BANGKOK: A car bomb exploded in Narathiwat’s Tak Bai district on Sunday (Sept 29) night, seriously injuring two locals and damaging nearby residences.
The bomb was detonated at the junction near the Tak Bai district chief’s residence and the fifth Territorial Defence Volunteer Corps at 9.50pm.
Residents Kantayot Binhrim and Anuwat Hemarat, both 22, suffered severe burns. The explosion also caused damage to nearby residences.
It was not clear if Tak Bai district chief Acting Sub Lt Jiras Siriwanlop was at home when the bomb exploded.
Officials closed off the area and are screening visitors and vehicles in Tak Bai and Sungai Golok districts.
Checkpoints have been set up on main and secondary routes, including along the Golok River and residents have been asked to either avoid the districts, or to carry their ID card and vehicle registration documents before entering those areas.
According to a Nation TV report, Sunday’s car bomb attack was likely related to the Tak Bai incident for which the statute of limitations expires on Oct 25 this year.
The Tak Bai incident on Oct 25, 2004, was a tragic escalation of tensions in the region, which has been plagued by decades of insurgency primarily involving Malay Muslims seeking greater autonomy.
It started as a peaceful protest by some 1,500 unarmed Malay-Muslim protesters, who had gathered outside the Tak Bai Police Station to demand the release of six men who were being detained over suspicion of being involved in the insurgency.
The police then tried to disperse the crowd using teargas and water cannons, but the protesters responded by throwing rocks and bottles.
The situation deteriorated, leading to the use of lethal force by security forces. Seven protesters were killed on the spot, and more than 1,200 were arrested.
The detainees were forced to strip to the waist and lie on their stomachs on the floor of Army trucks. Many of them suffocated to death during the long journey to a military camp in Pattani province, resulting in a death toll of 85.
The Tak Bai massacre has had a profound impact on the region and the wider Thai society, fuelling anger and resentment among the Malay-Muslim population and further exacerbating the insurgency. - The Nation/ANN
