Respect for Human Rights: A Focus on Dealing with the Southern Situation

(25/08/2011)

Respect for human rights has been cited as the focus when it comes to dealing with the situation in the southern border provinces of Thailand. Lieutenant General Udomchai Thamsarorat, Commanding General of the Fourth Army Area Command, spoke about the policy of resolving problems in the deep South, during his talks with a group of foreign journalists on their press tour to get first-hand information about the southern situation. The group, comprising more than 20 members of the international media, visited the southern border provinces of Yala and Pattani from August 22 to 24, as part of their press tour, organized by the Foreign Office of the Government Public Relations Department. Lieutenant General Udomchai, who is also Commander of the Internal Security Operations Command under the Fourth Army Area Command, told the foreign journalists that despite the change in administration and the formation of the new government, the army staff operating in the South would adhere to respect for human rights. In addition, he said, the army has adopted His Majesty the King’s advice to “understand, reach out, and develop” and his Sufficiency Economy philosophy as guidelines for resolving the southern conflict. Apart from these guidelines, it has also implemented six major strategies. The first strategy seeks to create better understanding among the people and between officials and local residents. The second one seeks to get rid of problems that may lead to acts of violence. The problems include such issues as the drug menace, dark influences, and the smuggling of illegal products. The third strategy involves human development to enhance the potential of local residents, so that they will be able to engage in various occupations to earn enough to live on. In the fourth strategy, the army strictly adheres to human rights principles, respecting the law, and rehabilitating the affected persons. The fifth strategy seeks to ensure safety and security for the lives and property of local people. In the sixth strategy, all sectors of Thai society will be provided with opportunities to take part in solving southern problems. Lieutenant General Udomchai pointed out that only a small group of the people in the deep South wanted to create divisions in its separatist movement. Most people have not given cooperation to them, so he believed that their operations would not succeed. There are around 2,000 villages in the three southern border provinces of Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat. Only 300 have faced incidents of unrest. The remaining villages, more than 1,600 in number, have set up their own village defense groups in order to look after their communities, which would help ease the burden of the army. He stated that although the majority of residents in the three southern border provinces are Muslim Thais, they have lived in harmony with Buddhist Thais for centuries.