Muslims in the areas, whom the district chief Methe Kanchanapuva said the militants forced them to do so, were keen on staging protests for the release of suspected militants detained in connection with violent cases.

The demonstrators blocking the Yala-Betong road to mount pressure to the authorities for four days began negotiation with Nathapol Wichianprert, deputy governor of Yala province at about 9 a.m. Sunday to trade off their demand.

The first round of talk failed as the demonstrators denied to lower their demands. The second round of talk resumed an hour later as Madaree Yayuree, member of provincial parliament together with Col. Rangsarn Sirirangsi, deputy secretary general of Yala's Internal Security Operation Command took part in the negotiation.

The Muslims agreed to end their demonstration as the authorities promised to release the 24 suspects within a month, return their confiscated motorbikes and withdraw a unit of rangers from Ban Rupae of Krong Pinang subdistrict.

Angkana Neelaphaijit, the wife of missing prominent Muslim lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit, together with Adilan AliIshoh, chairman of Muslim Law Society also appeared at the scene at about 11 a.m. to visit the demonstrators.

The demonstrators began to phase out at about 12.15 a.m. and helped to clean the road to allow resumption of traffic along the road which is a backbone of communication between Yala down town and southernmost border district of Betong.

Meanwhile their Buddhist counterparts who organised a counter demonstration in Yala's Bannang Sta also agreed to end their road blockade after they were informed about the end of the Muslim protest.

Chairman of Southern Islamic Culture Foundation Chamroon Denudom, also a former deputy commander of the Fourth Border Police Region said the government should make clear the procedure of detention under the emergency law which authorises officials to detain suspects without charge for 30 days.

Local residents trend to see such action as unjust practice for them and hence opened chance for militants to manipulate movement against the authorities, he said.

The government has no liberty to crackdown the protests since it could go out of hand but there are some ways to prevent the demonstration if the authorities are keen enough and used high ranking officials to handle the arrest, he said.

An Army spokesman Akra Thiproj said the army mulled to issue a special law to bar demonstration on main roads to prevent such incidents.

The Nation