'Talks vital to restore peace in the South'

Dialogue between officials and Malay separatists is developing trust: consul

Don PathanThe Nation

Pattani

A mid a new surge in violence in the deep South, a key man behind meetings of senior Thai officials and established Malay separatist leaders insists the dialogue must continue as peace in the volatile region could depend on the outcome. 

In an exclusive interview with The Nation, Shazryl Eskay Abdullah, honorary consul at the Royal Thai Consulate in Langkawi, said sides had reached a "certain level of comfort and trust" over the past year following a series of meetings. 

He encouraged the government to "shift to the next phase". "The next phase doesn't have to be in Malaysia. But it's important it continues because channels of communication have been established and topics for further discussion identified," Eskay said. 

Eskay and former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad initiated the series of meetings over this past year. They became known as the "Langkawi process". Eskay said Bangkok took the talks seriously and this was illustrated by its sending of the then Armed Forces' Security Centre chief Lt-General Vaipot Srinuan and General Winai Pathiyakul of the National Security Council. 

Separatist participants have included Gerakan Mujahideen Islam Pattani president Mohammed Bin Abdul Rahman, Pattani United Liberation Organisation (Pulo) vice president Razi Bin Hassan, Barisan Revolusi Nasional Congress (BRN) president Abdulah Bin Ismail, its vice president Abdullah Bin Idris and Bersatu president Wan Kadir Che Man. 

The process started in late 2005 and by February 2006 a Joint Peace and Development Plan for Southern Thailand was handed to the government. It was a list of topics for further discussion. It remains unclear why the Thaksin-Shinawatra administration sat on it. With the former prime minister now out of power, participants are calling on the government to kick-start the next phase. 

Eskay said the Langkawi process was not a "formal negotiation" but "an attempt to identify common ground between the two sides and designed to reconcile differences". The most fundamental of these was the difficult relationship between Bangkok and the ethnic Malay historic homeland - including Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat. 

Eskay explained the process discussed a wide range of issues already - including Malay identity, social mobility, use of Malay as a "working language", amnesty, education and economic development. The topic of a "separate state" was not on the table. 

"The Thai side would have never come to the table if the issue of a separate state was on the agenda," Eskay admitted. 

Eskay confessed there were hardliners among the separatists which he referred to as "splinters". They were unwilling to compromise on the issue of a separate state. Nevertheless, Eskay said "tremendous" ground had been made towards reconciliation with separatist groups. 

Many of these groups have been active since the 1960s. They disappeared or were rendered ineffective after a government amnesty crippled their military wings and forced their leaders into exile. Eskay said the Langkawi participants were willing to settle for less than complete independence for Malays in southern Thailand. 

He said the challenge now was to find ways these groups and their members could reconcile their past with the Thai state. This could be achieved at the next stage of the process. It is not clear if separatist leaders are hoping for some sort of political niche. To date the topics on the table have been broad and few specifics have been discussed, Eskay added. 

With communications open and a level of confidence achieved the government and separatist leaders could move to the next phase. This could tackle specifics and sensitive issues - including a ceasefire or permanent peace. This could end violence in the Muslim-majority South where as many as 1,800 people have lost their lives since January 2004. 

Eskay reported the separatist leaders who attended the Langkawi process admitted to Bangkok they had "a network of supporters" on the ground but fell short of confirming if they had any role in directing attacks. Much daily violence is blamed on a new generation of village-based militants, organised in small cells numbering about 10 and run by a leader. These cells call their own shots. Locals often refer to these cells as "juwae" - or fighters in the Malay dialect - and do not associate them with formal groups such as Pulo or BRN. 

But Eskay believed traditional-group leaders - some of whom emerged in the 1960s - could have influence with the juwae. A second phase of the Langkawi process may be an opportunity for hardliners to be included. There may even be room for suspected separatists such as Masae Useng or Sapae-ing Baso.