BANGKOK, March 15 – Thailand’s security chief has predicted reduced violence in the restive South after the March 28 dialogue between the Thai government and Muslim insurgents.
National Security Council secretary general Paradorn Pattanatabut said the talks will benefit both sides. He also said the insurgent representatives are authorised by their group members to hold the discussion.
Lt Gen Paradorn joined senior government officials and Cabinet members in a two-hour meeting with Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on Thursday to report the latest development on peace talks with the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) militant leaders in Kuala Lumpur on March 28.
He quoted the premier as saying that Thailand is sincere in ending the southern crisis through peaceful means.
Names of the 15-member delegation, representing Thailand in the talks, will be delivered to the Malaysian authorities next week, the NSC chief said, adding that the group includes state officials and representatives from the private sector.
He reaffirmed that the issue of establishing a Pattani State will not be raised in the first round of peace talks.
“It is up to the BRN to invite as many factions as possible to attend the dialogue,” he said. “We will be there to discuss and listen to their problems.”
The NSC signed an agreement to hold the discussion with the BRN core members in Kuala Lumpur on Feb 28 as an overture to a peace process for Thailand’s southern border provinces.
