Don Pathan
BenarNews
Yala, Thailand
Thailand’s peace initiative with Malay Muslim insurgents in the Deep South has hit a snag as rebels have threatened not to go through with the Safety Zone initiative unless Bangkok releases three of their imprisoned members.
Thai officials insisted that the call to release the three prisoners was not a demand tied to the prospect of a safety zone – or geographically limited ceasefire – but a “request” from MARA Patani, the panel representing insurgent groups in the peace talks. The Justice Ministry is looking into the case, officials told me.
If granted, it would not be a pardon but an early release, according to sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
If not, it would be a setback for the Safety Zone, a much-talked about project that would become Thailand’s showpiece for the international community. The project involves the designation of a district where a ceasefire is to be observed in Thailand’s southern border region.
MARA Patani, an umbrella organization made up of six long-standing separatist movements, began talks with the Thai government three years ago.
Like all other previous peace initiatives, Thailand’s engagement with MARA Patani rests on a shaky ground because the umbrella organization does not have control over the combatants on the ground.
A military intelligence officer described Thailand’s engagement with MARA Patani as “just buying time” until the leadership of the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), the one group that controls virtually all of the militants in the field, decided to join the peace process.
So far, there is no indication BRN will change its stance – not because of a lack of trying on the part of MARA Patani or Malaysia, the designated facilitator.
Glimmer of hope
A moment of hope, albeit small, came late last year during a meeting between Malaysian mediator Ahmad Zamzamin Hashim, who is a retired spy chief, and two senior members of BRN’s ruling council.
Zamzamin received an assurance from the BRN leaders that their militants would not sabotage the safety-zone initiative, which would be implemented in a yet-to-be-named district in one of three Muslim-majority provinces in the Deep South. The idea was conjured up by MARA Patani and Thailand’s Dialogue Panel.
BRN sources said they were still committed to independence for Patani, the Malay historical homeland that today forms Thailand’s three southernmost provinces. They had no plan to enter into a negotiation with the Thais, they said.
Moreover, a planned meeting between the country’s chief negotiator, Gen. Aksara Kerdpol, and one of the BRN senior figures, Doonloh Wae-mano (alias Abdullah Wan Mat Noor), to be held in Indonesia, should not be interpreted as a breakthrough in any way.
Nevertheless, the fact that BRN agreed not to sabotage the Safety Zone project and allow the initiative to take its course was welcomed in Thailand despite the glaring irony that the participants, MARA Patani and Thai government, don’t control the armed militants.
A spitting contest
Bangkok wants to make this Safety Zone project its showpiece in order to demonstrate to the public and the world that it is making “progress” in efforts to end a separatist conflict that has killed nearly 7,000 people since January 2004.
For a moment, things appeared to be moving in the right direction.
People were looking forward to the launch of the safety zone scheduled for April 2018. And then came a demand from the MARA Patani that three of their people be released from prison, sources on both sides told me.
Beside the horse-trading and the political and legal challenges that come with it, Thailand’s peace initiative for the Deep South is also facing some major obstacles coming from the people inside the country.
The ongoing spitting contest between Aksara and the commander of the Fourth Army region, Lt. Gen. Piyawat Nakwanich, who oversees security in the Deep South, could very well have negative consequences on the government’s strategy for the area.
Government sources said the disagreement was part of a turf war between the two members of the military top brass who had been dismissive of one another through the media.
In a recent statement to the press, Piyawat said Aksara’s safety project was nothing to get excited about and added that he himself had single-handedly created 14 such zones and that he didn’t want to boast.
Piyawat also talked about his Bring People Home project, a half-baked amnesty program that supposedly helps former insurgents return to normal civilian life, calling it a success because it put a dent in BRN’s morale and military standing.
According to a Thai government source overseeing the southern conflict, the bickering stemmed from the dispute of who should oversee which programs.
Members of the Dialogue Panel, the official name of Thailand’s negotiating team, believe they should be the one administering Bring People Home because they are the ones who are dealing directly with the rebels and, therefore, they would be in a better position to run the program.
The dispute between Aksara and Piyawat forced a leading member of MARA Patani to issue a public statement, accusing the commander of the Fourth Army region commander of creating confusion.
Sukree Haree said Piyawat’s amnesty project and his version of 14 “safety zone” districts were entirely different from the programs discussed at the negotiating table between his umbrella organization and the Dialogue Panel.
BRN sources dismissed Piyawat’s claim of success, saying those who surrendered through the program were not deeply involved in the movement and may just be guilty by association. This is a common accusation employed by the Thai authorities but has no bearing in court.
Moreover, the BRN has not reached the stage of a full-fledged army and, therefore, does not need that many soldiers in its ranks.
The strategy at this point is to discredit the government’s security apparatus, making the region ungovernable as much as possible.
A roadside bombing followed by a brief gunfight that hardly ever lasts more than five minutes is the usual battle scenario in this region.
The insurgents said they are more interested in capturing the locals’ hearts, mind and imagination, not geographical space, which is something way down the road, at which time, a conventional force will be needed.
Don Pathan is a consultant and security analyst based in Thailand. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews.
DON PATHAN - Thailand-based security analyst/development consultant (Photo: Anjaman Pass, Afghanistan, with two Northern Alliance fighters, October 2001)
Thursday, 29 March 2018
Saturday, 10 March 2018
Army’s tighter grip threatens peace initiative in far South
Don Pathan
Special to The Nation
March 10, 2018
Yala
Concern is growing that the military’s eagerness to please bosses in Bangkok could lead to collapse of safety zone project
The tension between Internal Security Operation Command (Isoc) Region 4 and civic leaders working on the conflict in Thailand’s far South has reached an unprecedented height as neither side shows signs of backing down.
A week ago, 38 civil society organisations (CSOs) and 22 individual academics and activists signed a petition calling on Isoc Region 4 Command to stop intimidating the media and human rights defenders, and to be realistic about the challenges people in the region face. Signatories pointed to alleged harassment of local human rights activist Ismail Teh, who won an eight-year legal battle when a Thai court ordered the government to compensate him financially for the beating inflicted upon him while he was in detention.
Just weeks ago, 4th Army commander Lt-General Piyawat Nakwanich filed defamation charges against Ismail for talking to the media about his case. Late last month, Aiman Hadeng, president of Justice of Peace Network, a local CSO made up of former detainees, was held incommunicado without charges for a week. Other similar incidents over the past few weeks include the raid of a private Islamic school in Pattani’s Nong Chik district that turned up nothing incriminating and the detention of 14 youths camping on a Yala’s hilltop popular among local tourists. The March 2 press statement was signed by both Muslims and Thai Buddhist academics and CSO leaders who are fed up with what they say amounts to a campaign of intimidation from the military.
These activists accuse the Fourth Army Area Command, the engine behind Isoc Region 4, of ignoring the reality on the ground and refusing to address the root cause of the conflict. A government source in Bangkok who monitors the conflict in the far South said concern is growing that Lt-General Piyawat’s activities could drive a bigger wedge between the state and a local Malay population which the Army is supposed to be winning over.
There is also concern that his heavy-handedness could affect the ongoing peace dialogue between the central government and MARA Patani, an umbrella organisation made up of six long-standing Patani Malay separatist movements. Thailand’s engagement with MARA Patani has reached an important juncture that includes the implementation of a Safety Zone, a pilot project in which the two sides will designate a district in the far South where a period of ceasefire will be observed.
The Thai government and MARA Patani will also set up a “Safe House” where representatives from both sides can jointly monitor the security situation in the Safety Zone and take up issues raised by the local residents. The designated district is set to be announced by May, once technical teams from the two sides have ironed out the details of a project that had been on the table for more than two years.
Bangkok and MARA Patani were able to push for implementation only after the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), the group that controls virtually all of the insurgent combatants but is not taking part in peace negotiations, agreed not to sabotage the initiative. In 2013, alleged extrajudicial and “target” killings by Thai forces came into focus when a BRN liaison, Hasan Taib, raised the issue at a meeting with Thai representatives in the peace talks. Negotiations at the time were also complicated when local activists marched to the Malaysian Consulate in Songkhla to raise the same case and called on Kuala Lumpur, in its capacity as talks facilitator, to intervene and end alleged torture and assassination of former detainees. Now, there is growing concern that Piyawat’s aggressive tactics in the South could see the BRN wash its hands of (or place severe limitations on) the Safety Zone project.
Rebel sources said they were extremely upset at Piyawat’s “blind” sweep operation in Bannang Sata, Yala, in early January, during which government troops netted about 50 local residents for detention. The round-up was in response to an arson attack on a passenger bus by a local militant cell in mid-December 2017. A Thai government security official said Piyawat was out to impress his superiors in Bangkok with his heavy-handed tactics while giving no consideration to the consequences.
But senior government officials and the top brass don’t seem to mind the aggression, while the predominantly Buddhist Thai general public outside of this restive region remains largely indifferent to the plight of the Patani Malays. For many, the very idea of sitting at the same table with Patani Malay movements as equals is unpalatable. “In the eyes of the military leaders, they [Patani Malay separatist movements] will always be criminals,” said the Thai government source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. In this line of thinking, said the source, Piaywat’s questionable tactics on the ground will generate little opposition among the top brass in Bangkok, who are running the show and will continue to do so until the mandate is eventually handed back to the Thai people.
Don Pathan is a founding member of the Patani Forum (www.pataniforum.com), a civil society organisation dedicated to critical discussion on the conflict in Thailand’s far South. He is based in Yala, one of the three southernmost provinces in this historically contested region known as Patani.TagsArmyfar SouthpeaceinitiativeArmy’s tighterBangkok
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30340631
Special to The Nation
March 10, 2018
Yala
Concern is growing that the military’s eagerness to please bosses in Bangkok could lead to collapse of safety zone project
The tension between Internal Security Operation Command (Isoc) Region 4 and civic leaders working on the conflict in Thailand’s far South has reached an unprecedented height as neither side shows signs of backing down.
A week ago, 38 civil society organisations (CSOs) and 22 individual academics and activists signed a petition calling on Isoc Region 4 Command to stop intimidating the media and human rights defenders, and to be realistic about the challenges people in the region face. Signatories pointed to alleged harassment of local human rights activist Ismail Teh, who won an eight-year legal battle when a Thai court ordered the government to compensate him financially for the beating inflicted upon him while he was in detention.
Just weeks ago, 4th Army commander Lt-General Piyawat Nakwanich filed defamation charges against Ismail for talking to the media about his case. Late last month, Aiman Hadeng, president of Justice of Peace Network, a local CSO made up of former detainees, was held incommunicado without charges for a week. Other similar incidents over the past few weeks include the raid of a private Islamic school in Pattani’s Nong Chik district that turned up nothing incriminating and the detention of 14 youths camping on a Yala’s hilltop popular among local tourists. The March 2 press statement was signed by both Muslims and Thai Buddhist academics and CSO leaders who are fed up with what they say amounts to a campaign of intimidation from the military.
These activists accuse the Fourth Army Area Command, the engine behind Isoc Region 4, of ignoring the reality on the ground and refusing to address the root cause of the conflict. A government source in Bangkok who monitors the conflict in the far South said concern is growing that Lt-General Piyawat’s activities could drive a bigger wedge between the state and a local Malay population which the Army is supposed to be winning over.
There is also concern that his heavy-handedness could affect the ongoing peace dialogue between the central government and MARA Patani, an umbrella organisation made up of six long-standing Patani Malay separatist movements. Thailand’s engagement with MARA Patani has reached an important juncture that includes the implementation of a Safety Zone, a pilot project in which the two sides will designate a district in the far South where a period of ceasefire will be observed.
The Thai government and MARA Patani will also set up a “Safe House” where representatives from both sides can jointly monitor the security situation in the Safety Zone and take up issues raised by the local residents. The designated district is set to be announced by May, once technical teams from the two sides have ironed out the details of a project that had been on the table for more than two years.
Bangkok and MARA Patani were able to push for implementation only after the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), the group that controls virtually all of the insurgent combatants but is not taking part in peace negotiations, agreed not to sabotage the initiative. In 2013, alleged extrajudicial and “target” killings by Thai forces came into focus when a BRN liaison, Hasan Taib, raised the issue at a meeting with Thai representatives in the peace talks. Negotiations at the time were also complicated when local activists marched to the Malaysian Consulate in Songkhla to raise the same case and called on Kuala Lumpur, in its capacity as talks facilitator, to intervene and end alleged torture and assassination of former detainees. Now, there is growing concern that Piyawat’s aggressive tactics in the South could see the BRN wash its hands of (or place severe limitations on) the Safety Zone project.
Rebel sources said they were extremely upset at Piyawat’s “blind” sweep operation in Bannang Sata, Yala, in early January, during which government troops netted about 50 local residents for detention. The round-up was in response to an arson attack on a passenger bus by a local militant cell in mid-December 2017. A Thai government security official said Piyawat was out to impress his superiors in Bangkok with his heavy-handed tactics while giving no consideration to the consequences.
But senior government officials and the top brass don’t seem to mind the aggression, while the predominantly Buddhist Thai general public outside of this restive region remains largely indifferent to the plight of the Patani Malays. For many, the very idea of sitting at the same table with Patani Malay movements as equals is unpalatable. “In the eyes of the military leaders, they [Patani Malay separatist movements] will always be criminals,” said the Thai government source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. In this line of thinking, said the source, Piaywat’s questionable tactics on the ground will generate little opposition among the top brass in Bangkok, who are running the show and will continue to do so until the mandate is eventually handed back to the Thai people.
Don Pathan is a founding member of the Patani Forum (www.pataniforum.com), a civil society organisation dedicated to critical discussion on the conflict in Thailand’s far South. He is based in Yala, one of the three southernmost provinces in this historically contested region known as Patani.TagsArmyfar SouthpeaceinitiativeArmy’s tighterBangkok
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30340631
Monday, 26 February 2018
Thai Military, Southern Rebels Must Agree on Rules of Engagement
Don Pathan
BenarNews
Yala, Thailand
Separatist insurgents recently hijacked a double-decker tour bus and set it on fire in Thailand’s Deep South, after escorting the passengers off.
The incident jolted security officials in the region, where the military had boasted about winning hearts and minds of the predominantly Malay Muslim population.
The military claimed as well that hundreds, and possibly thousands of militants, were itching to put down their arms through a government amnesty program known as Bring People Home.
The attack in December irked policymakers in Bangkok. It also exposed questions about security along the only road linking Yala – one of the three conflict-ridden provinces in the south – to Betong, an important border town where an international airport is being built.
Initial reactions to the attack were mixed. Lt. Gen. Piyawat Nakwanich, the army’s regional commander, at first suggested a crime syndicate may have been behind the attack.
But as the investigation unfolded and as more militant sources began to speak, the attack appeared to be part of the separatists’ strategy to undermine the security apparatus. It was, indeed, a stern statement to the Thai government that this road was not safe to travel.
To demonstrate they are not a bunch of misguided fanatics bent on racking up body counts, the militants, in this case, did not harm the passengers on the bus. The rebels stopped in-coming traffic so the passengers could cross the road, and they also helped older ones with their luggage.
It was their way of showing they respect certain boundaries, even though there are no written rules of engagement for the two warring sides.
Mop-up operation
The army responded to the arson attack two weeks later by carrying out a mop-up operation in Bunnang Sata district and nearby villages. By the time the operation ended, authorities rounded up 50 suspects.
Authorities said detainees provided valuable information. Relatives of the arrested huddled in front of holding centers, where their sons and husbands were locked up under martial law that permits detention without legal representation. With no access to the detainees, it was understandable that relatives feared the worse as many of those in custody had already been released.
Local and international human rights organizations have documented allegations of torture and abuse of detainees. But the authorities often dismiss such allegations without investigation, and the army has even threatened legal action against accusers.
Not all of the military personnel in the region agreed with the January mop-up operation. Some argued it would undermine the overall counter-insurgency effort aimed at winning support from Malay Muslims who make up more than 80 percent of the two million residents in the Deep South.
They were concerned that a blind sweep could be perceived by the militants as going overboard, and could provoke retaliation.
Their fears were realized on Jan. 22. An insurgent cell in Yala set off a vicious motorbike bomb at a market in Yala, killing three civilians, including an Islamic religious student.
The message to the Thai side was loud and clear: Your action has deadly consequences. In the end, a perceived violation by the army was answered with another violation by the rebels.
For observers of the conflict, the friendly conduct of the militants behind the bus attack and angry cell members behind the motorbike bomb seems to be a world apart. If anything, it reflected diverse views among the militants on the ground.
“It seems that some militants have no qualms about pushing the boundaries of what’s acceptable, while others believe humanitarian principles have to be respected,” said Artef Sohko, a political activist from The Patani, a civil society organization that promotes the right to self-determination for the people of this historically contested region.
While collateral damage does happen in this conflict and both sides can be blamed for these violations, it is very rare for militant cells to single out soft targets.
The last time a soft target was singled out for an attack in the far south was on Oct. 24, 2016, when a bomb went off at a nighttime food hawking area in the heart of Pattani, killing one person and injuring 18 other people.
That was retaliation against the rounding up of more than 100 Patani Malay youths and students living in Bangkok, some of whom claimed to have been beaten, militant sources said.
Since there are no written rules of engagement, it’s pretty much up to the two warring sides to decide where to draw a red line. What is clear is that retaliatory attacks against perceived violations have been deadly.
Insurgents dictate pace of violence
But it hasn’t stopped the Thai security forces from pushing the line with their operations in the field, not to mention other forms of harassment that push the residents even further from reconciling with the state.
Moreover, with no pressure to explain their conduct because policymakers and security planners in Bangkok have more important issues to attend to, the regional army command is left alone to construct its own narrative.
The military paints itself as morally superior to the insurgents because government officials are not behind the violence. It believes that the more insurgents resort to violence, the more they distance themselves from the community.
Officials often pointed to a steady drop in the number of violent acts in the Deep South since 2007, but separatist sources said the decision to reduce those incidents was theirs to make. In other words, the militants have been told to make their hits count, which mean greater intensity with each and every attack.
This is not to say that the military does not deserve any credit for bringing down the number of violent incidents. The decision to post paramilitary rangers in remote areas helped expand the security grid and improve response times.
Meanwhile, the movement has shown that militants can hit any place at any time, and even against targets outside of the traditional theater of violence. In their view, as long as the movement exists, the government can never claim victory.
Until someone can bring the two sides to reach an agreement the rules of engagement and tit-and-tat violence will go on with no end in sight.
Don Pathan is independent security analyst and a founding member of Patani Forum (www.pataniforum.com), a civil society organization dedicated to critical discussion on the conflict in Thailand’s southernmost provinces. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews.
BenarNews
Yala, Thailand
Separatist insurgents recently hijacked a double-decker tour bus and set it on fire in Thailand’s Deep South, after escorting the passengers off.
The incident jolted security officials in the region, where the military had boasted about winning hearts and minds of the predominantly Malay Muslim population.
The military claimed as well that hundreds, and possibly thousands of militants, were itching to put down their arms through a government amnesty program known as Bring People Home.
 |
| Motorbike bomb killed three in an open market in Yala, Thailand, on Jan 22, 2018. |
Initial reactions to the attack were mixed. Lt. Gen. Piyawat Nakwanich, the army’s regional commander, at first suggested a crime syndicate may have been behind the attack.
But as the investigation unfolded and as more militant sources began to speak, the attack appeared to be part of the separatists’ strategy to undermine the security apparatus. It was, indeed, a stern statement to the Thai government that this road was not safe to travel.
To demonstrate they are not a bunch of misguided fanatics bent on racking up body counts, the militants, in this case, did not harm the passengers on the bus. The rebels stopped in-coming traffic so the passengers could cross the road, and they also helped older ones with their luggage.
It was their way of showing they respect certain boundaries, even though there are no written rules of engagement for the two warring sides.
Mop-up operation
The army responded to the arson attack two weeks later by carrying out a mop-up operation in Bunnang Sata district and nearby villages. By the time the operation ended, authorities rounded up 50 suspects.
Authorities said detainees provided valuable information. Relatives of the arrested huddled in front of holding centers, where their sons and husbands were locked up under martial law that permits detention without legal representation. With no access to the detainees, it was understandable that relatives feared the worse as many of those in custody had already been released.
Local and international human rights organizations have documented allegations of torture and abuse of detainees. But the authorities often dismiss such allegations without investigation, and the army has even threatened legal action against accusers.
Not all of the military personnel in the region agreed with the January mop-up operation. Some argued it would undermine the overall counter-insurgency effort aimed at winning support from Malay Muslims who make up more than 80 percent of the two million residents in the Deep South.
They were concerned that a blind sweep could be perceived by the militants as going overboard, and could provoke retaliation.
Their fears were realized on Jan. 22. An insurgent cell in Yala set off a vicious motorbike bomb at a market in Yala, killing three civilians, including an Islamic religious student.
The message to the Thai side was loud and clear: Your action has deadly consequences. In the end, a perceived violation by the army was answered with another violation by the rebels.
For observers of the conflict, the friendly conduct of the militants behind the bus attack and angry cell members behind the motorbike bomb seems to be a world apart. If anything, it reflected diverse views among the militants on the ground.
“It seems that some militants have no qualms about pushing the boundaries of what’s acceptable, while others believe humanitarian principles have to be respected,” said Artef Sohko, a political activist from The Patani, a civil society organization that promotes the right to self-determination for the people of this historically contested region.
While collateral damage does happen in this conflict and both sides can be blamed for these violations, it is very rare for militant cells to single out soft targets.
The last time a soft target was singled out for an attack in the far south was on Oct. 24, 2016, when a bomb went off at a nighttime food hawking area in the heart of Pattani, killing one person and injuring 18 other people.
That was retaliation against the rounding up of more than 100 Patani Malay youths and students living in Bangkok, some of whom claimed to have been beaten, militant sources said.
Since there are no written rules of engagement, it’s pretty much up to the two warring sides to decide where to draw a red line. What is clear is that retaliatory attacks against perceived violations have been deadly.
Insurgents dictate pace of violence
But it hasn’t stopped the Thai security forces from pushing the line with their operations in the field, not to mention other forms of harassment that push the residents even further from reconciling with the state.
Moreover, with no pressure to explain their conduct because policymakers and security planners in Bangkok have more important issues to attend to, the regional army command is left alone to construct its own narrative.
The military paints itself as morally superior to the insurgents because government officials are not behind the violence. It believes that the more insurgents resort to violence, the more they distance themselves from the community.
Officials often pointed to a steady drop in the number of violent acts in the Deep South since 2007, but separatist sources said the decision to reduce those incidents was theirs to make. In other words, the militants have been told to make their hits count, which mean greater intensity with each and every attack.
This is not to say that the military does not deserve any credit for bringing down the number of violent incidents. The decision to post paramilitary rangers in remote areas helped expand the security grid and improve response times.
Meanwhile, the movement has shown that militants can hit any place at any time, and even against targets outside of the traditional theater of violence. In their view, as long as the movement exists, the government can never claim victory.
Until someone can bring the two sides to reach an agreement the rules of engagement and tit-and-tat violence will go on with no end in sight.
Don Pathan is independent security analyst and a founding member of Patani Forum (www.pataniforum.com), a civil society organization dedicated to critical discussion on the conflict in Thailand’s southernmost provinces. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews.
Monday, 8 January 2018
Where Next for Peace Talks in Thailand’s Deep South?
Commentary by Don Pathan
Yala, Thailand
BenarNews
Thailand’s snail-pace peace talks with Malay Muslim separatist movements have reached a critical juncture. The main armed group, Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), is thinking of moving to the next level of dialogue by drawing international negotiators to the table, and beyond the normal tit-for-tat violence between them and Thai security forces.
It has been 14 years of ambushes, roadside bombings and targeted killings of Thai security officials and suspected collaborators. Thailand, on the other hand, continues to follow a two-pronged strategy: winning the hearts and minds of local Malay Muslim through economic development aimed at stimulating growth in the impoverished southern border region; and engaging in hot pursuits of militants on the ground.
Other than that, the security officials are sitting ducks, waiting to be hit by militants as they move from place to place.
In all, nearly 7,000 people have died from the insurgency-related violence, yet a political settlement is nowhere in sight.
Every now and then, the insurgents carry out coordinated attacks outside of this conflict-affected region known as the “Deep South” or “Patani,” the Malays’ historical homeland, to send a stern warning to the Thai security apparatus that they are capable of expanding their campaign of violence away from the historically contested region.
However, recent months saw a significant shift in Malay-Muslim separatist tactics. Key up-and-coming individuals, who will take over the movement when the elders pass, believe it’s time to move beyond the shaming and humiliation of the Thai security apparatus. They want to explore other possibilities and opportunities through engaging members of the international community.
But shifting the playing field from the battleground to the world’s stage will not be easy. Members of the international community are reluctant to engage the BRN out of concern of upsetting Bangkok.
In fact, one of the BRN’s demands for a formal negotiation with the Thais is mediation by the international community. This issue was raised during a series of meetings over the past six months between the designated facilitator, Malaysia’s Ahmad Zamzamin Hashim, and a senior member of the BRN ruling council, Doonloh Wae-mano.
Zamzamin also used his meeting with the BRN leader to arrange a meeting between Doonloh and Thailand’s chief negotiator, Gen. Aksara Kerdpol. The meeting is expected to take place in Indonesia but no date has been set.
The upcoming meeting is not a breakthrough or a game changer, BRN sources insisted. They said BRN’s position remained the same: if the Thais want to carry out formal negotiations, they will have to internationalize the process, which means the negotiations will have to be mediated and facilitated by foreign governments and the venue will have to be outside of Malaysia.
Permitting Doonloh to meet with the Thai chief negotiator was “a gesture of goodwill” toward Kuala Lumpur in its capacity as the facilitator for the peace initiative, BRN sources said.
Thai officials, however, are split on the idea of the meeting itself; some think a face-to-face meeting between Doonloh and Aksara is a positive development, a step in the right direction.
Others are concerned that dealing directly with the BRN will undermine the official process between Bangkok and the other separatist groups, most notably, MARA Patani, an umbrella organization of long-standing Patani-Malay rebel organizations. In other words, these officials would like to see BRN come under MARA Patani’s umbrella and deal with the Thais from there.
BRN sources also revealed the group is not in a hurry to get to the negotiating table. First and foremost, their representatives will have to be granted legal immunity and be properly trained, preferably by members of the international community with experience in conflict resolution and peace mediation.
Furthermore, any formal negotiation, they said, will have to be done outside Malaysia, preferably in Western countries with a strong reputation in conflict resolution and mediation.
Thai security and BRN sources said these demands have upset Zamzamin, the retired Malaysian spy chief who invested a great deal of energy going back and forth between the Thais and the rebels to keep Kuala Lumpur at the center of the process.
After all, Malaysia shares a common border with Thailand’s conflict-affected region. And in this respect, Malaysia is a stakeholder to the conflict, not exactly an honest broker.
The sources said Zamzamin met with Doonloh at least three times over the past six months. He has tried hard to convince Doonloh to permit BRN to join the Kuala Lumpur-facilitated peace talks between Thailand and MARA Patani.
The decision to join MARA Patani, or come to the negotiating table, is not up to Doonloh entirely, sources in the BRN said. The group is governed by a ruling council, the Dewan Pimpinan Parti (DPP), and such an important decision would be made collectively.
While MARA Patani claimed to have BRN members on board, BRN’s operatives on the ground and abroad, as well as the movement’s Indonesia-based Information Department, maintained that these people acted on their own and without the DPP’s consent.
Thai officials working on the conflict in the far South said MARA Patani was resting on shaky ground, because their process has not generated any meaningful traction. Moreover, the very fact that BRN, the group that controls virtually all of the militants on the ground, refuses to join them at the table also makes it difficult to move ahead with any plans, such as the implementation of a safety zone – an area where a limited ceasefire is to be observed.
Kuala Lumpur’s commitment to the talks should be clearer by the end of February when Zamzamin’s contract with the government is up for renewal. Some observers don’t think MARA Patani can survive without him at the helm.
Progress in the peace talks is moving at a snail’s pace partly because the BRN, which controls the militants, refuses to come to the table; and partly because Bangkok has never shown that it is interested in getting to the bottom of the Patani Malay cultural and historical grievances.
Thailand only wants to deal with the security aspect of this insurgency and discontent. The government believes it can win over the hearts and minds of the local Malay Muslim to deny the BRN militants the legitimacy for their armed struggle.
But such efforts are unlikely to bear fruit if Bangkok refuses to talk about the historical grievances and mistrust between the state and its Malay minority.
An earlier version of this commentary incorrectly gave the name of the governing body of BRN as the Dewan Penilian Parti. It is the Dewan Pimpinan Parti.
Don Pathan is a consultant and security analyst based in Thailand. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews.
https://www.benarnews.org/english/commentaries/far-south-view/more-talks-01082018131535.html
Yala, Thailand
BenarNews
 |
Roadside bombing that killed four troops in Pattani on Sept 22, 2917. AFP
|
It has been 14 years of ambushes, roadside bombings and targeted killings of Thai security officials and suspected collaborators. Thailand, on the other hand, continues to follow a two-pronged strategy: winning the hearts and minds of local Malay Muslim through economic development aimed at stimulating growth in the impoverished southern border region; and engaging in hot pursuits of militants on the ground.
Other than that, the security officials are sitting ducks, waiting to be hit by militants as they move from place to place.
In all, nearly 7,000 people have died from the insurgency-related violence, yet a political settlement is nowhere in sight.
Every now and then, the insurgents carry out coordinated attacks outside of this conflict-affected region known as the “Deep South” or “Patani,” the Malays’ historical homeland, to send a stern warning to the Thai security apparatus that they are capable of expanding their campaign of violence away from the historically contested region.
However, recent months saw a significant shift in Malay-Muslim separatist tactics. Key up-and-coming individuals, who will take over the movement when the elders pass, believe it’s time to move beyond the shaming and humiliation of the Thai security apparatus. They want to explore other possibilities and opportunities through engaging members of the international community.
But shifting the playing field from the battleground to the world’s stage will not be easy. Members of the international community are reluctant to engage the BRN out of concern of upsetting Bangkok.
In fact, one of the BRN’s demands for a formal negotiation with the Thais is mediation by the international community. This issue was raised during a series of meetings over the past six months between the designated facilitator, Malaysia’s Ahmad Zamzamin Hashim, and a senior member of the BRN ruling council, Doonloh Wae-mano.
Zamzamin also used his meeting with the BRN leader to arrange a meeting between Doonloh and Thailand’s chief negotiator, Gen. Aksara Kerdpol. The meeting is expected to take place in Indonesia but no date has been set.
The upcoming meeting is not a breakthrough or a game changer, BRN sources insisted. They said BRN’s position remained the same: if the Thais want to carry out formal negotiations, they will have to internationalize the process, which means the negotiations will have to be mediated and facilitated by foreign governments and the venue will have to be outside of Malaysia.
Permitting Doonloh to meet with the Thai chief negotiator was “a gesture of goodwill” toward Kuala Lumpur in its capacity as the facilitator for the peace initiative, BRN sources said.
Thai officials, however, are split on the idea of the meeting itself; some think a face-to-face meeting between Doonloh and Aksara is a positive development, a step in the right direction.
Others are concerned that dealing directly with the BRN will undermine the official process between Bangkok and the other separatist groups, most notably, MARA Patani, an umbrella organization of long-standing Patani-Malay rebel organizations. In other words, these officials would like to see BRN come under MARA Patani’s umbrella and deal with the Thais from there.
BRN sources also revealed the group is not in a hurry to get to the negotiating table. First and foremost, their representatives will have to be granted legal immunity and be properly trained, preferably by members of the international community with experience in conflict resolution and peace mediation.
Furthermore, any formal negotiation, they said, will have to be done outside Malaysia, preferably in Western countries with a strong reputation in conflict resolution and mediation.
Thai security and BRN sources said these demands have upset Zamzamin, the retired Malaysian spy chief who invested a great deal of energy going back and forth between the Thais and the rebels to keep Kuala Lumpur at the center of the process.
After all, Malaysia shares a common border with Thailand’s conflict-affected region. And in this respect, Malaysia is a stakeholder to the conflict, not exactly an honest broker.
The sources said Zamzamin met with Doonloh at least three times over the past six months. He has tried hard to convince Doonloh to permit BRN to join the Kuala Lumpur-facilitated peace talks between Thailand and MARA Patani.
The decision to join MARA Patani, or come to the negotiating table, is not up to Doonloh entirely, sources in the BRN said. The group is governed by a ruling council, the Dewan Pimpinan Parti (DPP), and such an important decision would be made collectively.
While MARA Patani claimed to have BRN members on board, BRN’s operatives on the ground and abroad, as well as the movement’s Indonesia-based Information Department, maintained that these people acted on their own and without the DPP’s consent.
Thai officials working on the conflict in the far South said MARA Patani was resting on shaky ground, because their process has not generated any meaningful traction. Moreover, the very fact that BRN, the group that controls virtually all of the militants on the ground, refuses to join them at the table also makes it difficult to move ahead with any plans, such as the implementation of a safety zone – an area where a limited ceasefire is to be observed.
Kuala Lumpur’s commitment to the talks should be clearer by the end of February when Zamzamin’s contract with the government is up for renewal. Some observers don’t think MARA Patani can survive without him at the helm.
Progress in the peace talks is moving at a snail’s pace partly because the BRN, which controls the militants, refuses to come to the table; and partly because Bangkok has never shown that it is interested in getting to the bottom of the Patani Malay cultural and historical grievances.
Thailand only wants to deal with the security aspect of this insurgency and discontent. The government believes it can win over the hearts and minds of the local Malay Muslim to deny the BRN militants the legitimacy for their armed struggle.
But such efforts are unlikely to bear fruit if Bangkok refuses to talk about the historical grievances and mistrust between the state and its Malay minority.
An earlier version of this commentary incorrectly gave the name of the governing body of BRN as the Dewan Penilian Parti. It is the Dewan Pimpinan Parti.
Don Pathan is a consultant and security analyst based in Thailand. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews.
https://www.benarnews.org/english/commentaries/far-south-view/more-talks-01082018131535.html
Tuesday, 31 October 2017
ASIA TIMES : Eye on Catalonia, South Thailand yearns to vote
http://www.atimes.com/article/eye-catalonia-south-thailand-yearns-vote/
Malay Muslim activists in the insurgency-prone region have called for a referendum on 'rights to self-determination', a rally cry military authorities have curbed and silenced
YALA, OCTOBER 31, 2017 3:48 PM (UTC+8)
An artist takes part in a graffiti event as part of the Saiburi Street Xhibit in Pattani - one of Thailand's southernmost Muslim majority provinces hit by a deadly insurgency - on February 28, 2016. Photo: AFP/Madree Tohlala
Thursday, 12 October 2017
Deadly bombings dim peace prospects in Thailand's Deep South
Dominant insurgent group BRN wants more say in negotiations with the generals in Bangkok
Thai army rangers walk through the scene of a roadside bomb which killed four army rangers in the restive Southern Thai province of Pattani on Sept. 22. (Photo by Tuwaedaniya Meringing/AFP)
https://www.ucanews.com/news/deadly-bombings-dim-peace-prospects-in-thailands-deep-south/80438
October 11, 2017
The bomb blast was so powerful that it ripped in half the pickup truck carrying a group of Thai soldiers, killing four of them and wounding five others and a civilian.
The insurgents had taken advantage of road construction in Sai Buri district in Pattani Province and planted a 100-kilogram bomb inside drainage pipes at a construction site. Two of the injured died in a Pattani hospital the following day.
Pattani is one of the three Muslim-majority provinces in Thailand's Deep South where nearly 7,000 lives have been claimed since a violent insurgency started in January 2004.
What upset the Thai officials over the Sept. 22 bombing, like many other previous attacks, was the refusal of locals to come forward with information. Popular support for the separatist militants at the grassroots level remains high.
A week earlier, on Sept. 14, insurgents carried out a double bomb attack in Yala's Yaha district, killing two security officials. At least 18 others were wounded by the blast.
Most of the victims attack were members of an army bomb squad who were on their way to inspect a power pole that was brought down the night before by an explosive device. It was a ploy luring them to the scene where the much bigger second bomb awaited them.
A month earlier, on Aug. 16, there was the carjacking of seven pickup trucks from a local second-hand dealer. The vehicles were intended to be used as car bombs.
When four hostages tried to escape, one of their abductors pulled out a gun and fired at them. One of the hostages died in hospital later in the day, while another survived with a bullet wound to the shoulder. The three survivors went straight to the police and soon after, the entire security apparatus in the region went on high alert.
The operatives scaled back their goals. Only two of the seven vehicles were used as car bombs. One hit an army vehicle and another was detonated at an apartment building for police officers.
Indeed, it has not been a good period for the Thai security apparatus. The beating that they have been taking has cast a dark cloud over an agreement that the Thai negotiators reached with the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN).
Leaders of the BRN informed the Malaysian facilitator of the agreement that their combatants would not sabotage the much talked about "Safety Zone" project between Bangkok and MARA Patani, an umbrella organization of Deep South separatist movements. A verbal agreement was given by the BRN to the Malaysian facilitator two months ago towards the end of the Ramadan.
The Safety Zone refers to a provincial district where a ceasefire is to be observed. The BRN — the dominant insurgent organisation that controls virtually all militants on the ground — is not part of MARA Patani.
The verbal promise from the BRN, which included not sabotaging the Thailand-MARA Patani talks, was greatly welcomed by Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.
But BRN militants on the ground said there is plenty of bad blood between them and MARA Patani. BRN militants suggested in an interview with me on Sept. 30 that the Safety Zone project will not have smooth sailing. They insisted that they should be the ones who Bangkok should be negotiating with, not MARA Patani. Their reasoning was based on the fact that they control the militants on the ground.
Bangkok has taken the warning seriously and decided to postpone the announcement of which district in the Deep South would be designated as a safety zone.
Discussions among BRN cadres on the ground and abroad over the past month have centered on the cost-benefit ratio behind the continuation of discrediting Bangkok and MARA Patani.
Acknowledging the bad blood stemming from competition between them and MARA Patani, some mid-ranking progressive BRN members are calling on the movement to move on from tit-for-tat attacks that may discredit the official dialogue process between the Thai government and MARA Patani but does little to advance BRN's cause and agenda.
The BRN source said his militant group is focusing more on how to engage the global community to learn about international norms and best practices. He also said understanding among the BRN about how to conduct proper negotiations is lacking and added that their negotiators will not come to the table until they are properly trained.
A Thai Army forensic team member inspects the site of a roadside bomb blast that targeted a Thai army patrol in southern Thailand's Pattani province on June 19. Six soldiers were killed by the explosion. (Photo by Tuwaedaniya Meringing/AFP)
Yingluck Shinawatra peace initiative
Peace talk proposals were initiated by the government of Yingluck Shinawatra in Feb. 28, 2013. The initiative came across as a big leap of faith by many observers. For the BRN, it was more like a hoax. Yingluck was ousted from power in May 2014 and her peace initiative came to a standstill.
The Thai junta announced in December 2014 that talks with the Patanni Malay rebels with Malaysian facilitation would continue. In August 2015, MARA Patani was introduced to the public at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur. Like Yingluck's peace initiative, this one didn't have the endorsement or participation of BRN either.
Thai officials said they were fully aware that members in MARA Patani did not control the insurgents but justified the dialogue with the umbrella organisation by saying they were hopeful the BRN would eventually join in.
Like the Yingluck initiative, the junta had also taken a big leap of faith, hoping that one day, that Malay Muslim residents at the grassroots level would become tired of the violence and end their support for the BRN.
But more than four years after Yingluck launched her peace initiative, there is no indication that such support for BRN has diminished or that the intensity of their attacks will lessen.
The BRN have said they will come to the table only when they are ready, which means proper training and a better understanding of the international norms for members of their political wing.
The militant group said the ball is in Thailand's court and it is up to the generals in Bangkok to decide whether they are willing to internationalize the peace initiative in exchange for getting their representatives to the talk.
But so far, Thailand has not given any indication that it is willing to permit foreign assistance, much less make any concession to the BRN or the Malays of Patani.
"The junta is very worried about their legacy," said one Thai security officer who monitors the situation closely. "They don't want to be remembered as the guy who gave away Patani," added the source, referring to the contested Malay historical homeland that is now part of Thailand's southernmost provinces.
Don Pathan is an independent security analyst based in Thailand. He is also a founding member of Patani Forum, a civil society organization dedicated to promoting critical discussion on the conflict in Thailand's Far South.
Tuesday, 5 September 2017
Deep South Peace Talks: Car-Jacked?
Commentary by Don Pathan
Yala, Thailand
BenarNews
In June, near the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, Ahmad Zamzamin Hashim, the Malaysian mediator of the Southern Thailand peace process, invited the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) to join the negotiations.
It was not the first time that such an invitation had been extended to the BRN, the most powerful insurgent group operating in southern Thailand. But, this time around, Zamzamin had reason to be optimistic.
At stake was the resolution of a 13-year-old armed conflict that has killed nearly 7,000 people in Thailand’s southernmost provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat – areas that were part of a Malay Muslim sultanate before being annexed by Bangkok in 1909.
Malaysia is facilitating the negotiations between Bangkok and MARA Patani, an umbrella organization of southern insurgent groups.
In response to Zamzamin’s invitation, Doonloh Wae-mano (alias Abdullah Wan Mat Noor), the most senior official of BRN’s governing council, said he and his people “would have to think about it.”
Zamzamin also had assurances from the BRN that it would not sabotage the safety zone initiative, a limited ceasefire being planned in designated areas in Thailand’s three Muslim-majority provinces, collectively known as the Deep South.
This point was discussed during the Aug. 8 to 10 meeting between MARA Patani and Thai negotiators in Kuala Lumpur, sources said.
But on Aug. 16, less than a week after the conclusion of that meeting, seven young militants stole pickup trucks and snatched hostages from a second-hand car dealership in Songkhla province, just north of the Deep South.
Their plan – to convert the vehicles into car bombs – fell apart after four hostages tried to escape. Two hostages were shot, one died in hospital, and the survivors alerted authorities. The entire region went on high alert.
In the end, only two of the seven pickup trucks were used as car bombs, and a suspected militant died after an alleged shootout with Thai police.
Army chief Gen. Chalermchai Sitthisart said the seven militants were directed by Wae-mano – taking a jab at the man believed by many Thai officials to be the biggest obstacle to BRN joining the peace talks.
The carjackings dampened the optimism felt after BRN agreed not to sabotage the safety zone initiative – and served as a reminder that nothing comes easy in Thailand’s Deep South.
The next round of talks are expected this month, but MARA Patani has asked for more time to prepare for the meeting, which had been scheduled for Sept. 11, a Thai government official said.
‘Bad blood’
For their part, BRN sources said the chain of command in their movement is fluid, meaning that deals reached at the top level may not play out on the ground the way that Thai or Malaysian officials want them to.
Moreover, said the sources, there is bad blood between the BRN and MARA Patani, and this will take time to overcome.
“Pohsu Loh [Wae-mano] was being polite and diplomatic when he said BRN would refrain from hitting districts designated as Safety Zones. BRN has cells in just about every tambon [sub-district] and it remains to be seen how this agreement or understanding with Ahmad Zamzamin will play out,” said one BRN source, who added that his unit had not been informed of this particular deal.
BRN officials say Bangkok’s insistence that talks be in line with the country’s constitution, which clearly stipulates that the kingdom is indivisible, has always been a non-starter.
They say they would hypothetically be willing to talk to the government if that stipulation was not raised, and in turn, they would not mention the issue of independence.
BRN officials also say they will only come to the table if their negotiators are properly trained, and the talks are mediated by the international community – in line with peace processes in the southern Philippines and in Aceh, Indonesia.
A Thai military intelligence officer who monitors the Deep South conflict said involving the BRN would be an opportunity to talk to the people who have command-and-control over the militants.
In June, Deputy Defense Minister Udomdej Sitabutr publicly implied that MARA Patani may not be the right dialogue partners. In other words, he doesn’t believe MARA Patani has command-and-control over the insurgents engaged in the fighting.
But Udomdej’s statement was said to have rubbed Gen. Aksara Kerdpol, Thailand’s chief negotiator, the wrong way.
Aksara and many in the Thai government, including Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, believe that if the “real” BRN wants to join the talks, they need to come under MARA Patani’s umbrella, not start a new track.
Tit-for-tat
Even if the Thai military allows the presence of international participants, there is no indication that it would be willing to make concessions touching on the historical root causes and the deep-seated mistrust between the Thai government and the Malays of the Deep South.
BRN also pointed to the Thai government’s refusal to grant legal immunity to two MARA Patani negotiators as a sign of Bangkok’s unwillingness to make concessions.
Sukree Hari and Ahmad Chuwol, who fled Thailand in 2007 after posting bail under the then-military government, resurfaced as MARA Patani members when the panel was launched in August 2015.
The two requested the immunity that would permit them to return to Thailand and observe the safety zone pilot project, one source said. But the Thai Justice Ministry was firmly against it for fear that it would create an unwanted precedent.
Moreover, allegations of extra-judicial killings by both sides continued to dampen the atmosphere at the political level and set off tit-for-tat revenge killings.
Don Pathan is a Thailand-based security analyst and consultant. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews.
http://www.benarnews.org/english/commentaries/far-south-view/car-jack-09052017165442.html
Yala, Thailand
BenarNews
 |
| Roadside blast that killed six Thai soldiers in Pattani, June 19, 2017. AFP |
It was not the first time that such an invitation had been extended to the BRN, the most powerful insurgent group operating in southern Thailand. But, this time around, Zamzamin had reason to be optimistic.
At stake was the resolution of a 13-year-old armed conflict that has killed nearly 7,000 people in Thailand’s southernmost provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat – areas that were part of a Malay Muslim sultanate before being annexed by Bangkok in 1909.
Malaysia is facilitating the negotiations between Bangkok and MARA Patani, an umbrella organization of southern insurgent groups.
In response to Zamzamin’s invitation, Doonloh Wae-mano (alias Abdullah Wan Mat Noor), the most senior official of BRN’s governing council, said he and his people “would have to think about it.”
Zamzamin also had assurances from the BRN that it would not sabotage the safety zone initiative, a limited ceasefire being planned in designated areas in Thailand’s three Muslim-majority provinces, collectively known as the Deep South.
This point was discussed during the Aug. 8 to 10 meeting between MARA Patani and Thai negotiators in Kuala Lumpur, sources said.
But on Aug. 16, less than a week after the conclusion of that meeting, seven young militants stole pickup trucks and snatched hostages from a second-hand car dealership in Songkhla province, just north of the Deep South.
Their plan – to convert the vehicles into car bombs – fell apart after four hostages tried to escape. Two hostages were shot, one died in hospital, and the survivors alerted authorities. The entire region went on high alert.
In the end, only two of the seven pickup trucks were used as car bombs, and a suspected militant died after an alleged shootout with Thai police.
Army chief Gen. Chalermchai Sitthisart said the seven militants were directed by Wae-mano – taking a jab at the man believed by many Thai officials to be the biggest obstacle to BRN joining the peace talks.
The carjackings dampened the optimism felt after BRN agreed not to sabotage the safety zone initiative – and served as a reminder that nothing comes easy in Thailand’s Deep South.
The next round of talks are expected this month, but MARA Patani has asked for more time to prepare for the meeting, which had been scheduled for Sept. 11, a Thai government official said.
‘Bad blood’
For their part, BRN sources said the chain of command in their movement is fluid, meaning that deals reached at the top level may not play out on the ground the way that Thai or Malaysian officials want them to.
Moreover, said the sources, there is bad blood between the BRN and MARA Patani, and this will take time to overcome.
“Pohsu Loh [Wae-mano] was being polite and diplomatic when he said BRN would refrain from hitting districts designated as Safety Zones. BRN has cells in just about every tambon [sub-district] and it remains to be seen how this agreement or understanding with Ahmad Zamzamin will play out,” said one BRN source, who added that his unit had not been informed of this particular deal.
BRN officials say Bangkok’s insistence that talks be in line with the country’s constitution, which clearly stipulates that the kingdom is indivisible, has always been a non-starter.
They say they would hypothetically be willing to talk to the government if that stipulation was not raised, and in turn, they would not mention the issue of independence.
BRN officials also say they will only come to the table if their negotiators are properly trained, and the talks are mediated by the international community – in line with peace processes in the southern Philippines and in Aceh, Indonesia.
A Thai military intelligence officer who monitors the Deep South conflict said involving the BRN would be an opportunity to talk to the people who have command-and-control over the militants.
In June, Deputy Defense Minister Udomdej Sitabutr publicly implied that MARA Patani may not be the right dialogue partners. In other words, he doesn’t believe MARA Patani has command-and-control over the insurgents engaged in the fighting.
But Udomdej’s statement was said to have rubbed Gen. Aksara Kerdpol, Thailand’s chief negotiator, the wrong way.
Aksara and many in the Thai government, including Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, believe that if the “real” BRN wants to join the talks, they need to come under MARA Patani’s umbrella, not start a new track.
Tit-for-tat
Even if the Thai military allows the presence of international participants, there is no indication that it would be willing to make concessions touching on the historical root causes and the deep-seated mistrust between the Thai government and the Malays of the Deep South.
BRN also pointed to the Thai government’s refusal to grant legal immunity to two MARA Patani negotiators as a sign of Bangkok’s unwillingness to make concessions.
Sukree Hari and Ahmad Chuwol, who fled Thailand in 2007 after posting bail under the then-military government, resurfaced as MARA Patani members when the panel was launched in August 2015.
The two requested the immunity that would permit them to return to Thailand and observe the safety zone pilot project, one source said. But the Thai Justice Ministry was firmly against it for fear that it would create an unwanted precedent.
Moreover, allegations of extra-judicial killings by both sides continued to dampen the atmosphere at the political level and set off tit-for-tat revenge killings.
Don Pathan is a Thailand-based security analyst and consultant. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews.
http://www.benarnews.org/english/commentaries/far-south-view/car-jack-09052017165442.html
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