By Thai Newsroom Reporters
WA REBELS HAVE YET shown no signs of withdrawing from high terrains in Thai territory of Mae Hong Son sharing the northern border with Myanmar’s Shan State despite a stern warning from Thailand, said a noted observer today (Dec. 19).
An estimated 2,000 United Wa State Army rebels have been reportedly occupying eight or nine spots on mountain ridges along the Thai-Myanmar border with a few being evidently located in Thai territory of Pai district of Mae Hong Son, according to Dulayapak Preecharat, deputy director of Thammasat University’s Institute of East Asian Studies, who has recently visited nearby areas.
The UWSA rebels have shown no sign of withdrawing though they had been warned by the Thai army of trespassing Thai territory and given a one-month period until yesterday (Dec. 18) to withdraw.
In addition to the heavily-armed militants, thousands of Wa villagers had been mobilised from the northern part of Shan state to occupy the Thai-Myanmar border mountain ridges and high terrains in Pai district, Dulayapak said.
Remarkably, the UWSA rebels have evidently seized the so-called Nong Luang natural pond in Thai territory about one to two km from the northern border ridges, the observer said.
Nevertheless, Third Army Region commander Lt.Gen. Kittipong Jamsuwan denied that the one-month period was officially construed as a deadline for Wa rebels to pull out whilst, he said, peaceful talks between the Thai authorities and representatives of the Wa rebels would be indefinitely held further.
Lt.Gen. Kittipong said no deadline would be specifically set by the Thai side for Wa rebels to completely withdraw from Thai territory in Mae Hong Son’s border area but confirmed his Third Army has already been “combat-ready.”
The army general declined to respond to unconfirmed news reports that the Wa rebels had bargained for a three-month time to pull out, however.
The Wa rebels have manufactured colossal amounts of drugs ranging from opium to methamphetamine which have been trafficked across the Thai-Myanmar border into the interior of Thailand and destined for black markets in this country and elsewhere around the globe.
CAPTION:
Aerial view of one of the spots occupied by Wa rebels. Photo: Thai Rath
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