Thai army representatives to join NSC-BRN peace talks

BANGKOK, March 14 (TNA) - Army Chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha says that army representatives in the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) will join in negotiations to restore peace in the Thai deep South between the National Security Council (NSC) and the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) insurgent group. General Prayuth told journalists on Thursday that his army representatives in the ISOC will be part of the NSC's 15-member working group, set to hold first round of talks with the BRN's representatives on March 28, 2013. According to the Thai army chief, the army representatives will convey the Royal Thai Army’s adherence to national security and necessity of some secret operations. The army commander-in-chief suggested that the NSC use its status of being a state agency to bargain and ensure national benefits from the negotiations and responded positively to recent reports that nine insurgent groups, not just the BRN, will join in the March 28 peace talks. The army chief opined that the participating insurgent groups should share the same direction, noting that the Royal Thai Army will evaluate results of the negotiations within one year. Regarding the BRN's proposal on the Thai government to stop exercising the executive decree on public administration in emergency situations in the troubled far South, the Thai army chief insisted that the BRN group should first demonstrate its sincerity by stopping violent attacks, acknowledging if the situation in the southernmost Thai region improved, security authorities would propose the stoppage of the special law imposition. The army commander-in-chief affirmed that the Royal Thai Army has already demonstrated its sincerity by cutting its force in the southern border Thai region by 6,000 officers. (TNA)