Teachers in the restive deep South have urged the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to step up protection for them and their schools after six schools were torched in Pattani on Sunday.
Flames and smoke billow up from a school set alight early Sunday during a night of arson against schools in Pattani province. Students and teachers live in constant fear over separatist gangs who have long singled out schools and teacher for attack as symbols of Bangkok authority. (Photo by Abdullah Benyakart, Post Today)
Five primary schools in Thung Yang Daeng and one in Mayo district were set ablaze by suspected insurgents. No one was injured.
The request for increased security came amid moves by authorities to adopt electronic equipment to ensure security.
- Students, teachers: Living in fear
Boonsom Tongsriprai, chairman of the Confederation of Teachers in the Southern Border Provinces, said he wanted the National Council for Peace and Order's (NCPO) plan to deal with the unrest to improve the situation further.
"The NCPO should instruct agencies involved to strengthen local communities and forge friendly ties with local residents, so that they can help look after educational institutions where children are studying," he said.
Southern violence, in which many teachers have been attacked, has so far improved, Mr Boonsom said.
A total of 178 teachers have been killed since unrest erupted in the deep South in 2004. The situation worsened during 2007-2009 when, on average, 27 teachers and educational personnel died each year. Nine teachers have been killed this year.
"I am not satisfied by the decreasing number as no one should be hurt. The government has been working hard to tackle the problem, but teachers here still feel they are targets," he said.
More security officials should be stationed at schools in "red-zone" areas plagued by violence perpetrated by insurgents, he said.
Mr Boonsom also said temporary buildings must be built and necessary teaching materials be provided before the second semester opens at the beginning of November.
He called on Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to take action to improve safety and restore public confidence. He said the arson attacks had not only damaged schools but also destroyed young people's chance to gain an education.
The government should adopt a strategy in which religious representatives, local leaders, teachers and residents can participate in protecting schools in their communities, he added.
Anusak Ayuwatthana, director of the Bureau of Educational Development for Special Administration Zone in the South, said directors of the torched schools would ensure the semester began on time.
"Initially, 400,000 baht would be allocated to each affected school to construct temporary buildings, repair the schools and buy teaching materials," he said.
Gen Prayut on Monday said the torching of schools was a tactic used by insurgents to terrorise people and to attract global attention.
He said militants have to resort to this tactic as a way to gain publicity after not succeeding in using force against state authorities.
Gen Prayut brushed aside criticism that the torching of the schools was "a slap in the government's face", saying the government is trying to tackle the southern problem as a matter of national urgency.
All security agencies are working to protect locals' lives and property, launching projects to improve their livelihoods, and to create better understanding with local residents, Gen Prayut said.
He said the persistent southern violence will not end easily, partly because it involves an ideological battle in which insurgents have claimed that locals in the deep South are treated unjustly by the state.
A remote-controlled security warning system is being proposed for installation at all schools in the three southernmost insurgency-hit border provinces.
The plan was mooted during a video-conference involving army chief Udomdej Sitabutr and heads of agencies responsible for counter-insurgency in the deep South Monday, according to Internal Security Operations Command spokesman Banphot Poonpian.
Col Banphot said those who took part included 4th Army commander Lt Gen Prakan Cholayuth and commanders of the Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat task forces.
Lt Gen Prakan briefed the army chief on the situation with the torched schools after he and Panu Uthairat, secretary-general of the Southern Border Provinces Administration Centre, visited the six institutions.
The 4th Army commander proposed a "Thung Yang Daeng" model whereby remote-controlled warning systems would be installed at all schools in the three southernmost provinces.
The warning system would be supervised by a civil defence volunteer unit, while security for each school would be provided by a village defence unit.
Tambon security units would be responsible for the roads between villages.
Col Banphot said Gen Udomdej ordered the immediate repair of the burnt buildings at the six Pattani schools so they could reopen on time.
If repairs could not be finished in time, tents would be erected for use as temporary classrooms, Col Banphot said.
The Education Ministry will set aside a budget for the construction of new buildings to replace those that are considered damaged beyond repair within six months, Col Banphot quoted Gen Udomdej as saying.
He said Gen Udomdej had also ordered army units to step up nighttime operations and establish tambon-level communication centres to report the situation around the clock along with regular security drills.
All units would be subject to evaluation every three months, Col Banphot said.