civilian control over the region. There is renewed attention on the six-year-old insurgency following the recent bombings in Indonesia.
Thailand’s government says it hopes to end a Muslim insurgency in the southern provinces within three years by improving laws and helping local politicians to better respond to residents’ needs. The violence in Thailand’s three southern provinces is getting new attention after last week’s bombings of luxury hotels in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.
Since early 2004, the insurgency has claimed over 3,500 lives. Shootings and bombings happen almost daily. The Cabinet has recently extended emergency decree powers governing the provinces, leaving the region largely under military control.