| |
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian and Thailand's leaders will make an unprecedented visit to the troubled Thai south this week, presenting a united front in the face of an insurgent crisis that has killed 4,000 people.
Najib Razak, the prime minister of mainly Muslim Malaysia, and his Thai counterpart Abhisit Vejjajiva, who has struggled to contain the border insurgency, visit the southern province of Narathiwat on Wednesday.
"This is a very symbolic visit.... Both are making a common stand that there should be dialogue and an end to the violence," said Reuben Wong, a foreign policy expert from the Singapore Institute of International Affairs.
While the trip, part of a visit by Najib to Thailand from December 7-9, may be short on concrete results, analysts said it could provide moral support for Abhisit as he attempts to resolve the Muslim separatist uprising.
"There was bad blood when some Thai officials accused Malaysia of supporting the separatists, so it is important for Najib to stand with Abhisit and say that Malaysia will support a peaceful resolution," Wong said.
"It certainly will add weight to Abhisit's attempt to pacify the south. Leaders in the Thai south see Malaysia as a model and potential friend."
Tensions have simmered in the mainly Muslim Thai region, formerly an autonomous Malay Muslim sultanate, since it was annexed in 1902 by mainly Buddhist Thailand.
The latest spate of violence erupted in January 2004 and since then more than 4,000 people have been killed in the impoverished region.
Thailand has in the past accused Malaysia of failing to prevent insurgents criss-crossing the porous 650-kilometre border.
But since Najib came to power in April the rhetoric has softened. In October he called on Thailand to offer "some form" of autonomy to the restive region, a proposal backed by Abhisit, who called it the "right approach".
That was in stark contrast to comments in 2004 by former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad that Thailand should consider granting the south autonomy, which sparked anger among Thai officials.
"Najib is more cordial and soft in his diplomatic approach and the Thais like his style," said K. S. Balakrishnan, head of the international and strategic studies department at the University of Malaya. "There will be room to iron out issues."
Thai government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the neighbours would explore enhancing cross-border links but that Bangkok did not expect Malaysia to intervene in the southern insurgency.
"The southern unrest is totally a Thai internal matter and Malaysia recognises our stance," he told AFP.
"On the border, the two countries will re-organise border crossings of their nationals and discuss connecting highways, railways, tunnels, and expressways and the development of halal food."
Najib arrives in Bangkok on Monday for talks with Abhisit before they travel to the south.
They are to attend the renaming of a "friendship bridge" spanning the countries' river border and to visit an Islamic school.
Sunai Phasuk from Human Rights Watch in Bangkok said Thailand would probably ask Malaysia to put pressure on exiled southern insurgent leaders believed to be hiding in Malaysia.
"Abhisit has really nothing to offer to Najib so what Thailand will ask, perhaps behind closed doors, will be the same old request, that Malaysia should put more pressure on exiled leaders of the insurgency to surrender or to even go beyond that with extradition," he told AFP.
"Malaysia as far as I can see won't find any justification in complying." - AFP/de
|
