Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha held talks with his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak amid protests in both countries on Monday.
Tian Chua (in blue shirt), an MP from the Batu constituency in Kuala Lumpur, shows a banner against Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha's visit in front of the Thai embassy in Kuala Lumpur on Dec 1, 2014. Mr Chua is vice-president of the Parti Kedilan Rakyat, an opposition party.
They were expected to discuss the deadly Muslim insurgency in southern Thailand along their shared border.
Gen Prayut arrived in the morning for the several-hour visit, his first to Thailand's southern neighbour since the former military chief seized power in a May coup.
Cloth banners attacking the Thai government were seen in insurgency-plagued Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat provinces and a few small bombs exploded this morning.
Dozens of Malaysian activists also protested Gen Prayut’s introductory visit at the Thai embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
Gen Prayut government has said it wants to re-start Malaysia-hosted peace talks between Thailand and Muslim rebels that began under the Yingluck Shinawatra government. Those talks made little headway, and eventually collapsed last year as Ms Yingluck's government became engulfed by a political crisis that ultimately led to the coup.
Kuala Lumpur on Monday said Gen Prayut's visit "will provide the opportunity for both sides to explore ways to further strengthen the existing cooperation between the two countries in various areas such as the southern Thailand peace dialogue process, trade and investment" and other spheres.
In Malaysia, the protesters chanted: “Prayut Go Back,” “Power to the People” and “Democracy Now” as the coup maker landed in the neighbouring capital.
The activists, most of whom staged a similar protest after the May 22 coup at the embassy, issued a statement which they also handed to Thai embassy staff after the protest ended around noon local time.
The statement “Dictator is NOT welcome!”, signed by four members of parliament and 18 orgnisations led by the Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM-Socialist Party), “condemned the Najib-led Malaysian government for receiving the official visit of military coup leader from Thailand”.
They said the reception for Prayut was “an act that recognises and lends legitimacy to the illegal government which grabbed power through a military coup and suppression of democracy since May this year. The reception is rubbing salt into the wounds of the people and democracy in Thailand.”
The Malaysian protesters said in the statement that the current coup had nothing to do with enhancing democracy and social justice in Thailand. “Instead it only tightens the grip of dictatorial rule and has attempted to crush any democratic institution that exists.”
Malaysia should recognise and receive the Thai leaders only if they repeal the martial law; stop the crackdown and arrests of political dissidents in Thailand and free all political prisoners; restore the election process to let the people choose their future government democratically, the statement said.
“Malaysia will be holding the chairmanship of Asean next year, and there is a need for the government of Malaysia to take the lead to get other governments of Asean together to condemn and assert pressure to bring back democracy in Thailand,” the statement said.
The MPs signed up the protest included Thai activist acquaintances Chua Tian Chang, Charles Santiago, Jeyakumar Devaraj and Chang Lih Kang, a state assembly man in Perak State Assembly.