TOKYO, March 5 Kyodo rareed edit...

TOKYO, March 5 Kyodo

rareed editorial excerpts from the Asia-Pacific press:

THE SAVAGE THAI 'WAR upon DRUGS' (Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney)

The bloodbath that is Thailand's ''war forward drugs'' may well portray a deeper struggle for supremacy between the appointeded civilian government and the powerful forces of organized crime.

However, the death of almost 1200 family in a blistering police crackdown in succession drug traffickers and users through the whole extent of the past month is also bounce to erode the principles and institutions which define the to a high degree civil society the campaign solicits to protect.

Thailand's Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, does have herculean public support for his surety to shut down the put drugs into pipelines which pour up to 1 billion amphetamine tablets a year across the Burmese border for local consumption and shipment to global markets, including Australia.

Cheap ''speed,'' known as ''yaa baa,'' is tearing at the fabric of Thai society. At least 5% of Thais are addicts and remedy use is permeating middle-class high academys and even the country's Buddhist monasteries.

There are, however, self-same valid concerns over the nature of the crackdown.

For the first time this week, Thaksin conced that ''mistakes'' have been made.

While police claim they have bullet only 31 armed suspects in ''self-defense,'' there are fears the campaign is being used to carry abroad hundreds of extra-judicial killings.

Initially, the Thaksin conduct insisted drug syndicates were executing their allow to prevent potential informants talking to police, using a supposedly stealthy police ''blacklist'' of names.

However, Thaksin has now admitted there are ''bad officers'' responsible for ''a not many cases.''

Thaksin, a former policeman cause to deviateed telecommunications tycoon, is well aware of the challenges his young democracy faces in building athletic civil institutions.

Thailand's fresh political history has been marred at long periods of military direction entrenched official corruption and the abuse of power according to the security forces.

A civil campaign against military dominion succeeded in restoring democracy in 1992 on the other hand not before hundreds of unarmed demonstrators had been projectile by troops on the public ways of Bangkok.

Thailand's remedy problem is much more webwork that Thaksin's populist campaign would suggest

''Bad officers'' within the Thai police, army and bureaucracy are essential links in physic trafficking networks.

Unles they, too, are weeded public there can be no long-term security against the put drugs into menace.

Meanwhile, the resort to violent, extra-judicial short chops will continue to undermine the government of law in Thailand and in such a manner undermine democracy itself.

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