Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra publicly apologized Sunday for the deaths of dozens of Muslim protesters during a 2004 army crackdown in southern Thailand, marking his first acknowledgment of the incident known as the Tak Bai massacre.
The apology comes four months after legal charges against seven officials linked to the killings expired, ending hopes for prosecution. Thaksin, who was prime minister at the time, spoke during his first visit in 19 years to Thailand’s mostly Muslim south, where a long-running conflict between separatist groups and the government has claimed thousands of lives.
“If I caused any mistakes or hurt feelings, I want to say sorry,” Thaksin told reporters. Rights activists noted this was his first public apology for the massacre, though some urged him to meet victims’ families directly.
On October 25, 2004, Thai soldiers fired on a crowd protesting outside a police station in Tak Bai town, killing seven. Later, 78 detained protesters died after being piled into military trucks, unable to breathe. Families of the victims tried for years to bring officials to court, but the case stalled when suspects avoided hearings. Last year, Thaksin’s daughter, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, said the legal time limit to pursue charges had passed.
Thaksin’s apology follows renewed attention to the massacre, seen as a symbol of injustice in the south. The region has seen decades of violence as ethnic Malay Muslim rebels push for independence from Thailand, a mostly Buddhist nation.
Rights advocate Anchana Heemmina called the apology a “first step” but stressed accountability remains elusive. “If he means it, he should apologize to the families in person,” she said.
The Shinawatra family’s political party, now leading Thailand’s government, faces pressure to address past abuses while balancing ties with the military, which has long held influence over Thai politics.