Published on March 18, 2008 - For an administration that has not shied away from making public statements, controversial or otherwise, it was somewhat strange to see the indifference shown towards the car-bombings in Pattani and Yala.

For the security community on the ground, Saturday's incidents sent a chill throughout the restive region. The violence has finally taken its toll on the CS Pattani Hotel, which was perhaps the last safe haven in this restive region where nearly 3,000 people have died since the start of the insurgency. It is sometimes referred to as the "second city hall" of Pattani's provincial seat. Everybody - from foreign dignitaries to local ulema (Islamic legal scholars) - would regularly come here to sip tea.

The outpouring of moral support from the local community was understandable given the fact that this commercial outlet is one of the most important institutions in this region, which has had difficulty attracting outside investment because of the violence.

But one would have expected some sort of statement from Bangkok. If not an expression of moral support for the victims and the local community, perhaps a typical sound-bite about how the government will not abandon them amid the growing fear that similar incidents might be coming their way.

Just about every minister from Bangkok has stayed here. It's no roadside cafe.

For the local community, especially among Muslims, the attack was a grave reminder that no one is safe. They too could end up as collateral damage in this wave of violence in which soft targets, such as public schools and Buddhist-owned eateries, are targeted as a way of discrediting state agencies and security forces. Local Muslims believed to be spying for the state are often shot dead at point-blank range, usually by gunmen riding pillion on motorbikes coming from behind.

But the car bomb at the CS Pattani not only showed that the violence has shifted to a more deadly mode, it was also grave testimony that Muslim collateral damage is justifiable.

But as the commander of the Pattani Task Force, Maj-General Thawatchai Samutsakron, pointed out, there is nothing to suggest that insurgents have the capacity or resources to maintain and incorporate the use of car bombs in their war against the state.

In February 2005, a small number of poorly assembled explosives placed inside a stolen truck went off in a small soi in the border town of Sungai Kolok, Narathiwat. The impact shattered the windows of a nearby hotel and shop houses. Like a typical Thai official, then governor Pracha Therat compared the incident to those in Iraq and said that the bomb was about 100 kilograms. The next day, a bomb squad and a senior intelligence officer inspecting the area said the explosive was about five kilograms. It was a bomb placed in the car, not a "car bomb" as suggested by the governor.

It is not clear why Thai political leaders in Bangkok are showing such indifference to Saturday's events. Indeed, this is a government known for making off-the-wall statements when it comes to security matters. Some have insisted that Jemaah Islamiyah and al-Qaeda members are linked to the daily violence in this restive region. Perhaps the car-bombings were too much for them to swallow. This pilot project by the insurgents could just turn out to be a one-time thing, but then again it could be the beginning of another phase in this war which still has no end in sight.

The Nation