Thailand's Cabinet on Tuesday imposed emergency rule in three provinces in the Muslim-dominated south, letting authorities detain suspects without charge and censor the media as the military battles an 18-month insurgency that has left more than 900 people dead. The declaration _ which took immediate effect _ came under a new decree that grants Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra sweeping authority and was issued after rebels launched a daring raid Thursday on the southern provincial capital of Yala, The Associated Press reported. Critics say the decree was enacted too hastily without parliamentary approval, and gives Thaksin too much power at the expense of human and civil rights. The government can issue decrees instead of passing bills through Parliament if it is not in session, and it currently is not. The declaration covers Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani, the only Muslim-dominated provinces in mostly Buddhist Thailand.
