Published on August 04, 2006 - Sonthi to introduce coordinated, inclusive approach after militants give lie to official claims of improved situation

The blasts came one after the other in a sublimely well-timed attack, but in the main did only peripheral damage. Something like 100 explosions wracked the deep South and Songkhla on Tuesday night - an attack on an even larger scale than the militants' last coordinated assault in the middle of last month - followed by another blast on Wednesday that claimed the lives of three policemen. The attacks were a pointed rejoinder to the popular line currently being spread by the government that things are on the mend in Thailand's Muslim-dominated three southernmost provinces of Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala. In effect, the militants were saying: "We are even better than before, and we're here to stay."

The body of Command Sergeant Major Yongyuth Kudsing, who was killed in an explosion in Pattani’s Nong Chik district, arrives at his hometown in Ratchaburi. A royal cremation will take place on Thursday.

Fourth Army commander Lt-General Ongkorn Thongpras-om, speaking on television on Wednesday evening, appeared lost for words as to why the security forces, despite being thick on the ground, were incapable of controlling the situation.

More than most, Ongkorn understands that the attacks undermine political leaders' claim that progress is being made. But as a government servant, he is not in a position to tell his political masters what to say.

So it's with considerable interest that the public is watching Ongkorn and his superior, Army chief General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, push through a new security mindset. Unlike previous efforts, this one offers the hope that in the not-too-distant future the way will be open for stronger preventive measures in which local residents and security officials have a role to play. It's a long shot, but knowledgeable senior Army officials say it's worth a try considering the fact that nothing else done so far has curbed the ongoing violence.

It would seem that unlike their civilian bosses, the Army understands that conventional forces and military tactics alone won't win the battle against the insurgents. They believe that there has to be a sense of "ownership" among the local Malay-speaking community, a feeling that everyone, regardless of race and religion, has a shared destiny in the outcome.

Sonthi suggests that while the latest explosions were intended to serve as incisive exclamation marks rather than wreak destruction, they still put pressure on the government to come up with a plan that entails a quicker and more effective response.

The Army chief is of the belief that coordination and division of labour among the police, soldiers, defence volunteers and village defence volunteers has be drawn up at district level - a bottom-up approach that involves the local community as much as possible.

Sonthi insists that the local community, both Buddhists and Muslims, must be given a sense of ownership in the restive region, where more than 1,200 have been killed since January 2004.

He sees the latest acts of sabotage as part of the militants' strategy to make the area as ungovernable as possible. If this military-inspired solution is successful, it could go a long way to by-passing the bickering and prevarication of political bigwigs, who have allowed themselves to become ensnared by traditional inter-agency rivalry.

According to Army sources, Sonthi is also pushing through, among other things, the creation of a rapid deployment force, a rescue unit and professional negotiators to handle future hostage incidents.

Moreover, patrol units will be better coordinated through command centres and junior officers will be given the authority to order hostage rescue operations instead of having to wait for the green light from the highest officer in the region.

The Army realises how tough the battle will be, given the extent of the insurgents' hold on the region. Security officials say that militants have set up cells in at least two-thirds of the 1,500 villages in the Malay-speaking South.

These faceless fighters are continuing to chip away at whatever credibility the state apparatus still enjoys among the local population. Maybe it's time for the politicians to step aside and make way for the forward-thinking ideas of those who know the problem best.

Don Pathan
The Nation