Article 93

Let Ramadan bring peace, says Chavalit

Plea made in address to Islamic teachers

YUWADEE TUNYASIRI AND BHANRAVEE TANSUBHAPOL

Deputy Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh has proposed that Oct 15, when the Ramadan or the Muslim fasting month begins, be a day for peace-building in the deep South.

Gen Chavalit urged people to stop resorting to violence in the Muslim-dominated provinces and hold talks to end their differences.

The deputy prime minister, who is in charge of national security, made his plea during a seminar to promote unity among Islamic school teachers or ustaz from the far South at the Interior Ministry yesterday.

Gen Chavalit was optimistic that the standoff in the area, which has killed 200 people including 100 government officials and three monks since Jan 4 when around 150 Muslim militants raided an army camp in Narathiwat, would soon be tackled.

However, he said the situation could turn much worse if people sought out to get revenge.

One source said Gen Chavalit might be worried about a report that Defence Minister Gen Chettha Thanajaro, who was given full authority by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to tackle problems in the deep South, would take strong action to resolve the problem, starting early next month.

Gen Chavalit. widely known to be at odds with the defence minister, was said to be disturbed when Mr Thaksin gave his full backing to Gen Chettha in tackling security in the area.

Gen Chavalit said everyone should take three steps back, and set a date for them to stop using violence, Oct 15, when Ramadan begins.

After that people should send proposals to Mr Thaksin for ending the crisis.

Maruding Samaelae, a religious teacher of Darunsart Withaya School in Sai Buri district of Pattani province, said he did not think Gen Chavalit's proposal would work, because people with ill-intentions were unlikely to listen.

Meanwhile, the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) will investigate an influential person suspected of being involved in the drug trade in five southern provinces and providing financial support to a militant group stirring unrest in the South.



Sombat Amornwiwat, the DSI director-general, said the case was transferred to his department during a meeting yesterday because officials in the South have problems handling this person. He refused to reveal the influential person's name.

This figure is also in transnational drug trade, the DSI chief said.

The man has been trafficking drugs from Burma and Malaysia into Thailand, especially in Satun, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat provinces, said Pol Gen Sombat.