Democrat party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva has advised the government to be more focused on the unrest in the Deep South, noting that the violent incident in Satun province on Wednesday morning is unprecedented and indicates that the insurgency has expanded.
Speaking in parliament today, he said that he told the government about two months ago to prioritise the unrest in the region, warning that the vicious cycle of violence may expand.
He said that Satun province has to date been relatively safe, compared to the other southernmost provinces, but the bombing in Thung Wa district of Satun is evidence of what the party had warned the government about.
Three students were slightly injured when their passenger van was hit by the force of an explosion.
Abhisit said that security force intelligence needs to be Improved and the people there should be informed of how they should protect themselves.
He pointed out that one of the reasons behind the expansion of unrest is the government’s lack of clear policy or guidelines on how to resolve the problem.
Coordination among various agencies must be streamlined and the mistrust among both state agencies and insurgent groups towards the peace process must end.
He insisted that the prime minister, as head of the executive branch, must step in and deal with the problem.
