National divide and deep-South volatility threaten to converge

[webfact]

National divide and deep-South volatility threaten to converge

 

File photo

 

The seeds of Thailand’s two biggest troubles — the political divide and insurgency in the deep South — were apparently sowed in 2001. That year, national politics went past the point of normalcy with the culmination in the Constitution Court of Thaksin Shinawatra’s “hidden shares” scandal. He survived the grueling scrutiny but, under his government, some big changes were effected in the deep South in the same year that some say would turn a dormant volcano into an active one.

 

What if Thaksin had been banned from politics that year by the Constitution Court for “hiding” his Shin Corporation shares in servants’ accounts? What if the old security system and practices in the southernmost region had been maintained? Peace lovers can only ask the “If only” questions.

 

Yet until recently, the two crises unfolded mostly on parallel realms. They occasionally crossed ways — like when terrorist incidents took place outside the insurgency-plagued region and nobody knew for sure who did it and why. However, it’s fair to say that the convergence was generally fleeting.

 

Full story: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/national-divide-and-deep-south-volatility-threaten-to-converge/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2019-10-10

Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking Thailand news and visa info

[olfu]

All religions must be private matter.

[Somtamnication]

It will never recover from the 2004 arsenal raid. Heck, it will not recover from Thailand's land grab in the early 1900s of the 3 provinces down there. Just a dog chasing its tail.

[londonthai]

it's interesting to see, how Thai PBS, the mouthpiece for the government statements and state propaganda, is trying to bring Thaksin into this equation.

 

thus they are suggesting, that the opposition is related to thaksin and should be blamed for his "hidden shares" and for the beginning of southern problem. And that was duty of army to stage military coups, force on people 2 constitutions, military governments and support for democrat party and suthep's PDRC as "good" parties to rule on army behind.

 

instead, the full blame for the deep political division and for the southern conflict lies in the hands of army, which try to control every aspect of public life. 

 

- they do stage regular military coups

- they do push for any laws they want and brake any law they don't like

- they suppress opposition to state, including forced disappearances, false imprisonment, street shootings and beatings

- they control all mass media and enforce strict censorship to the point of physically destroying 4500 independent village radio stations, putting gagging orders on thai and international journalists

- they are responsible for a heavy handed approach to insurgency and to insurgents, including mass murder, torture and killing suspects in their custody. For the army it's the training field, what they can do militarily in the rest of the country when mass protests erupt

[RichardColeman]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

The seeds of Thailand’s two biggest troubles — the political divide and insurgency in the deep South — were apparently sowed in 2001

I would argue that biggest trouble started with the introduction of Islam !

[Burma Bill]

I wonder where DAISH militants will end up now that Turkey is invading the Syrian border area?

[Srikcir]

4 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

I would argue that biggest trouble started with the introduction of Islam !

Islam was introduced to the Sumatran coast by Arabs in 674 AD. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_in_Malaysia

 

There are various archaeological traces of the development of Buddhism in Sumatra from the 7th to the 14th century AD https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/knowledge-bank/arts-and-literature/traces-buddhism-sumatra-archaeological-perspective

 

I'd say the "trouble" (if that is to be the tag) started with the near simultaneous introduction of both Buddhism and Islam in SE Asia. In reality, the nine Islamic Kingdoms in the Malay areas south of then Kingdom of Siam coexisted with the Kingdom of Siam for centuries. Albeit they paid ransom to Siam for their autonomy resulting from constant wars perpetuated by Siam.

[Srikcir]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

What if

... the Thai military was receptive to peace with the insurgency, then Thaksin wouldn't have felt pressured to take an aggressive stance against the insurgency (via the military) in order to preserve his regime against a military coup.

[RichardColeman]

13 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

I'd say the "trouble" (if that is to be the tag) started with the near simultaneous introduction of both Buddhism and Islam in SE Asia. 

Yes, but Islam here in Thailand seems to follow the cult of Islam throughout the world, death , terror, murder. You rarely hear of mass European deaths by Buddhists !

[Srikcir]

19 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Yes, but Islam here in Thailand seems to follow the cult of Islam throughout the world, death , terror, murder. You rarely hear of mass European deaths by Buddhists !

Ever hear of "death, terror, murder" by the cult of Buddhists in Asia?

"Seems to follow" is hardly connective evidence.

People of many religions have caused such violence around the world.

 

The fundamental issue for the insurgency in southern Thailand is not really about religion. It's about the recognition and respect of an indigenous people for their inherent sovereignty.

But when there are influential elements in Thailand society that has no respect for the Thai People's sovereignty, it's not surprising to see that same disrespect being demonstrated against the majority population in the southern Thailand provinces.

The difference is one people resists and the other submits.