Thailand should change tack and pursue talks with ethnic Malay rebels to resolve a deadly conflict in its Muslim south, a report said on Tuesday, as Thai and Malaysian leaders met to discuss the worsening violence.
Almost six years since a separatist rebellion re-emerged in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat provinces, the government has made no progress in tackling the insurgency and needs to urgently shift its approach, the International Crisis Group (ICG) said.
The violence has claimed more than 3,700 lives, according to independent monitors Deep South Watch, the latest on Tuesday, when two soldiers and an insurgent were killed in a gunfight in Narathiwat ahead of a visit to the area by Thai prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak.
"If the government is serious about curbing the insurgency, it has to change course," said Jim Della-Giacoma, ICG's Southeast Asia project director. "This new direction could include dialogue with insurgent representatives."
"There are plenty of ideas about political solutions compatible with a Thai unitary state that should be more openly discussed," he said.
The report said attempts to solve the problem with economic stimulus measures were futile and the government's 54 billion baht ($1.63 billion) budget for development projects over three years could be counter-productive, creating scope for rampant corruption and further eroding the state's legitimacy.
Analysts say the conflict is largely ethno-nationalist and, despite frequent rumours of outside involvement, there is no evidence suggesting it is part of a wider Islamist movement.
ICG, a non-profit organisation that works to prevent or resolve violent conflicts, has compiled some of the most comprehensive reports so far on the shadowy rebellion.
Its report said the military was obstructing the work of civilian administrators and was against moves to lift martial law and the state of emergency in the rubber-producing region bordering Malaysia.
Most Muslims oppose the massive security presence there and frequent speculation that police, soldiers and Buddhist security volunteers have carried out extrajudicial killings has deepened sectarian rifts and created a climate of fear and distrust.
Successive governments have insisted they will not enter into dialogue with the insurgents, who have never publicly revealed themselves or stated their aims. They are blamed for most of the near-daily bombings, drive-by shootings and beheadings.
Abhisit, who has been non-committal on the idea of decentralisation or self-rule for the once independent region, said a long-term political solution was important but ruled out talks with the militants.
"Nobody claims any responsibility for these actions that are taking place and we feel that the most significant talks we can have are with local people," he told a news conference.
"At the moment they (separatists) have no legitimacy. The voices we must listen to are the public and we must respond to their needs and make sure there''s a lasting solution."
The issue of autonomy is highly sensitive in Thailand and the mere suggestion of autonomy in a region with more in common with Malaysia than Thailand has sparked anger among the Thai public.
The release of the ICG report coincides with a planned visit to Narathiwat by Abhisit and Najib, who is an advocate of decentralisation for the region. Najib met with Abhisit on Tuesday and said Malaysia fully supported Thailand's moves to end the violence.
Malaysian officials said Wednesday's trip to Narathiwat would still go ahead, despite attacks in that province that have killed five people and wounded 11 others in the last 24 hours.
