• OPINION

  All South must talk

  News, Editorial, Published on 31/08/2015

  » The decision to resume official contact with separatists is good news for the Deep South and the country in general. Last week, a government-authorised team led by Gen Aksara Kerdpol met a number of representatives of well-known military groups. The public ceremony took place in Kuala Lumpur, and was largely organised and arranged by the Malaysian government. The contacts are tentative, and not yet even called peace talks. There is an essential ingredient missing before the contacts can make significant progress.

• OPINION

  'Phi noi' workers need solution

  Editorial, Published on 05/11/2023

  » We often hear about the experiences of tourists in Thailand, but there's rarely any discussion of Thais travelling abroad. This changed recently when the hashtag #BanTravelToSouthKorea began trending on X, with netizens accusing the country of discriminating against Thai tourists. Everyone from the average tourist to influencers joined the debate and shared stories of being interrogated and/or refused entry into South Korea despite having all the right paperwork.

• OPINION

  The silence of the Senate

  News, Editorial, Published on 07/04/2023

  » The photographs of a young female police corporal who had just completed facial reconstruction surgery following a savage beating by her boss reminded the public of a controversial case that shocked the country last year.

• OPINION

  Challenge of contagion

  News, Editorial, Published on 05/03/2020

  » The exodus of illegal workers from South Korea, the world's No.2 hotspot for Covid-19, has given rise to grave concerns that the disease which has claimed more than 3,200 lives worldwide may well become a pandemic.

• OPINION

  Uighurs' plight a lesson for govt

  News, Editorial, Published on 09/04/2023

  » The case of 63 members of the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church who were arrested for overstaying visas in Pattaya last week brings back memories of the notorious repatriation of another group of Uighur refugees back to China in 2014.

• OPINION

  Honour models for democracy

  News, Editorial, Published on 18/12/2022

  » Since the 1998 ouster of the dictator Suharto -- who ruled Indonesia with an iron fist for over three decades -- the world's fourth most populous nation has undergone a series of rapid changes. Once dependent on foreign aid to exercise its basic functions, Indonesia has firmly established itself as a major economic player in the Asia-Pacific region, with the distinction of being the only Southeast Asian economy to be included in the Group of 20.

• OPINION

  Did China just blink?

  News, Editorial, Published on 21/08/2017

  » The annual mid-year Asean meetings discussed, but then once again set aside, the highly disputatious issue of the South China Sea. This was no surprise. The host of the meetings, the Philippines, has had its own problems settling on a policy towards the regional disputes. Since last year's election of colourful President Rodrigo Duterte, Manila has seemed rudderless on the issue. Despite efforts by several of the 27 countries that took part in the Asean meetings earlier this month, that lack of direction prevailed.

• OPINION

  Government must back sea talks

  News, Editorial, Published on 27/02/2017

  » The threat of clashes has increased lately over China's claim it owns the South China Sea. A US navy task force led by the formidable aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson is conducting "routine operations" in the area. Both Vietnam and Taiwan have copied China's construction of artificial islands with military facilities. Beijing has continued to fortify its new islands, with buildings believed capable of housing missiles. They would be the first land-based weapons in the Spratly Islands where international flashpoints and tensions increase almost by the day.

• OPINION

  Misuse of the courts

  News, Editorial, Published on 15/06/2016

  » The army group in charge of security in the deep South is taking a dangerous and misguided step in trying to punish critics in court. The Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc) has filed double-edged criminal suits against the heads of three NGOs for publishing a booklet last February, starkly called Torture, and clearly detailing 54 credible cases of alleged army mistreatment of detainees in the South. Isoc denies there was any torture, at any time, and claims it has been damaged by the printed cases.

• OPINION

  Release move just one step

  News, Editorial, Published on 21/07/2015

  » The military regime has ordered the release from prison of former terrorist leader, Sama-ae Thanam. Other releases may follow. Now 63, Sama-ae has vowed to help reconciliation efforts and establish peace across the deep South. Once the leader of the military wing of the so-called Patani United Liberation Front (Pulo), he was captured in Malaysia in 1988, extradited and later jailed on terrorism charges in 1997. Authorities not only believe he is no longer a threat but could help peace efforts in the restive southern provinces.

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