BANGKOK, May 9 – Thailand’s National Security Council (NSC) will propose the lifting of the state of emergency currently in force in some areas of the restive southern border region in tomorrow’s meeting of security agencies, the security council chief said on Thursday.
NSC secretary-general Lt Gen Paradorn Pattanathabut spoke to reporters after attending a meeting chaired by the prime minister to review the situation in the far South.
He said the emergency decree can now be lifted in some areas in response to the need of local residents. The issue will be raised in tomorrow’s meeting of the Committee to Mobilise Policy and Strategy to Solve Problems in the Southern Border Provinces.
The meeting will also consider complaints by local residents over unfair issuance of arrest warrants against villagers, according to Gen Paradorn.
In addition, he said Prime Minister Yingluck instructed the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) to closely monitor the situation in the insurgency-plagued region as schools will reopen for next semester, and to create better understanding on the situation among the public.
Regarding the bombings in Pattani this morning, Gen Paradorn said the incidents were aimed at creating daily disturbances and had nothing to do with the movement against the peace dialogue between the Thai government and the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) insurgent group.
