In Australia this week SBS TV is having a focus of racism. This has made me think of this question.

 

What are the attitudes of the average Buddhist person in Thailand towards the Muslim population in Thailand?

Edited February 26, 20179 yr by flipper2222222

I don't know, but many years ago when teaching at a language school, an adult student told me that he was better than all the others because he was a Muslim.

 Interesting question.

 

 I also wonder if there is anything similar to the escalating situation with Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar happening in Thailand. I know about he uprisings in the south, but Islam seems to be just a part of a bigger picture here, where a minority (the Malays) are (were) forcibly assimilated with Thai majority.

my advice to you is dont even go there

2 hours ago, flipper2222222 said:

What are the attitudes of the average Buddhist person in Thailand towards the Muslim population in Thailand?

Before this gets closed,  from my observations and taking about them with my Thai friends where l live they don't like or want them but l guess in other parts of Thailand they integrate OK,  as for myself l feel very uncomfortable being among them.

From conversations I've had, they don't feel that they can trust them + they feel like they (the Thai) are constantly being taken advantage of by them......

Had a conversation with my stepson about this. My broter-in-law is muslim and my wife's sister converted some 25 years ago when they married.

 

I asked my stepson to ask Bang if he was Thai first or muslim first.

 

Stepson rabidly Thai and did not like the answer he got back. Bit of a rift in relations now. Ooops.

 

My uncle's daughter married islam last year.

 

My neighbour is islam, there's a largish village of them nearby. Most of the islam schools and mosques round here have Thai flags and black & white mourning drapes outside.

 

All in all they don't seem as extreme and vocal as muslims in the UK.

 

I still think they pose the biggest threat to humanity worldwide though and everywhere is slowly becoming islamified.

 

IMHO.

How on gods earth are people on TV supposed to have an answer for that question. The things some people ask.

18 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

Before this gets closed,  from my observations and taking about them with my Thai friends where l live they don't like or want them but l guess in other parts of Thailand they integrate OK,  as for myself l feel very uncomfortable being among them.

Why , do they force feed you Roti ?

4 hours ago, grollies said:

I still think they pose the biggest threat to humanity worldwide though and everywhere is slowly becoming islamified.

 

Good to know  it is not rampant consumerism, globalization, global warming and chocking pollution, climate wars and mass migration to name just a few.

 

I wish my worldview was so simplified. Life would be so much easier.

18 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

Before this gets closed,  from my observations and taking about them with my Thai friends where l live they don't like or want them but l guess in other parts of Thailand they integrate OK,  as for myself l feel very uncomfortable being among them.

why would this get closed?

 

 

Muslims are not a race.

19 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

Before this gets closed,  from my observations and taking about them with my Thai friends where l live they don't like or want them but l guess in other parts of Thailand they integrate OK,  as for myself l feel very uncomfortable being among them.

Why,do they look at you and think you shouldn't be here in their country.

21 hours ago, shadowofacloud said:

 Interesting question.

 

 I also wonder if there is anything similar to the escalating situation with Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar happening in Thailand. I know about he uprisings in the south, but Islam seems to be just a part of a bigger picture here, where a minority (the Malays) are (were) forcibly assimilated with Thai majority.

Very little similarity.

Rohingya Muslims are stateless, having no citizenship in Myanmar. But they can't leave legally because they are unable to hold a passport and no recognized nationality. To leave Myanmar they invariably depend on human traffickers to escape as refugees - usually to become slaves. Suggest you research for more accurate background.

 

The Malay Muslims in South Thailand are Thai citizens, albeit not necessarily by choice. The insurgency is an effort to withdraw the 95% Muslim majority Southern Thai provinces from control of the Buddhist Kingdom of Thailand and re-establish their Islamic roots.

9 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

Very little similarity.

Rohingya Muslims are stateless, having no citizenship in Myanmar. But they can't leave legally because they are unable to hold a passport and no recognized nationality. To leave Myanmar they invariably depend on human traffickers to escape as refugees - usually to become slaves. Suggest you research for more accurate background.

 

The Malay Muslims in South Thailand are Thai citizens, albeit not necessarily by choice. The insurgency is an effort to withdraw the 95% Muslim majority Southern Thai provinces from control of the Buddhist Kingdom of Thailand and re-establish their Islamic roots.

Thank you. I am well aware of the statelessness of the Rohingya, most likely my choice of phrasing was not too fortunate.

 

So would you say indicate that the only major issue with minorities that Thailand currently has is the secessionist movement in the south?

Had the crusades been better financed then this question would never needed to have been asked.

If they can't eat it,  I don't think Thais think much about anything. 

.

Edited February 27, 20179 yr by shadowofacloud

The Thais I've met in the last 3-4 years of stay here are not overly fond of the Muslims in the South, especially as there are almost daily reports of some bombing or the other down there.

I think the OP is interested how Buddhists and Muslims think about each other...

 

People tend to wrongly conflate religion and race...so if you dislike Muslims you are not racist, because Islam is a set of ideas and not a skin color...

 

that said, most of the Buddhist Thais that have indicated their thoughts on the matter to me don't like Muslims...beyond the stone age thinking, the attacks only anger most Thais...my best friends in Thailand are Muslim, largely because they speak English and are expats as well...and the feelings are mutual...

 

i'm sure there is a different sentiment in BKK...

2 hours ago, shadowofacloud said:

 

Good to know  it is not rampant consumerism, globalization, global warming and chocking pollution, climate wars and mass migration to name just a few.

 

I wish my worldview was so simplified. Life would be so much easier.

Ignorance is bliss or so it seems.  But sometimes the blissful idiot has, uh "consequences" ?

The thai buddhists in the south can't be happy. How can you be, when your friends and family are randomly murdered by the followers of this evil cult. It appears that mainly the people who try to help them are killed. Nurses, teachers, police etc. Myanmar buddhist know how to deal with them.

Years ago a co-worker who was Muslim told me violent crimes in the UK are because people there eat pork. Yes, I kid you not.

I did read about a group of Muslims, from a school for the dyslexic,   in Pakistan,who,were so disillusioned with Islam,that they sold their souls to Santa.

Over they years I have had many Moslem Friends and recently many from Syria, which I feel so sorry for now. I am a Christian, so in a way we are different. But not that much different, as I discovered. They do believe in Christ.

 

To answer your question, not all Moslems are good, as not all Christians are good. To put things in context when I go to and Arab Country I expect to see them in Arab Clothes and when they come to mine they expect to see me in my Western Clothes. What makes a difference is I can wear my clothes anywhere, and be accepted, when they can't (always). But when you go to Rome you do what the Romans do. Right?

 

Being accepted by Thai Buddhism is more of a matter of how you dress and act, I think. If you dress respectively, act accordingly, you will be accepted. If not, you won't. Most of the Moslem Guys I know are really not much different then ourselves. Hard to tell us apart. But being different doesn't mean being bad. It just means being different.

Have lived in a Muslim village for 27yrs,that is/ has turned to mostly Buddhist.

They seem to get along OK as most Thai Muslims are not fanatics,many like a drink of beer, sometimes with a pork sandwich.  Though what I have noticed is that when I first came here,some of the females would abandon their headscarf when they went into town in the evening.This doe'st seem to happen now, in fact I see an increasing number starting to wear the full face cover Nikab or Burka. I believe due to some Muslims accusing those that don't wear them,of not being true Muslims.

 

First, Please tell me Who is an Average

Thai Buddhist.

My girl lives in a Muslim neighborhood in Bangkok. I asked her why she moved there because she's Buddhist and she said she didn't know it until she moved in. But it doesn't seem to bother her, other than having to walk 2 soi over to get any pork street food. Also, we went to visit her high school friend who owns a resort in Railay Beach and she's married to a Muslim and she converted. She wouldn't allow me to bring a pizza I had bought out in Krabi into the house because she said the sausage on it would disrespect her husband so I left it outside in the car. Her friend said she missed pork. I will say I got bad vibes from her husband. He wasn't too friendly towards me. That's the extent of what I know of Muslim interaction with Buddhists.

1 hour ago, captpkapoor said:

The Thais I've met in the last 3-4 years of stay here are not overly fond of the Muslims in the South, especially as there are almost daily reports of some bombing or the other down there.

History lesson 1. The south was muslim till the brits changed things. End of discussion.

Why don't you ask a Thai Buddhist this question, rather than ignorant expats?