United People Organization: Patani on the Road to Autonomy, Dream or Reality?

Introduction

The United people Organization is a group of people living in the conflict area, consist of 25 groups of non-governmental organization working on the peace solution to the Patani conflict  supported by Thai government Institute of Prapok Klau,  started working in 2010 and become the  most publicly voice in the Thai society on the conflict facts ever in Thailand  through TV  channel, radio talk, newspapers, journal , Public gathering etc., it is an alternative to peaceful conflict  solution.

The Root Causes of Patani Conflict

 Patani conflicts, southern unrest, the problem of southern terrorism, the problem of three southern border provinces, southern bandits, southern conflict,  southern insurgency, Patani war of liberation, separatist movement and separatist organization  denote the same meaning that is the conflict of Muslim Malay of Patani  and the Thai Buddhist government regarding the legitimacy over  the land name Patani, now  located in 4 southern borders provinces, Patani, Yala, Narathiwat and 4 districts in Songkhla province  killed hundred thousand people  and more than two centuries long. The new insurgency started on January 4, 2004 when 350 guns carried away by the militants group from the Thai military camp in Narathiwat province, southern Thailand..

Basic views and opinions  about  the root  causes of the conflict  
The basic views and opinions of Muslim Malay of Patani and Thai Buddhist government regarding the causes of Patani conflict are totally difference

The View  of Muslim Malay of Patani  are as follow:-

1.      History and the Administrative Structure 

Patani Darussalam was an independent sovereign kingdom with Rajah as the head of administrative affairs like  many others Rajah kingdom in the  Malay Peninsula but terminated her sovereignty and independence status to the Siamese Rattanakosin  attacked in  1786 AD.

After the occupation, the Bangkok had changed the traditional Malay Sultanate  system of administration to a direct  appointed  head of  state from Bangkok, in order to clear cut the possible  future agitation and revolt as happened in the past  hundred years of Siamese colonization on the kingdom of Patani Darussalam.  Some of Rajah family and the high ranking officials of Patani Darussalam who favor the Siamese hegemony were chosen and taken the opportunity  to fulfill this task. The uprooted  of Rajah power and overnight change, of administration system created the feeling of angry  and later become the heat bed of anti and opposed the Siamese rule, various form of  movements organization were  formed in 1892 and  finally, Siamese King Rama V on receiving  the  advised from the British imperialist government  with out any consent of Patani  people and their leaders transformed the system of Local autonomy to Bangkok centralization system of administration under what they called the   'concept of modern nation state'. The policy of power centralization brought the  opposition from the autonomous states of North Eastern,  Northern region and the Malay Southern region. Among these uprising, the Malay southern region( later called 3 southern border provinces instead of Malay Principalities or Huamunang Malayu or Huamuang Malayu Pak Tai  in Siamese language)  was the longest and oldest  to oppose the  Siamese rule from past to present.

In fact, at this prime moment,  the  people of different  races  and cultural background  in other area of the country such as northern region( province of Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai , Naan, other adjacent provinces) and north eastern region(Isan) starting to show highly unsatisfactory  toward the   Power and  Basic Thai administrative structure because they start  to realized  from the fact that all the root of evils  and the discrimination happened in difference region of the country is the out come of the dictate power of  Bangkok administrative structure.

2.      Language and Cultural Identity

 Patani Darusssalam is a Malay sultanate state situated in the  heart of Malay world  with  a Malay humanity, language, culture  and   Islamic believed(identify as  Muslim Malay or simply Melayu).

If the comparison is made between Thai government in Bangkok and her subject in the southern most border provinces, the  contradiction is quite clear  as  we can notice that while people in the south  possess with  Islamic  Malay attitude, Islamic way of  life,  Islamic culture etc .on the one hand  and  the Buddhists cum Brahman  on the others.

In this related issue, the Bangkok  government had, as we knew;  the‘ assimilation’ policy   widely used in all field but  culture, language and education is specially focused. Until now, the Bangkok government is yet un-successfully  Siamise  the Patani Malay people  in 3 southern border provinces. People in the southern most region still used the Malay language in daily to day communication and feel that their language was for long time discriminated and not promoted  by the Bangkok government but, the Malay language if compare to Khammuang, the Lanna Chiangmai language is in more better position.

Even today the Bangkok government never given  any chance for Malay language to be rolled as a study subject in primary government school and the official language in the government bureau  as recommended by the National Reconciliation Committee (NRC) Resolution of year 2008

The View of Bangkok government

1. Miss-review of local History

The Bangkok government still believe that  Patani people  consume  the wrong context of Patani history  which consist of an aggressive  and provocation elements.

2. The Bangkok government still recommend that the government never had any obstruction to Malay language .role in Thai society.

3. Low level of Education

The Bangkok government believed that an average of Patani  Malay people received   a low level of National education or Siamese education, but higher level  in religious education which  brought the conclusion to no National Patrioticism  and not loyal to the Thai state,  the Bangkok  government  further believed that the liberation movement organization joined or involved in drug trafficking criminal in order to raise the fun for supporting the movement  activities..

4. Poverty

An average of below the poverty standard line  and the poorest in the country,  unemployment

causes the Muslim Malay of  Patani  unintentionally joined the liberation movements against the Bangkok government.

The contradiction view of Bangkok government above  had been placed as the basis assumption of the southern most conflict  solution  policy  from the year 2004 to present day.

The Conflict Solution by Thai Government

The principle of conflict solution implemented by the Bangkok government through out 7 years of conflict are as follow:-

1. The Principle of National Peace and Stability

The objective of the liberation movement fighters to established the independent Patani state out  of the kingdom of Thailand still fresh and strength , In this crucial situation, a number of nearly 100,000 police and military personnels with sophisticated weapon had been sent to the conflict area in order to crash  down the more than 7,000 liberation movement  fighters to the ground by force.(General Anupong Phaujinda,  the former Thai army commander) and swallowed the total budget of 200,000,000 ( two hundred million Thai baht) Baht sacrifice  more than 4,000 deaths (Deep South Watch).

This principle  is   in used  by Bangkok Government with adding  the “(out law innocent) people volunteer army”

      2. The Economic Development Project

To increase the family income from 60,000 Baht (200 USD.) per year to 120,000 Baht (4,000USD) per year which mean people going to get out from poverty graph.

 3. Re-Establishing the Southern  Border Provinces Administrative Center  as the mechanical tools to   solve this conflict.

This organization is the prime machine for Democratic party government to solve this conflict in the south.which successfully used by General Prem in the conflict solution in the 1980s.

Self Determination: The Peaceful People Organization as  Tools of Conflict Solution

The  southern unrest is reaching its 7 years anniversary on January 4 2011, within this seven  years war ,of conflict we never heard even a time about the roadmap of conflict solution  from Patani Malay people organization  who reside in the conflict area(insider). With the  close co-operative  and relationship with  people organization from outside  area(outsider)  and the full support of  local intellectual  who believed in peaceful and just solution.

The 25 united people organizations in the name of “United 25 people organization’ with the cooperative and support from department of reconciliation and good governance and political development, Poklao Institute,  selected only a context  to campaign about local autonomy under the scope provided by National Constitution of 2007 that is  the draft act of the administrative of local autonomy for 3 troubled southern border provinces under the right of  people charter-local administration and submitted the draft with the people signature at least 10,000 signatures to the national parliament. for further step in the level of national  convention.

What is  their Activities?

1. Peace Congregation  on December 10, 2010( Constitution day) with   forum activity title” Patani on the road to local autonomy:  Dream or Reality?

2. Forming the steering committee  to process the public hearing for the following question:-

- The election of provincial leaders include the administrative power structure  and important local elements. 

- The right and freedom of Malay language and others such as Chinese.

-Tax and income structure.

- The other minority right and recommendation such as Thai and China

-Others

3. Public hearing activity

Started on April, 2010, all 3 southern border provinces and 4 districts of Songkhla province,  50 times targeted on focus group( women, local and national politicians, teachers, youths, religious teachers, officers and people in the village both  Malay and Thai, this activity has a report  of people view and  People demand.

4. Prepare  for Autonomous Draft

Starting  at the end of 2010 after the resolution of public hearing

5. Opening  for focus group to change or correct the draft

6. Announce publicly for the people to sign, good for local and outsiders

This project is piloted for 6 months before submitted to the national parliament.

Strategic Arrangement

The United People Organization had implemented  the knowledge and information program to the people for self design powerful strategic arrangement. Besides, the United Organization will also make close cooperative with the outside Muslim organization in order to motivate the concept of Provincial self management, the United People Organization also demand  the changing of central structure of  political and economical power and  will implement more  power, politically and economically to the local people in order  to decide and manage their own destiny according to the democratic principle of participation, balance development and checking