Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra insists the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) remains influential in the restive region, but his comments have failed to convince the army chief.
Prayuth: The BRN is far South’s old guard
Thaksin, who engineered the deal signed between the National Security Council (NSC) and the BRN in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, told the mass circulation Thai Rath that only militant groups based in Malaysia and Indonesia are behind the trouble in the southernmost provinces.
Factions based in the two countries control 90% of militant operations in the deep South, he said.
The operations of other groups in other countries were only symbolic, he added, when asked about the role of the BRN.
NSC secretary-general Lt Gen Paradorn Pattanatabut inked the deal to open dialogue with the BRN with its liaison official Hassan Taib. The deal starts two weeks from Thursday.
Thaksin said the agreement followed his visit to Malaysia last year to hold talks with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.
The meeting cleared the path for Pol Col Thawee Sodsong, chief of the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre, to talk to key insurgent leaders including Sapae-ing Basor, he said.
Thaksin said he would follow up the latest move by seeking cooperation from Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
Former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari helped contact insurgent factions, he added.
Gen Prayuth, however, said there were other factions operating in the restive region and the group which signed the agreement with the NSC was an old-guard outfit.
The BRN is trying to re-establish its role in the far South and its influence with other insurgents, he said.
The army chief said young militants should be the target of talks. He said he doubted whether these militants were listening to the BRN faction represented by Mr Hassan.
He was sceptical the violence would end just because the government is entering a dialogue with separatists, saying the agreement was only one of several means to put an end to the problem.
He called for patience to see how the situation in the troubled region develops.
"The [peace talk] agreement is simply another channel to resolve the problem. And just because the matter is being brought to the [negotiating] table doesn't mean the rebel group can demand anything," said Gen Prayuth.
Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva reiterated his position yesterday that the authority of Mr Hassan over other militant factions remains to be seen and he was not convinced the deal will help bring the violence to an end.
Bombs in the wake of the agreement underscored continued violence in the region and government efforts to restore peace in the region with separatists needed confidence-building measures and mutual trust from both sides, he added.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has given her deputy premier, Chalerm Yubamrung, power to resolve the problem by working with other agencies.
Mr Chalerm said his first trip to the restive region will be arranged in one week but did not specific the day he would travel to the South.
Meanwhile, a leading member of a Runda Kumpalan Kecil (RKK) separatist group was killed in a clash with government forces late on Saturday night in Narathiwat's Rangae district.
The clash occurred about 11.30pm after three teams of the 48th Rangers Regiment laid siege to a house at Ban Kutong in tambon Bongo where three RKK insurgents led by Masa-e Hajidiyoliya, 30, were reported to be hiding. An exchange of gunfire took place for about 10 minutes.
Another exchange of fire erupted when the rangers were reinforced by a police special operations team.
The three insurgents tried to break through the siege. Masa-e was shot dead about 20 metres from the house while the two others managed to escape into the dark.
The authorities recovered an ID card bearing the name of Hasman Samamaeng, 36, at the scene.
The body of Masa-e was riddled with bullets. An 11mm pistol with 50 rounds of ammunition was found by his side.
The government forces seized four motorcycles from the house.
Masa-e was wanted under six arrest warrants for six security-related incidents _ one in 2007, two in 2008 and three in 2009.