Beach duty (Hua Hin) first for South police

[PeteC]

Beach duty first for South police (Photos at link)

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews ... ding-south

Published: 24 Mar 2013 at 19.31
Online news:

HUA HIN - Before heading south to confront armed rebels and risk their lives, about 1,600 newly trained border patrol police got a chance to enjoy sea, sand, sun and garbage on the popular Hua Hin beach on Sunday when they were sent to carry out one of their last pre-tour missions.

Pol Maj Gen Santi Malikao, deputy commander of the Southern Border Provinces Police Operation Centre (SBPAC) organised the officers into groups to prowl the four kilometre stretch of beach to remove rubbish and debris.

The "Hua Hin beach operation" was part of development projects initiated by the Border Patrol Police Division.

The 1,600 recruits are made up of paramilitary rangers and men who have completed a two-year conscription term and are members of the Army Reserve Command. They will complete their training courses next month and will be stationed in the three southern border provinces in the middle of May.

The army plans to deploy 3,400 police officers to the lower South.

Their deployment is part of the army’s three-phase strategy to handle the southern insurgency problem, according to Col Pramote Prommin, spokesman for the 4th Region Forward Command of the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc).

Col Pramote said the first phase of the strategy, which lasted from 2004 to 2009, was called “stop the bleeding” which underlined the importance of building security in the region.

The second, from 2010 to the present, was designed to strengthen all sectors and about 3,400 police officers would be deployed to the lower South in the mid-May as part of the plan.

The third phrase was expected to be implemented by April. If the violence ends, military personnel sent to the South from the First, Second and Third Army Region would return to their bases and transfer to other areas.