BANGKOK
The Thai junta has pledged that seven soldiers responsible for the deaths of four men in the southern province of Pattani would "undergo the judicial process," local media reported Thursday.
On March 25, soldiers stormed a construction site in To Chut village, Pattani province, killing four Muslim men.
The military initially said at least two of them were members of Runda Kumpulan Kecil, one of the militant separatist groups active in the region. They also claimed the soldiers fired only after being shot at and said weapons had been found next to the bodies.
On Tuesday, an investigative team concluded that none of the four men were connected with the insurgency and that the weapons did not belong to them. The investigation, composed of government officials, military and police officers and community leaders, recommended that seven soldiers be put on trial.
"This should serve as a cautionary lesson," Defense Minister Gen. Prawit Wongsuwan said, quoted in The Nation newspaper.
"I believe the officers were doing their best but this operation took place at night, which means there might have been other factors, leading to mistakes. However, all of them will have to undergo the judicial process."
Gen. Prakarn Chonlayuth, commander of the 4th Army, publicly apologized for the killings Tuesday. He pledged to launch disciplinary proceedings against the seven soldiers in addition to legal action.
Earlier the same day, The Nation had published a strongly-worded editorial criticizing the military for its actions in Thailand’s southern provinces, where the population is 80 percent Muslim.
"The decade-old emergency decree, coupled with a culture of impunity for security officials, has helped foster a ‘shoot-to-kill’ attitude among security officials," it said. "They know that the law -- which many locals have dubbed a license to kill -- will protect them."
Under the emergency law, imposed in Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat provinces and four districts of Songkhla province, the security forces are not liable for their actions if they were "acting in the line of duty."
Wongsuwan said Wednesday that he did not think the military’s tactics should be reassessed in the wake of the killings.
A guerrilla war against the Thai state in the south was reignited in 2004 with a new wave of attacks on the military, police and Buddhist monks.
The Thai junta has said it wishes to continue discussions with the insurgents but some are reluctant to take part as political autonomy has been excluded from the agenda.
