Thailand Dismisses Torture Report As One-Sided

BANGKOK, Feb 12 (Bernama) -- Thailand has dismissed as one-sided a report on allegations of torture in the conflict-ridden south and said it was aimed at soliciting funds from abroad. Maj Gen Banpot Poonpien, spokesman for the Internal Security Operations Command, said the report by a group of NGOs was released despite the situation in the south having attained real progress and the level of violence having reduced markedly. "Regarding this (the report), ISOC would like to explain that there has been constant progress to address problems in the deep south over the past 12 years based on the policies and strategies developed by the government. "It has helped transform the unrest in the deep south, paving the way towards a resolution of the conflicts based on peaceful means and based on good cooperation from all concerned parties," he said in a statement here. Banpot was responding to a report released by the Cross Cultural Foundation (CrCF), the Pattani Human Rights Network and the Duay Jai Group on allegations of torture in southern Thailand, based on interviews with 54 alleged victims. According to Banpot, the security forces had undergone constant training to raise the level of awareness among them from committing any act that might pose a problem in terms of human rights. The security forces, he said, also relied on cooperation from religious and community leaders to be witnesses while enforcing the law. During the launch of the report recently in Pattani, CrCF director Pornpen Khongkachonkiet said it took two years to complete the report but reiterated that it was not aimed at discrediting the security forces. The group, he said, would forward the report to the 4th Army Command responsible for security in southern Thailand, chief negotiator to the southern Thailand peace talks Gen Aksara Kerdpol and Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha. -- BERNAMA