Pressure on us to call off talks: Thai-Muslim groups
Fauwaz Abdul AzizPublished: Oct 12, 2006 9:26 AM | Updated: Jan 29, 2008 10:21 AM
Leaders of southern Thailand's Muslim insurgent movements say the success of peace talks with the Thai government depend largely on their movements' ability to coax smaller armed groups into settling for an 'imperfect peace'.
Leaders of southern Thailand's Muslim insurgent movements say the success of peace talks with the Thai government depend largely on their movements' ability to coax smaller armed groups into settling for an 'imperfect peace'.
They say various other factors may also pose as obstacles to the talks aimed at quelling unrest that has seen the loss of thousands of lives and economic stagnation in the south over the past three decades.
The leaders point out that steps taken by the country's current military to engage in talks with leaders of the insurgency could be halted altogether by the next civilian government that is voted in by the people.
There could also be a reversal of policy in which case Bangkok continues the 'iron fist, velvet glove' policy of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra before his ouster in the Sept 19 coup d'etat. This would mean a military solution to the problem.
They are also worried that tensions between former Malaysian premier Dr Mahathir Mohamed and his successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi would render uncertain what steps the current Malaysian administration will take should it dabble in the Mahathir-brokered peace talks.
Officials from the Prime Minister's Department are said to be visiting Bangkok this Oct 17 specifically to discuss with Thai leaders the recent peace initiative and a peace plan for the Muslim south.
Trust factor
Leading figures in insurgent groups, however, say of more immediate concern is armed groups within southern Thailand who do not have the same enthusiasm for a peaceful, albeit imperfect, settlement of the contentious issues at stake.
Signing the peace plan - dubbed the Joint Development and Peace Plan for Southern Thailand - which was submitted to the Thai military government last month soon after Thaksin's downfall, are four relatively established groups led by the Barisan Bersatu Kemerdekaan Pattani (Bersatu).
The leaders of the groups are said to have been inundated by calls from various quarters, both individuals and groups, in southern Thailand urging them not to engage in talks with Bangkok.
"Ever since it was announced that we were engaged in preliminary discussions for a peace plan, I've received calls from some people who said, 'Don't sign, don't sign," said one leader when contacted by malaysiakini.
Among the reasons for this, he said, was their refusal to give up on the insurgency at a time when trust in the 'Siamese' Thai police and military is at its lowest ebb.
'No safety'
Thai-Muslim groups' leaders say that the number of Muslim youths and activists is disproportionately higher among those who have either disappeared, have been arrested, are unaccounted for or have been extrajudicially killed by the police and military.
"They've been chased until there's no where to go, their backs are to the wall. When this happens, they have no institution to turn to, no safety in the courts of law. 'We might as well fight', they argue.
"'We cannot trust them, the orang Siam (the Siamese). And you want to talk to them?' they (the people) said," said the leader.
The youths, he said, were not full-time armed members of any one group, but sympathised with the armed attacks and sometimes participated in them because of the injustices and discrimination to which they are subjected.
Though the total number of such people are small, especially in relation to the police and military presence in southern Thailand, they are in every village, revealed the leader.
Two categories
Another leader, when contacted, said the smaller hardlined groups posed a problem as they are not willing to cease their long-term and comprehensive goals for an independent southern Thai state for Muslims.
Barisan Revolusi Nasional-Coordinate, in particular, has from the beginning of its struggle called for total independence, and has urged the Bersatu leaders to disengage from talks with the Thai government if these mean compromising the goal of independence.
Other groups that hold a similar stance are the Thai-Muslim youth organisation Pemuda and Gerakan Islam Mujahidin Pattani (GIMP).
All these groups are not members of the more moderate umbrella body, Bersatu.
"Their leaders are among those that won't accept anything less than total independence, and have also called on me on a number of occasions to call off our talks," said the leader.
The leader said that these two categories, the grassroots and the smaller groups, posed the greatest risk for the talks being scuttled. This, he said, reflected the fact that the Muslim-South had not been sufficiently prepared for peace talks with the government.
Unless the smaller groups were addressed and engaged, violent attacks coming at this point of engagement with the Thai government could have disastrous, long-term consequences for peace talks in the future, he warned.
They say various other factors may also pose as obstacles to the talks aimed at quelling unrest that has seen the loss of thousands of lives and economic stagnation in the south over the past three decades.
The leaders point out that steps taken by the country's current military to engage in talks with leaders of the insurgency could be halted altogether by the next civilian government that is voted in by the people. There could also be a reversal of policy in which case Bangkok continues the 'iron fist, velvet glove' policy of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra before his ouster in the Sept 19 coup d'etat. This would mean a military solution to the problem.
They are also worried that tensions between former Malaysian premier Dr Mahathir Mohamed and his successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi would render uncertain what steps the current Malaysian administration will take should it dabble in the Mahathir-brokered peace talks.
Officials from the Prime Minister's Department are said to be visiting Bangkok this Oct 17 specifically to discuss with Thai leaders the recent peace initiative and a peace plan for the Muslim south.
Trust factor
Leading figures in insurgent groups, however, say of more immediate concern is armed groups within southern Thailand who do not have the same enthusiasm for a peaceful, albeit imperfect, settlement of the contentious issues at stake. Signing the peace plan - dubbed the Joint Development and Peace Plan for Southern Thailand - which was submitted to the Thai military government last month soon after Thaksin's downfall, are four relatively established groups led by the Barisan Bersatu Kemerdekaan Pattani (Bersatu).
The leaders of the groups are said to have been inundated by calls from various quarters, both individuals and groups, in southern Thailand urging them not to engage in talks with Bangkok.
"Ever since it was announced that we were engaged in preliminary discussions for a peace plan, I've received calls from some people who said, 'Don't sign, don't sign," said one leader when contacted by malaysiakini.
Among the reasons for this, he said, was their refusal to give up on the insurgency at a time when trust in the 'Siamese' Thai police and military is at its lowest ebb.
'No safety'
Thai-Muslim groups' leaders say that the number of Muslim youths and activists is disproportionately higher among those who have either disappeared, have been arrested, are unaccounted for or have been extrajudicially killed by the police and military.
"They've been chased until there's no where to go, their backs are to the wall. When this happens, they have no institution to turn to, no safety in the courts of law. 'We might as well fight', they argue. "'We cannot trust them, the orang Siam (the Siamese). And you want to talk to them?' they (the people) said," said the leader.
The youths, he said, were not full-time armed members of any one group, but sympathised with the armed attacks and sometimes participated in them because of the injustices and discrimination to which they are subjected.
Though the total number of such people are small, especially in relation to the police and military presence in southern Thailand, they are in every village, revealed the leader.
Two categories
Another leader, when contacted, said the smaller hardlined groups posed a problem as they are not willing to cease their long-term and comprehensive goals for an independent southern Thai state for Muslims.
Barisan Revolusi Nasional-Coordinate, in particular, has from the beginning of its struggle called for total independence, and has urged the Bersatu leaders to disengage from talks with the Thai government if these mean compromising the goal of independence.
Other groups that hold a similar stance are the Thai-Muslim youth organisation Pemuda and Gerakan Islam Mujahidin Pattani (GIMP).All these groups are not members of the more moderate umbrella body, Bersatu.
"Their leaders are among those that won't accept anything less than total independence, and have also called on me on a number of occasions to call off our talks," said the leader.
The leader said that these two categories, the grassroots and the smaller groups, posed the greatest risk for the talks being scuttled. This, he said, reflected the fact that the Muslim-South had not been sufficiently prepared for peace talks with the government.
Unless the smaller groups were addressed and engaged, violent attacks coming at this point of engagement with the Thai government could have disastrous, long-term consequences for peace talks in the future, he warned.
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