Published on November 22, 2005 - Thaksin seeks former KL leader’s opinion on how best to stop the killing

Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, who has irked the Thai government by comparing the sectarian violence in Thailand’s Muslim-majority South to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, arrived in Bangkok yesterday to discuss the conflict with Thai officials.

Shortly after his arrival, Mahathir held an hour-long, one-on-one meeting with Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra at Ban Phitsanulok. The two were later joined for dinner by Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon.

The details of the meeting remained confidential yesterday. But Kantathi, who was not present at the meeting between the two statesmen, told reporters: “We hope Mahathir’s visit will help improve the situation in the South.”

The outspoken former Malaysian leader himself declined yesterday to speak to the media about his views concerning the future of Thai-Malaysian bilateral relations, which are at their lowest point in decades as the Thai and Malay governments continue to exchange barbs over the insurgency in the deep South.

Last August, 131 Thai Muslim villagers from Narathiwat crossed the border illegally into Malaysia pleading for political asylum and sparking a diplomatic fracas between the two countries.

Their status remains undecided, but the Malaysian government’s decision to allow UN refugee agencies to interview the alleged fugitives angered Thai officials, who took umbrage at what they said was internationalising the issue.

Mahathir’s current visit to Thailand came in response to an invitation by former prime minister Anand Panyarachun, chairman of the National Reconciliation Commission.

Thai authorities hope Mahathir will use his still-considerable sway in Malaysian politics to facilitate the return of the 131 Muslims, some of whom are accused by the Thaksin government of being members and sympathisers of Islamic separatist movements.

Kuala Lumpur has said it will refuse to repatriate the displaced Thai Muslim villagers until and unless Bangkok can guarantee their rights and safety. The Thai government has retorted that such a request was an insult to the country’s integrity.

Anand told reporters yesterday he did not think the private meeting between Thaksin and Mahathir would yield any breakthroughs towards a solution to pacify the troubled region. Anand will meet Mahathir today to discuss the situation before Mahathir’s scheduled audience with His Majesty the King.

Since retiring from politics in October 2003 after 22 years in power, Mahathir has spent his time mostly in retirement on the resort island of Langkawi. Thai Defence Minister Thamarak Issarangura has charged that the island was a haven for Muslim insurgents scheming to carve out a separate homeland for ethnic Malays in Thailand’s deep South.

Mahathir has recommended that the three Muslim-majority southernmost provinces of Thailand be granted autonomy.

Prime Minister Thaksin has dismissed the suggestion as “unconstructive” and said it served only to undermine efforts to pacify the region.

Supalak Ganjanakhundee