BRN demands unlikely to be accepted by Thai government: political watchers

BANGKOK, April 28 (TNA) - Some of the five-point proposals demanded by the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) insurgent group are not expected to be accepted by the Thai government, political watchers said Sunday. These proposals are expected to be submitted during the second round of talks, to be held in Malaysia on Monday aimed at ending slightly more than nine-year-old bloody violence in deep southern Thailand, between senior Thai government officials, led by National Security Council (NSC) secretary-general Lt. Gen. Paradon Pattanathabutr, and southern separatist leaders. Lt. Gen. Paradon told Thai News Agency via telephone interview that he has to confer with BRN leaders first whether those demands are proposed personally or by the group itself. Presently, negotiations on ending the current bloody violence in the deep South are still continuing. The BRN demands that Siam (Thailand) must allow Malaysia to act as mediator and not facilitator in the peace negotiations, the peace talks must be held by Pattani-Malay ethnic people led by the BRN group and Siam government, observers from ASEAN, the OIC and from non-government organisations must be allowed to attend the peace talks as observers, the government must release all imprisoned militants and revoke warrants for the arrest of every insurgent without conditions, and the government must acknowledge that the BRN is an organisation to liberate Pattani and not a separatist group. Political watchers said they believed the government would not accept some of the demands, especially on releasing imprisoned militants and revoking arrest warrants on insurgents who are now on the run because they are wanted by police based on evidence. However, Lt. Gen. Paradon said the demands show what the insurgent groups want while the government has to explain to them that it is willing to offer justice for the imprisoned insurgents. More than 5,000 people have been killed since the renewed insurgency flared up in deep South in January 2004. (TNA)