Pulo accuses ICG report of misleading

In a detailed report, the International Crisis Group (ICG) has said insurgency groups scout for new militant recruits among students at Islamic schools, locally known as pondok in Thailand's Malay-speaking South.

In a statement released Tuesday, Kasturi Mahkota, the foreign affairs chief of the Patani United Liberation Organisation (Pulo), said the report from the International Crisis Group (ICG) played into the hand of "Thai ultra-nationalist" and dismissed allegations that the pondok school system "is being used in any way to propagate violence."

Kasturi said traditional and private Islamic schools system are "respectful social institutions" and accused element in the Thai state of disturbing meddling with the institution that stressed "moral lessons and values".

"Why doesn't the Thai government look to the state of its own education system?" Kasturi asked.