The cold-blooded murder of six innocent civilians, one of them a two-year old boy, in Pattani on the eve of Labour Day by four insurgents is anything but an act of a "war of liberation", as the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) separatist group would have the Thai public to believe.
A man cleans up the shop after the attack on April 30 2013 that left six innocent people dead, including a two-year-old boy, in Pattani province.
These murders were an act of utter cowardice perpetrated by cowards masquerading as "freedom" or "liberation" fighters. All the victims were killed and then shot again in the head, including the child. It was an insensate, inhuman execution.
There is nothing in this action for these killers, or the "liberation movement" they claim to belong to, to be proud of.
Any fools without a conscience and with guns in their hands are capable of mounting such a craven act -- spraying bullets from assault rifles at a small group of totally unaware innocent people gathering in front of a grocery shop, and then approaching their fallen victims one by one and putting a bullet into each of their heads to make sure that they were all dead.
Each victim's head was shattered by the shot, including the child's. Their relatives asked that wigs to be used to cover their ruined heads during the funeral.
The military has blamed the slaughter on Masorae Duerama’s gang. It was also speculated that the attack was a response to the earlier slaying of four insurgents in Yala province. Whatever the real motive of this unprovoked attack, it will be interesting to see how the BRN reacts to this senseless carnage.
Will the BRN post a statement on YouTube condemning the attack, in the same way that it earlier posted its five demands on the government ahead of the second round of peace talk in Kuala Lumpur on April 29? Or will the BRN just keep silent on the matter?
The peace process must go on despite the senseless violence, said Lt-Gen Paradorn Pattanatabut, secretary-general of the National Security Council and head of the government’s peace talks delegation.
Yes, the process must go on. But it is also essential that the BRN do something, at the least issue a statement condemning the carnage in Pattani if the separatist group is sincere about the process and values the lives of innocent civilians who have nothing to do with the bloody conflict - whether they are Muslims or non-Muslims.
It would be even more encouraging if the BRN were to take punitive action against the four killers, if it actually has any control over the gang.
If the BRN chooses to remain silent and do nothing, it will be interpreted as the BRN having sanctioned the violence and murder of innocent people. In that event, its five demands to the Thai government, which include the release of all detainees on security-related charges and the revocation of all arrest warrants, are not even worthy of consideration.
Fighting between parties involved directly in the conflict and violence in the course of peace talks is normal. But killing or maiming of innocent civilians by either side is totally unacceptable and must be condemned in the strongest terms.
How many more innocent people do the rebels plan to kill or maim in the name of their "liberation movement"?