A woman walks past birdcages after she crossed the border from Malaysia into Thailand in Sungai Kolok in southern Narathiwat province. Last week, in a deal brought about with the help of Malaysia, Thailand agreed to pursue a peace talks with the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), one of the Muslim groups fighting for autonomy in the south. Resistance to Buddhist rule from Bangkok has existed for decades in the predominantly Muslim provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat, which were part of a Malay sultanate before being annexed by Thailand in 1909.DAMIR SAGOLJ/Reuters