YUWADEE TUNYASIRI
Bangkok Post
Fifteen Cambodian Muslims allegedly bound for the deep South were detained at a checkpoint in Sa Kaeo province yesterday after one was found to have brought in gear that could be used to make bombs. A combined team of police, soldiers and customs officials searched a group of 15 Muslims from Cambodia and found a bag belonging to one of them containing two sets of electric circuit boards, one electric-relay system set, and five sets of wooden box parts.
Bomb experts were called in to perform checks on the devices which they said could be used to assemble home-made bombs.
Man Mat-aree, 29, the owner of the bag, claimed that the devices belonged to a Cambodian Muslim who asked him to bring the devices to another Muslim friend who lived along the Thai-Malaysian border.
He said he was told the devices would be used to make explosives for catching fish. The devices were later seized.
He and the 14 other Cambodians were interrogated before being sent back to their home country.
No charges were pressed against them as they all had the proper travel documents.
Meanwhile, Gen Wattanachai Chaimuenwong denied having linked some Cambodian Muslims entering the country to the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist group.
Gen Wattanachai, the prime minister's adviser on security affairs, yesterday said he never gave a press interview linking Cambodian Muslims to the terrorist group as reported.
However, he admitted he had talked with some reporters about the southern problems but claimed he did not discuss any alleged involvement of some Cambodian Muslims in the JI network.
He asked the media to be careful in presenting news stories in ways that might affect bilateral cooperation between Thailand and its neighbours.
Earlier, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen angrily denied published comments attributed to Gen Wattanachai that some Cambodian Muslims were fanning the Islamic insurgency in southern Thailand.
Hun Sen accused Thailand of trying to blame its own problems on other countries.
On the influx of Cambodian workers into the country, Gen Wattanachai said many Cambodian immigrants have arrived in Thailand legally en route to seeking jobs in the South. However, there is no record of their departure from Thailand.
He also denied giving information that Her Majesty the Queen's planned trip to the deep South in October was aimed at helping Thai Buddhists living in the three southern provinces bordering Malaysia.
He said the Queen was kind to all Thais regardless of their religious beliefs and wanted peace to be restored in the region quickly.He also denied any knowledge of reports that some ustazes, or Islamic religious teachers, detained on suspicion of involvement in the southern violence, had failed to report to authorities after their temporary release.
He said southern insurgents had no ideology. They carried out violent attacks on orders from their leaders.
He conceded the southern situation has grown increasingly violent due to financial support from donors outside and inside the country.
Bomb experts were called in to perform checks on the devices which they said could be used to assemble home-made bombs.
Man Mat-aree, 29, the owner of the bag, claimed that the devices belonged to a Cambodian Muslim who asked him to bring the devices to another Muslim friend who lived along the Thai-Malaysian border.
He said he was told the devices would be used to make explosives for catching fish. The devices were later seized.
He and the 14 other Cambodians were interrogated before being sent back to their home country.
No charges were pressed against them as they all had the proper travel documents.
Meanwhile, Gen Wattanachai Chaimuenwong denied having linked some Cambodian Muslims entering the country to the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist group.
Gen Wattanachai, the prime minister's adviser on security affairs, yesterday said he never gave a press interview linking Cambodian Muslims to the terrorist group as reported.
However, he admitted he had talked with some reporters about the southern problems but claimed he did not discuss any alleged involvement of some Cambodian Muslims in the JI network.
He asked the media to be careful in presenting news stories in ways that might affect bilateral cooperation between Thailand and its neighbours.
Earlier, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen angrily denied published comments attributed to Gen Wattanachai that some Cambodian Muslims were fanning the Islamic insurgency in southern Thailand.
Hun Sen accused Thailand of trying to blame its own problems on other countries.
On the influx of Cambodian workers into the country, Gen Wattanachai said many Cambodian immigrants have arrived in Thailand legally en route to seeking jobs in the South. However, there is no record of their departure from Thailand.
He also denied giving information that Her Majesty the Queen's planned trip to the deep South in October was aimed at helping Thai Buddhists living in the three southern provinces bordering Malaysia.
He said the Queen was kind to all Thais regardless of their religious beliefs and wanted peace to be restored in the region quickly.He also denied any knowledge of reports that some ustazes, or Islamic religious teachers, detained on suspicion of involvement in the southern violence, had failed to report to authorities after their temporary release.
He said southern insurgents had no ideology. They carried out violent attacks on orders from their leaders.
He conceded the southern situation has grown increasingly violent due to financial support from donors outside and inside the country.
