BANGKOK – Thai police said on Monday they had arrested a suspect linked to Muslim separatists in connection with a wave of bombings in tourist towns last month that killed four people and wounded dozens, including foreigners.

The bombs and arson attacks in various towns south of Bangkok including Hua Hin, Surat Thani and on Phuket island, raised fears that a Muslim separatist insurgency, for years largely confined to three deep-south, Muslim-majority provinces, was spreading.

Police have issued several warrants in connection with the blasts but the suspect detained on Saturday, identified as Abdul Kadae, was the first person to be arrested.

“The suspect is currently in military custody where he is being interrogated,” police deputy spokesman Krisana Pattanacharoen told Reuters.

Police said Kadae was from Pattani, one of the three troubled, Muslim-majority provinces in the far south of predominantly Buddhist Thailand, and he had connections to separatists.

They did not elaborate but said he was suspected of arson in Trang province as part of the Aug. 11-12 wave of attacks.

Kadae can be held in military custody for up to seven days before he is allowed access to a lawyer.

More than 6,500 people have been killed in the largely ethnic-Malay provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat since a separatist insurgency resurfaced there in 2004, according to the group Deep South Watch, which monitors the conflict.

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AFP

Hong Kong – Nathan Law, a student leader of Hong Kong’s mass ‘Umbrella Revolution’ democracy rallies two years ago, is now at the forefront of a new guard of young lawmakers pushing for autonomy from China.

In the biggest polls since the 2014 protests made Law a household name in Hong Kong, the 23-year-old entered the legislature with a convincing victory, gaining more than 50,000 votes.

He becomes the youngest lawmaker to win a seat in the Legislative Council (LegCo) in this year’s vote.

Hong Kong elections 2016

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AFP

Law was representing new party Demosisto – which he founded with fellow Umbrella Movement leader Joshua Wong – calling for Hong Kong people to have the right to vote in a referendum on independence from Beijing.

Britain in 1997 handed the city back to China under a “one country, two systems” agreement, with its rights and freedoms guaranteed for 50 years under a semi-autonomous system.

But fears are growing that Beijing is tightening its grip and that those liberties are being eroded.

Law has pledged to push his party’s self-determination message from the start in LegCo, the city’s lawmaking body.

“People are voting (for) a new way and a new future for the democratic movement,” he said after his win.

“I’m bearing the trust and support of many people. It motivates me to do better.” In an interview with AFP, Law cast himself as a bridge to unite the factions of the democratic camp, which is split between established parties wary of a pro-independence message and new activists who want more autonomy.

University student Law, who is reading cultural studies, rose to prominence during the 2014 rallies, delivering speeches to tens of thousands who protested on the streets and meeting government officials in what were ultimately fruitless negotiations.

After the failure of the Umbrella Movement to win political reform, morale in the pro-democracy camp waned, with Law and Wong in and out of court on protest-related charges.

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Reuters, AFP

Law was last month convicted of inciting people to join an unlawful assembly, but escaped jail time with a community service sentence.

His election is a validation of the 2014 rallies, says Law, one of at least four young campaigners who are calling for more distance from Beijing to win a LegCo seat.

“There are a lot more people coming out to vote because they see new choice,” Law said.

“We inherited some spirit from the (Umbrella) Movement and I hope that that can continue in the future.”

Before he leaves for Laos this afternoon, President Duterte will sign the formal proclamation on the state of lawless violence in the country, which he announced early Saturday morning after a deadly bomb blast in his hometown, according to Malacañang.

Assistant Secretary Kris Ablan of the Presidential Communications Office said the proclamation was prepared by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.

Duterte earlier said he was declaring a state of lawlessness to allow the military to work with the police in securing the country through checkpoints and increased patrols.

Actions taken by security forces would be intended to stop terrorism as well as the illegal drug scourge in the wake of the numerous incidents of extrajudicial killings of drug suspects, the President had said.

Duterte will depart from Davao City this afternoon for his official visit to Laos to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit.

He will next fly to Indonesia for a working visit.