PM to visit Thai Far South

BANGKOK, October 13 (TNA) - Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha is scheduled to visit the violence-plagued Thai Far South on October 16, during which security will be tightened. National Security Council (NSC) Secretary-General General Thaweep Netrniyom told journalists of the information on Tuesday, saying that the prime minister will visit Yala and Pattani Provinces during his upcoming one-day trip to the southernmost Thai region, aimed to follow up government-sponsored development programmes there. General Thaweep noted that the tightened security will be provided to the prime minister by army personnel of the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) and the 4th Army Area Command. On October 12, four police officers were wounded following four separate explosions in nearby Narathiwat Province, in which insurgents operating in the troubled Thai Far South were believed to be responsible for Monday's bombings. The Thai premier's upcoming visit also comes at a time when two insurgent groups, including the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) and the Patani United Liberation Organisation (PULO), are celebrating their founding anniversaries. According to the NSC chief, BRN is now divided into two groups, with a group having expressed their desire to continue peace talks with the Thai government but the other having opposed the negotiations. The NSC chief stressed that the peace talks, if carried on, would have Malaysia to continue playing the “facilitator” role, while no other countries would be invited to observe the peace negotiations. (TNA)