Thread: Thai Muslim south - Some 15 per cent of schools torched

Some 15 per cent of schools torched in Thai Muslim south



YALA - About 15 per cent of government schools in Thailand's Muslimmajority south have been torched while 71 teachers have been killed in three years of bloody unrest, officials said Wednesday.

Separatist militants frequently attacks schools in the region along the southern border with Malaysia because they are seen as symbols of Thailand's attempt to impose Buddhist Thai culture on this Muslim, ethnic Malay region.

A total of 71 teachers have been killed and 68 wounded in shooting and bomb attacks, said Pradit Rasittanont, director of the regional education office.

Some 166 of the region's 1,098 schools have been torched by suspected Islamic insurgents, he added. Five of them had been repaired and reopened only to be set ablaze again, Pradit said.

The attacks were more frequent during the six-week school holidays, he added.

"There were 32 schools burnt during the holiday, which was unprecedented, and there is a growing tendency for the militants to carry out arson attacks during daytime," Pradit added.

Armed soldiers escort teachers to and from school, and patrol the campuses every day.

Education authorities have not compiled data on how many students have been affected by the violence or how much the damage has cost, Pradit said.

Agence France-Presse