Fighting terrorism and cracking down on smuggling across their restive border topped talks between Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and Thailand’s junta chief, the leaders said yesterday.
Thailand’s three Muslim-majority southernmost provinces bordering Malaysia are plagued by a bloody insurgency waged by ethnic Malay militants seeking greater autonomy from the Thai state.
The porous 650km (400 mile) border is also a hotbed of crime, criss-crossed by human traffickers, drug mules and weapon smugglers.
“We will continue to work closely together to combat the threat of global terrorism, human trafficking and transnational crime, including violent extremism,” Najib told reporters in a press conference alongside his Thai counterpart, Prayut Chan-ocha.
“These are very, very important matters for us to work on closely together because some of the perpetrators, they move between our two countries,” he said, adding that the governments are still discussing a proposal to erect a new “fence or wall” along the shared border.
The border has for years been a well-trodden route for people smugglers bringing migrants and trafficking victims into Malaysia.
But the trade has slowed since the Thai junta launched a belated crackdown last year that saw smugglers abandon hundreds of people on boats and in squalid jungle camps.
Ethnic Malay rebels fighting the Thai state are also thought to routinely slip across the border to seek refuge.
Thai provinces Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat were once part of an independent Malay Muslim sultanate until they were annexed by Thailand in 1909.
The festering insurgency has killed thousands of people, mostly civilians, since the most recent wave of rebellion erupted in 2004.
Since then, 6,500 people have been killed, says Deep South Watch, a body that monitors the violence.
The Malaysian prime minister’s visit comes amid a flare-up of violence in the area, with three deadly bombings in the past month.
While the violence has historically been contained to the southernmost provinces, analysts believe the rebels were also behind a string of bombings that struck Thai tourist towns further north in early August.
Najib reaffirmed Malaysia’s commitment to hosting nascent peace negotiations between the Thai government and a group that claims to represent the insurgents.
However, the talks have yet to bear any fruit and the recent uptick in violence suggests the rebel negotiators have little sway over fighters on the ground.
The two leaders also discussed expanding trade between the two countries and bolstering transportation links.