By Don Pathan
The Nation
Published on June 26, 2008
Khunying Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand was visibly upset when she appeared on television to talk about the recent tragedy that ended in the death of several of her staff.
Dr Pornthip
Some of her most dedicated people lost their lives when an army helicopter went down in Banang Sata district, a highly contested area where clashes between Thai security forces and Malay Muslim insurgents take place on a regular basis.
In line with her old self, Pornthip took a pot shot at the police, whom she accused of being uncooperative with her forensic department. But she didn't leave the airwaves without slamming the local Malay Muslims, whom she accused of being ungrateful to the Thai state.
Pornthip told her interviewer claims by some state officials of making headway in winning the hearts and minds of the local Malay Muslims in Thailand's southernmost provinces was untrue.
She pointed to the recent train attack by a group of at least six gunmen who shot and killed four security officials. Pornthip said none of the passengers - most if not all were local Malays - made no effort to give the officials any information about the presence of the militants who were disguised as soldiers when they jumped on the train.
The hundreds of roadside bombs of recent years, said Pornthip, were planted under the very noses of the local residents. And yet, no one ever comes forward.
Like typical bureaucrats assigned to the Malay-speaking South, Pornthip feels the "Thai Muslim" residents have failed to live up to their responsibility as citizens.
Coming to terms with knowing that Malay Muslims could do more but won't has been extremely difficult for many Thai officials who see themselves as doing good deeds for their fellow citizens.
It has been difficult for them because, like Pornthip, they cannot see that the ongoing violence in the deep South is much more than a problem of law and order.
It is a conflict - one that has pitted the Malay (not Thai) Muslims insurgents against what they see as illegitimate foreign troops, and that the local Muslim community is stuck between the two sides.
They may or may not agree with the insurgents' brutal methods but they are not going to stick their neck out to help representatives of a state they don't trust.
And if they do stick their neck out for whatever reason, can the state guarantee their safety and protection from the insurgents?
The militants have shown they have no qualms about killing fellow Malay Muslims if they are considered a legitimate target. In fact, most of the victims of the daily drive-by killings - not taking into account the ambush of military conveys - are ethnic Malays. All are card-carrying Thai citizens.
Unless people like Pornthip come to terms with the fact that, in the eyes of the local Malay residents, the three southernmost provinces are occupied territory, the state cannot expect to make any meaningful progress towards solving the problems in the deep South.
There are many officials like Pornthip who go down south with good intentions. But good intentions are not a policy.
Moreover, communication and information strategies of the state have been geared towards domestic consumption. Desperately trying to illustrate they are on the right track, officials unabashedly, every week or so, announce that a "key leader" has been arrested, or that a "major breakthrough" has been achieved.
There is this need to tell the public that this or that victim was shot dead because he was an informant.
If the vicious attacks over this past week are any indication, it is that the capacity of the insurgents is still very much intact and they are at liberty to pick and choose their targets.
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The Nation
Published on June 26, 2008
Khunying Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand was visibly upset when she appeared on television to talk about the recent tragedy that ended in the death of several of her staff.
Dr Pornthip
Some of her most dedicated people lost their lives when an army helicopter went down in Banang Sata district, a highly contested area where clashes between Thai security forces and Malay Muslim insurgents take place on a regular basis.
In line with her old self, Pornthip took a pot shot at the police, whom she accused of being uncooperative with her forensic department. But she didn't leave the airwaves without slamming the local Malay Muslims, whom she accused of being ungrateful to the Thai state.
Pornthip told her interviewer claims by some state officials of making headway in winning the hearts and minds of the local Malay Muslims in Thailand's southernmost provinces was untrue.
She pointed to the recent train attack by a group of at least six gunmen who shot and killed four security officials. Pornthip said none of the passengers - most if not all were local Malays - made no effort to give the officials any information about the presence of the militants who were disguised as soldiers when they jumped on the train.
The hundreds of roadside bombs of recent years, said Pornthip, were planted under the very noses of the local residents. And yet, no one ever comes forward.
Like typical bureaucrats assigned to the Malay-speaking South, Pornthip feels the "Thai Muslim" residents have failed to live up to their responsibility as citizens.
Coming to terms with knowing that Malay Muslims could do more but won't has been extremely difficult for many Thai officials who see themselves as doing good deeds for their fellow citizens.
It has been difficult for them because, like Pornthip, they cannot see that the ongoing violence in the deep South is much more than a problem of law and order.
It is a conflict - one that has pitted the Malay (not Thai) Muslims insurgents against what they see as illegitimate foreign troops, and that the local Muslim community is stuck between the two sides.
They may or may not agree with the insurgents' brutal methods but they are not going to stick their neck out to help representatives of a state they don't trust.
And if they do stick their neck out for whatever reason, can the state guarantee their safety and protection from the insurgents?
The militants have shown they have no qualms about killing fellow Malay Muslims if they are considered a legitimate target. In fact, most of the victims of the daily drive-by killings - not taking into account the ambush of military conveys - are ethnic Malays. All are card-carrying Thai citizens.
Unless people like Pornthip come to terms with the fact that, in the eyes of the local Malay residents, the three southernmost provinces are occupied territory, the state cannot expect to make any meaningful progress towards solving the problems in the deep South.
There are many officials like Pornthip who go down south with good intentions. But good intentions are not a policy.
Moreover, communication and information strategies of the state have been geared towards domestic consumption. Desperately trying to illustrate they are on the right track, officials unabashedly, every week or so, announce that a "key leader" has been arrested, or that a "major breakthrough" has been achieved.
There is this need to tell the public that this or that victim was shot dead because he was an informant.
If the vicious attacks over this past week are any indication, it is that the capacity of the insurgents is still very much intact and they are at liberty to pick and choose their targets.
Discuss
Add this link to...
Tell a friend
Bury
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