Thai Muslims from the village of Lahan which has declared itself a "no-go zone" to authorities say the government's hardline response to a Muslim insurgency has terrorised and radicalised them.

"So much blood has spilled. My uncle, a religious teacher was shot dead. It is now an eye for an eye. How can I forgive the Thai government?" a 32-year-old man who gave his name as Wan Abdul told AFP .

"Do you expect us to talk peace with the government when we are being killed and terrorised," he asked.

Over the past 20 months almost 900 people have been killed in the southern Thai provinces which are home to the majority of the Muslims living in this predominantly Buddhist nation.

Residents of Lahan, an otherwise nondescript village of several hundred people near the Malaysian border, rose up last week after the shooting death of a Muslim cleric which they suspect was carried out by security officers.

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra reacted angrily after they formed a human shield to prevent troops from entering and searching their homes - an incident repeated Sunday when they barred access to the provincial governor.

"There should not be any area in this country which is off limits to officials. Any area that claims they are restricted - I will go there myself," he said last Friday.

Cannot forgive nor forget

But the villagers say that the harsher the response of the Thai government, the worse the violence in the south will become.

"Thaksin's use of force has backfired. He has alienated the Muslims," said one resident of the policies which include controversial emergency measures declared last month that give authorities sweeping powers.

"These wounds run deep in our heart. We cannot forget and cannot forgive. This makes a peaceful settlement impossible and fuels the fight for independence," said the 35-year-old rubber tapper.

A few years ago it was difficult to find villagers in the south willing to admit publicly to any sympathy for the Muslim separatist movement which has simmered here for decades.

But despite the climate of fear, some Lahan residents were willing to tell a reporter that with the prospect of peace so remote, they believed the only way to end the abuses was to take up arms.

"Now, there is no justice for Muslims. If I have the opportunity to take revenge, it will be life for a life. And justice and freedom will only come with full independence," said Wan Abdul.

As well as being the scene Sunday of a stand-off with Narathiwat governor Pracha Techarat who was attempting to visit the family of the slain Muslim cleric Satopa Yuso, Lahan is also one of the villages that spawned a flight of dozens of Thai Muslims across the border to Malaysia last week.

Psychological strain

Those left behind said they were forced to flee because of the financial and psychological strain of the recent upsurge in violence including bombings last week in the Sungai Kolok border town which has hit local businesses hard.

Most people here are poor farmers and traders struggling to make a simple living in a region which has become increasingly militarised. The jitters are reinforced by the highly visible presence of heavily armed Thai soldiers.

At one checkpoint, an armoured Humvee was parked on the road while a half a dozen troops stopped and checked passing motorists. At security posts elsewhere, soldiers with automatic weapons stand guard behind sandbags.

"We are living in fear every day - be it day time or night. We are even afraid to go about our daily work of tapping rubber or to our paddy fields," said the rubber tapper who declined to be named for fear of arrest.

"I do not want to disappear or be arrested for what I will say. It is the truth. We are living in hell but no one is listening to our plight," he said.

"The fear of being arrested or being shot for no apparent reason drove the 131 Thais into Malaysia. More Thais may slip into Malaysia if the atrocities do not stop," he warned.

'Its really scary'

Another rubber tapper, who gave his name as Wan Ismail, said he had witnessed troops surround a nearby village one night.

"They don't come knocking. Just like the US troops in Iraq, the Thai soldiers force their way by smashing the door. It is really scary," he said.

Thai authorities have reportedly accused the militants of shooting the Muslim cleric, saying they had framed security forces in a bid to win the sympathy of villgers, and encouraged the border exodus to internationalise the problem.

But Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar has said that whether the threat is real or imaginary, Thailand must win the support of Muslims in the south, to prevent any more spillovers across the border.

"We hope Thailand will undertake efforts to win the hearts and minds of the Muslims there because it is clear that there is fear," he said on the weekend.