SLAYING OF 152ND TEACHER IN FAR SOUTH
The spirit of teachers in the far southern province of Narathiwat has sunk to an all-time low after the shooting of a staff member from Baan Bor Ngo School in Rangae district on Monday.
The school abruptly suspended classes on learning of the slaying of Komsun Chomyong, who became the 152nd member of the country’s educational personnel to be killed in the insurgency, which has raged in the far south since 2004.
Sanguan Indharak, president of the Teachers’ Federation of Narathiwat, said yesterday troops sealed the area where Komsun was shot dead in an attempt to find the culprits. “Our spirit has been low for years due to the daily violence in the region. But now it is at its lowest because of Monday’s attack on Khru Komsun,” he said.
Sanguan spoke after attending an urgent meeting of teachers’ federations in the southern region in Songkhla. The meeting agreed the situation had worsened and that teachers and students’ lives were at risk. They were considering postponing final exams in a bid to close the first semester earlier than scheduled.
It was possible that final exams will be conducted at the beginning of the second semester to allow security officials to control the situation and reduce risks to teachers and students, he said.
Schools are allowed to make their own decisions on whether to speed up the exams and end the semester early or to delay the exams till the next semester.
Security authorities yesterday tightened security in Narathiwat after Komsun was shot dead while returning home from school on Monday.
Police are seeking the gunman who took the slain teacher’s handgun. The homes of suspects have been raided, but the killer has not been found.
Ba-ngokubo village in Bor Ngo sub-district is believed to house armed RKK militants. The authorities believe the gunman is still hiding in the area.
Patrol and teacher protection units stepped up security measures while the school has been closed temporarily because of the slaying. The body of the teacher will be returned to his home in the central province of Ratchaburi.
In related news, a village headman, Khorya Palae, 55, and his assistant, Sama-ae Kaleh, 52, were shot dead while returning home in a pickup from a monthly meeting in Yarang in Pattani yesterday afternoon. Assailants on a motorcycle approached their truck on a rural road between Pong Sata Village and Sa No Village before shooting a rifle at them, killing Khorya instantly. Sama-ae was pronounced dead at Pattani Hospital.
