A southern teacher network Thursday urged the government to review its security measures to provide safety for teachers in the deep South in the wake of the latest killing of a teacher in Pattani.
Boonsom Thongsriprai, president of the Federation of Teachers from the Three Southern Border Provinces, said preventive measures have to be tightened up for teachers who work for schools in violence-prone areas.
The move came after Abdulrohhim Duerae, a teacher at Ban Bae Ro School in Pattani's Yaring district, and Samaae Musoa, village head of Moo 4 in tambon Nong Rat of the district, were killed by insurgents in Pattani on Tuesday.
"Abdulrohhim is the 182nd teacher in the deep South to be murdered by insurgents," he said.
Mr Boonsom said even though the number of violent crimes targeting teachers in the far South has been declining over the past 10 years, most teachers still feel anxious about the situation and want to be assured the state is doing everything it can to help.
They are worried that insurgents still appear to be targeting them, and that attacks persist despite precautionary measures. Authorities have to address the root cause of the problem while schools and security authorities have to work together to prevent a repeat of violence, he said.
Mr Boonsom said educational institutes in Pattani have visited Abdulrohhim's family to offer their condolences, and hand over 200,000 baht in aid.
Abdulrohhim and Samaae were gunned down in front of a rubbish dump in tambon Nong Rat on Tuesday, according to police.
Both victims were found shot dead inside a Mercedes-Benz which was riddled with multiple bullet holes, police said.
While Abdulrohhim and Samaae were on their way downtown in the sedan, a group of militants in a Mitsubishi pickup truck opened fire at them, killing both on the spot, police said.
The gunmen also left the truck and repeatedly fired at the sedan before fleeing the scene.
Shortly after the incident, Pol Maj Gen Kritsakorn Preethanyawong, chief of Pattani provincial police, instructed local officers to check CCTV cameras along their escape route.
He said the motive behind the murder could be a local political conflict or the insurgency.
Meanwhile, a man was killed and his wife seriously wounded by a motorcycle gunman in Nong Chik district of Pattani Thursday morning.
Police said Pornpipat Yodying, 28, and his wife Areerat Maneerat, 29, were travelling on a motorcycle from their home to work in Pattani township along the Yala-Pattani road when they were followed by two men on a motorcycle.
When the victims arrived at tambon Lipa Sango, the pillion rider opened fire with a handgun.
Pornpipat was shot three times in the body and died on the spot, while his wife was hit once in the left arm. Ms Areerat was admitted to Nong Chik Hospital.
Police were investigating, but suspect insurgents were to blame.
