July 24, 2007: The army
campaign in the south, to identify and arrest Islamic terrorists, has finally
paid off. Nearly 400 suspects have been arrested recently, and a few dozen
positively identified as terrorists. But this has angered many other
southerners, and increased sympathy for the terrorists in some areas. The
number of terrorist attacks is down, and many terrorists have headed for the
hills. This makes it more difficult to carry out attacks, and makes it easier
for the army to identify the guilty. Meanwhile,
the terrorists are trying to hit tourist areas, and destroy infrastructure
(railroads and electricity). The military is determined to stop the violence,
and is now employing the traditional method, which has always worked in the
past, of applying more violence. This is great for the media, but not-so-great
for Moslems who live near terror suspects, or relatives of the suspects. The
army casts a wide net, and beats suspects until they confess, or convince the
cops of their innocence.
There was more violence in the
capital over the weekend, as anti-coup demonstrators clashed with police,
leaving nearly 300 injured. The pressure from people against the current
military government has made the generals eager to shut down the terrorism in
the south, to show that the army is useful, if a bit rough around the edges.
