Thai, Malaysian leaders move to restart talks to end Muslim insurgency in southern Thailand
Aim is to end insurgency in Thailand's south, with negotiations high on both countries' agenda
PUBLISHED : Monday, 01 December, 2014, 9:23pm
UPDATED : Monday, 01 December, 2014, 9:23pm
Agence France-Presse in Kuala Lumpur
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha arrived in Malaysia yesterday morning for meeting his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak. Photos: Xinhua, EPA
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and his Malaysian counterpart, Najib Razak, yesterday discussed prospects for restarting stalled peace talks aimed at ending southern Thailand's deadly Muslim insurgency, officials said.
Prayuth arrived in Malaysia yesterday morning for the several-hour visit, his first to Thailand's southern neighbour since the former military chief seized power in a May coup.
His regime has indicated it favours re-starting the Malaysia-hosted peace talks between Thailand and Muslim rebels that began under the previous Thai government that was led by Yingluck Shinawatra.
The visit by Prayuth, who was named prime minister in August, was mainly intended as a formal introduction to Thailand's neighbour, said a Malaysian official who spoke on condition of anonymity. But the official said the two leaders also discussed the peace talks, saying they were "high on the agenda".
The meeting was a first step in what is expected to be a lengthy process toward re-engaging with the shadowy insurgent groups, said the official.
Last year's dialogue in Malaysia made little headway and eventually collapsed as Yingluck's government became engulfed by a political crisis that ultimately led to the coup.
Thai bomb squad policemen inspect a bomb blast scene following a car bomb at a business area in Yala, southern Thailand in 2011. A home-made bomb killing one soldier and injuring 23 civilians, police said. Photo: EPA
Prospects for a quick resumption now look slim following deadly post-coup militant attacks in southern Thailand and a subsequent fresh security crackdown.
Buddhist Thailand colonised its predominantly Muslim deep south more than a century ago, and insurgencies have repeatedly flared.
More than 6,000 people have been killed or wounded during the current decade-long conflict. Most have been civilians.
Muslim-majority Malaysia - where some insurgent leaders are believed to be holed up - hosted several rounds of secretive peace talks last year between Thai officials and representatives of one of the region's rebel groups. But it remains unclear whether the rebel negotiators speak for any of the other groups involved in the insurgency.
Rights organisations accuse Thai authorities of widespread human rights abuses - including extra-judicial killings - in the southern region and of sweeping aside the distinct local culture through forced assimilation projects.
