[AFP] Thai army and Muslim insurgent negotiators agreed on Tuesday to create a "safety zone" in southern Thailand. Talks held in Kuala Lumpur have staggered on for years, undercut by bombs, ambushes and assassinations in the far South and a decade of political instability in Bangkok. The army has been talking with Mara Patani, an umbrella group that says it is a political wing representing a shadowy network of fighters. The Thai side doubts the Mara's ability to get rebels to put down their guns. For their part, the militants are not convinced Thailand's military government will reduce its massive security presence across the south or devolve significant political power.
But in a confidence-building measure both sides on Tuesday "approved and adopted a general framework for the implementation of a safety zone in one of five proposed districts," the Mara said in a statement.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha welcomed the development but warned that continued militant attacks undermining the safety zone would damage the peace process. He said, "If the safety zone cannot happen, it will prove the potential of the people we are talking to."