Army chief: Proposed special zone in Thai deep South should be reviewed

BANGKOK, June 21 (TNA) - Thai Army Commander-in-Chief General Prayuth Chan-o-cha has called for a review on a proposed plan to establish a special administrative zone in the country's southernmost region.

General Prayuth told reporters on Tuesday before travelling to the Thai deep South that he considers the existing central and provincial administrative systems, are most suitable for upholding national stability and solidarity, urging those who have proposed the setting up of the special administrative zone in the Thai restive South to review the idea to prevent adverse effects on national interest in the long run.

General Prayuth said that he would be inspecting the updated situation and following up progress on military strategies having been implemented over the past six momths during his visit to the country's insurgency-plagued southern border region.

According to the Thai army chief, incidents caused by suspected insurgents in the troubled Thai deep South have dropped over the past six months, thanks to the government's success, to some extent, in promoting public participation in and creating their proper understanding to state policies, though violence has remained there, due to lingering insurgency plots and responding actions by the government side through preventive and suppressive measures more aggressively in targeted areas. (TNA)