Time to disarm arms traffickers

Time to disarm arms traffickers

Before (President Megawati Sukarnoputri) arrived (in Bangkok),
Thai and Indonesian officials expected her to do little more than
shake hands, exchange pleasantries.

In her meeting with Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra she
brought up the arrest last May of two Thai army sergeants in
Songkhla.

Still sketchy reports said they were charged with preparing to
ship hand grenades, rifle ammunition and land mines to rebel
forces in Aceh.

Thailand has been named in many reports over the last decade
as a major trafficker in illegal small arms. The last U.S. report
on money laundering said Thai arms trafficking was as important
as drugs and human trafficking.

It is widely believed that high-ranking, corrupt military
officers are behind the Thai arms trafficking. The Thai army has
vastly improved its image in recent years, but the arrest of the
sergeants in Songkhla touched off allegations that they were
merely scapegoats for their superior officers.

It is time to tackle this criminal activity, and to thank Mrs.
Megawati for bringing it up.

-- The Bangkok Post