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London - Two Terrorist Attacks


Coss
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Study up on Pattani. The people didn't "lose their land." They still compose the overwhelming majority and are free to go about their lives. The ethnic Malay Muslims down there were happy enough to be Thai citizens until Pibunsongkran began his forced "nationalisation" program of all Thailand shortly before WWII. For the far south that meant Bangkok-appointed officials replacing the local officials and school teaching only in the Thai language. If the people really had lost their land, you wouldn't see the Islamists killing both Thais and Buddhists indiscriminately. They would all turn against the Thais.

 

"Despite the ethnic affinity of the people of the Patani region with their Malay neighbours to the south, the old Patani Kingdom was led by sultans who historically preferred to pay tribute to the distant Siamese kings in Bangkok. For many centuries the King of Siam restricted himself to exacting a periodic tribute in the form of Bunga mas, ritual trees with gold leaves and flowers that were a symbolic acknowledgement of Siamese suzerainty, leaving the Patani rulers largely alone.

 

"Thai rule over the historical Patani region was confirmed by the Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909. Until well into the 20th century, the government in Bangkok had interfered little locally, relying on local officials for the implementation of policies within the Patani region. This included an exemption in implementing Thai Civil Law, which had allowed Muslims to continue their observance of local Islamic laws regarding issues on inheritance and family. However, by 1934 Marshall Plaek Phibunsongkhram set in motion of a process of Thaification which had as its objective the cultural assimilation of the Patani people, among other ethnic groups in Thailand."

 

https://en.wikipedia...land_insurgency

 

 

Local autonomy is the obvious answer, but the military is not about to allow that. Never forget that "democracy" began in Thailand with a military-led coup in 1932, and the military has usually called the shots even when there has been an elected government. Thailand has only been a genuine democracy for short periods of time. And ironically, it was the freely elected government of Thaksin Shinawatra who stirred up the current mess in the far south today.

 

"Since the 2006 military coup, the Thai government has taken a more conciliatory approach to the insurgency, avoiding the excessive use of force that typified Thaksin's time in office, and opened negotiations with known separatist groups. Violence, however, has escalated."

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