Deputy Defence Minister Udomdej Sitabutr and his special government team met security officials Thursday to develop an operational plan aimed at further reducing attacks and casualties in the violence-torn deep South.
Gen Udomdej, in his capacity as head of the team solving the southern unrest, asked for the fact-finding meeting with state agencies charged with protecting human life and property in the southernmost provinces.
Public security was one area the panel will focus on. Others include administration of justice and rehabilitation of victims, promoting education and cultural diversity, and the development of human resources and improvement of quality of life.
The Defence Ministry, a core agency responsible for public safety, briefed the panel on efforts made over the last year, as well as obstacles and concerns.
Speaking after the meeting, AVM Rangsan Yaowarat, assistant Defence Ministry spokesman, said the situation in the southernmost provinces has improved over the last year.
He based the claim on a decline in the number of violent incidents and casualties.
Law enforcement was more efficient, prompting some insurgency sympathisers to join the government's "bring them home" project. This had led to a decrease in violent attacks in the region, he said.
According to AVM Rangsan, authorities also made some arrests for narcotics trafficking and smuggling oil and contraband goods. Such crimes had complicated efforts to restore order, he said.
Local communities expressed serious concerns about illegal drugs, children's education and economic hardship, he said, adding they supported attempts to resolve the conflict through non-violent means.
Those attending the meeting included representatives of the Defence Ministry, the armed forces, the Internal Security Operations Command Region 4's Forward Command, the National Security Council, the Southern Border Police Centre, and the Tourism and Sports Ministry.
After being briefed, the special panel offered suggestions on how to better implement the plan, AVM Rangsan said.
Meanwhile, a state employee was shot and killed by a gunman on a motorcycle while on his way to work in Narathiwat's Muang district Thursday morning, police said.
Pongsak Yodla-iad, 41, a worker for an irrigation project, was found dead with a gunshot wound to the back of the head on a local road in tambon Lamphu, police said.
The victim was riding a motorcycle to work when he was attacked.
On Monday night, a 60-year-old woman was killed and 21 people injured in a bomb blast at a noodle shop in Pattani's Muang district.
The attack took place a day before the 12th anniversary of the Tak Bai tragedy in which 85 Muslim men died after being arrested and packed into trucks by army and paramilitary forces sent to Narathiwat's Tak Bai district to break up an anti-government protest.
