The South of Thailand - Why no action?

[Northman061]

Everyday, a man, woman or child seems to be murdered in the South of Thailand, these include Farmers,teachers, policemen etc. The response from those in power to these daily slaughterings........Lets bid for a $58 Billion Expo or let people vote if Thailand is great and we are nice people?

Seriously.

There are Four Infantry Regts in Bangkok (Yes 4!!)
There is One in the South (Yes 1!!)

Would anyone (but the Military) have the neck to justify why Bangkok has 4 times the the number of troops, and by extent, Generals, in the capital city than are on patrol in the killing fields of the "no go" south of the Kingdom?

Yes, we all know the answer, Politics.

The Army seems to have the power to decide if, where and for whom it acts. I for one will judge the current PM and his Government on how the civil power controls and uses the SERVANTS OF THE PEOPLE in the Armed Forces.

So far its a 100% Fail.

[wilko]

There has been a lot of action in the South over the past few years; ham-fisted and ill-conceived it has succeeded in alienation and escalation of the problem since they took over from the police........this is a separatist movement with no real tangible core organization. The Thai authorities refuse even to see it as this - how can they tackle a problem they don'y understand?

[kngdady]

The Thais do not have control along their borders as the United States. It is a shame that people from all walks of life in the southern region of Thailand from kids to teachers are affected by the violence. If I were the leader of the Thai military I would squash fear with fear and hope some settlement could be reached. The killings and intimidation of the rebel forces should be stopped and can be stopped only if the military have a pair of b///s between their legs.

[Hypocrisy]

Priority one is taking care of their mouthpieces Abhisit and Suthep, thus the military presence in Bangkok.

[benp]

i was saddened to read of the death of four buddhist monks today, killed by islamic militants who executed them! it saddens me to read of so many deaths and cannot understand why this is allowed to happen!
is the malaysian government aiding the thai authorities in getting rid of these killers? surely a joint effort by malaysian and thai forces could help to round up these people who kill in the name of islam?
what is the united nations doing to help? has the thai authorities asked for their assistance?
im sorry for being a bit ignorant but i am an ordinary person who thinks that a lot more could be done to bring these killers to justice.

[paulc]

I am seeing a disturbing parallel between the South of Thailand and Iraq. The militant muslims will murder and intimidate the Thais living there until they are forced to vacate the 3 southern provinces. Once they have those 3 then they will move to the next 3 until.......well you can see where this is going. The world must realize they are in a struggle for survival. The muslims will not tolerate any other religion and will kill or convert everyone by whatever means necessary. it will be a terrible mistake to underestimate them.

[paulc]

Whether the number of murders in the past 100 years involves more muslims or Buddhists is interesting there is no denying that the southern provinces are experiencing a religious issue/crisis/. You can find a varied cross section of the media that have reported on the issue. Parts of 2 of these publications are:
***On Sept 27, 2007 The Asia Times wrote, in part: "Over the past three months, the counterinsurgency element has been the most pronounced, resulting in the detention of nearly 2,000 suspected separatists. At the same time, Malay Muslim militants continue to achieve success in their campaign to polarize society and destroy the governmental and economic system of the deep south".
***On Sept. 21, 2010 the Human Rights Watch published:
"(Bangkok) - Separatist attacks on teachers and schools and the government's use of schools as military bases are greatly harming the education of children in Thailand's southern border provinces, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The 111-page report, "'Targets of Both Sides': Violence Against Students, Teachers, and Schools in Thailand's Southern Border Provinces," details how ethnic Malay Muslim insurgents, who view the government educational system as a symbol of Thai state oppression, have threatened and killed teachers, burned and bombed government schools, and spread terror among students and their parents."
The time span would indicate this is nothing new.
I don't think the monks were murdered for greed or power as they had no money or valuables or power and nothing I have read indicates that the communists are involved. You are right in that religion is a very powerful tool for the more gullible portion of our society and unfortunately the problem is certainly not limited to Thailand.
I sincerely appreciate your interest and zeal in reviewing my posts.

[Eric]

Another commander for the 4th Army which supervise the South has assumed command. Lt Gen Udomchai is unlikely to do any different from his past predecessors which have failed in their missions. He was qouted the same tested strategy to gained community support in order to defeat the seperatist insurgents. Again like the rests, he claimed that the military is gaining grounds but no mention of any partial withdrawal to give credence to his words. And yet today, we read about any loss of life in Yala.

We have yet to see the government start to think of a alternative plan after years of ineffective use of over-powering military occupancy. It surely can start with Ahbisit paying more attention to the South rather than making all those PR oversea trips.

The government must seriously consider a political compromise rather than military. Some stern action must be taken to curb the the army impunity and wide array of rights violations. Govt must prosecute those responsible to demonstrate fairness. Todate, no Thai officials have been prosecuted and Southerns feel that there is a culture of impunity and injustice.

Then there must be better control on development projects as much as been leaked to corruption and again left the locals disgrunted. Show a token of peace effort by ending martial law and withdrawing some forces and have better control of arms held by self-defence civilians.

Thai/Malaysia border talks must not only be symbolic as the recent one between Ahbisit and Najib last year. It must be follow through and show sequence of actions of conciliation for the South problems & issues. Malaysia is a big factor in this conflict terms of support, finance and symbolic for the insurgents.

[Eric]

RogerRamjet, I see your points. You right that Malaysia is one of the key factor and both PMs should initiate a plan of action. Money trial will lead to Malaysia which funds the insurgents. There are Thai restaurants in Malaysia that provides a source of funds. There were also reports of training sites in Malaysia which was denied; obviously. The South shares a very porous border with 2 of Malaysia most Muslim fundamental states; Kelantan and Trenganu. The duo citizenship issues which allow insurgents to slip across the border easily has been a headache for a long time. Talks were plentiful between PMs, Army Chiefs, Foreign Ministers in the past but nothing really concrete materialized. Ahbisit & Kasit have promised that they will bring peace to the region within 2010. Promises made but not kept and another year will end.

I don't see a military solution. This is not a original but I will agree that winning hearts and mind is crucial. Allowing the south to keep their Malay-Muslim identity. Give them recognition like declaring the Muslim New Year or Hari Raya and Hari Haji as national holidays. Even the Indonesia has Chinese New Year as National holidays as a recognition to the Chinese population. Lift the Emergency Decree which grants the military broad power of arrest with immunity from presecution. Give them dignity, rights justice and economy. If only the authrity spend 10% of their time that they transfixed on the UDD and the Reds to look into the South conflict and problems; we may perhaps see some improvement. Now it is only a afterthought.

[Northman061]

When i started this thread, i was simply sick of hearing about Thais being killed and no seemingly acting.

The Army has a simple task (as i see it), to protect Thailand, its people and borders.

So how does having 4 Infantry Regiments in Bangkok protect the Thai people murdered every day in the South?

Well of course it does not.

I am aware that just droping a few thousand troops into the south wil not stop the root problems, but it will limit and maybe stop the killings. From that point, we can talk, debate and meet with those who feel they need to murder to get change.

But it brings us back to the real question, the really hard question.

Why are there so many Troops, Tanks and Millionaire Generals in Bangkok?

Why has the government not forced the troops down South to stop the daily murders?

The answer to these questions i believe, will answer the Posts main question.