Peace talks postponed once again by Thai junta in Patani

Patani is one of the provinces of Thailand on the Malaysian border. Some 5 million Thai Muslim Malays live in the region. The majority of the population is Malay Muslim, making up 88 percent of the population. Thailand hosts the third largest ethnic Malay population after Malaysia and Indonesia, and most Malays are concentrated in the southern provinces, including Patani. Muslim Patani Malays are the second largest ethnic group after the Chinese in Thailand. The term "Thai Malays" is also used to refer to ethnic Malays in Thailand.

Islam came to Patani via Muslim merchants in the 15th century. Patani people lived under the governorate of the Sultanate of Patani Darussalam between 1516-1902 in the Patani region. The British colonialists came to Thailand in 1786 and withdrew from the country in 1902. Under the tutelage of the UK, the Muslim Patani Malays in Thailand resisted for 116 years against colonialism. After the British colonial era, the Thai era began.

The number of Buddhist settlers in the Patani region increases day by day with the help of Thai settlement policy. Muslim Patani Malays have struggled for freedom against the oppression of the Thai junta for years. The Patani people have long suffered from the human rights abuses, as about 20,000 people have been killed in the region by the Thai military. Some 30,000 Muslim Patani Malays are still under arrest. Tens of thousands of children live in orphanages.

The Krue Se Mosque in Patani was attacked in 2004 by Thai military forces, and 36 Patani Malays were killed. After the attack, much violence erupted across the Patani region. In the clashes, at least 83 protesters were killed by armed Thai forces, some 200 were taken into custody, and 250 protestors are still missing. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW) reports, 2,463 people were killed – mostly Muslim Patani Malays (also including Thai Buddhists in attacks from 2004 to 2007), and 89 percent of them were civilians. The Asian Center for Human Rights questioned the independence and impartiality of the investigative commission. On May 3, 2004, during a Senate hearing, Senator Kraisak Choonhavan noted that most of those killed at the Krue Se Mosque had been shot in the head, and there were signs that rope had been tied around their wrists, suggesting they had been executed after being captured. The mosque attack is a critical point for relations between Muslim Patani Malays and the Thai junta. After the attack, clashes between the Muslim minority in Patani and Thai military force were uninterrupted. The 2010 World Report from the HRW highlighted escalating human rights abuses throughout Thailand, with the south reflecting overall policies against individual human rights. According to one report in the Patani Post, about 6,000 Muslim Patani people have been killed, and some 10,800 people have been wounded in violence during the last decade.

There are two main groups fighting the Thai junta in the Patani region. The first one, Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), the "National Revolutionary Front," is a Patani independence movement in southern Thailand. Originally the BRN was established in 1963 as a roughly secular organization, emphasizing Patani secessionism above the Islamic religion. The BRN has 60 percent public support in Patani. In the past decade, the BRN-C, has been involved in numerous arson, bombing and murder attacks. Schools and other symbols of Thai authority in the region have been subject to arson and bombing. Local police officers and government officials have been the primary targets with 19 policemen killed and 50 incidents related to the insurgency in the three provinces of Patani, Yala and Narathiwat by the end of 2001. Due to targeting civilians, some international organizations have declared the BRN as a terrorist organization. So the BRN is weak internationally. Second, the Patani United Liberation Organization (PULO) is one of the active movements calling for a free and independent Patani. PULO was founded in 1968, and this group, along with others, is currently fighting for the independence of predominantly Malay Muslims in southern Thailand. PULO is highlighted by its Islamic nationalist goals, calling the Thai presence in Patani ‘a colonization' and an "illegal occupation." PULO has 30 percent public support in Patani. Different from the BRN, civilians are not targeted by PULO. Also, PULO is represented in the Organization of the Islamic Conferences (OIC). During recent years, the group has become increasingly visible and been able to show their influence by gathering active separatists and organizing them under their political wing, as well as being recognized internationally as representatives of the Patani people. Also, Thai military government forces exclude PULO from peace negotiations because of its rising power.

Local leaders have persistently demanded at least a level of autonomy from Thailand for the Patani region, and some of the separatist movements have made a series of demands for peace talks and negotiations. The Thai government initially welcomed the request to negotiate in 2004. However, the government response was severely criticized as being "just looking to score cheap political points." But when it became apparent that despite the softened demand for limited autonomy, Thai officials cancelled negotiations with the pretext of violence. Since the 2006 military coup, the Thai government has taken a more conciliatory approach to the insurgency, avoiding the excessive use of force and beginning negotiations with known groups. However, violence has escalated, and the Thai government then began a policy of not attempting to officially negotiate with the insurgents. The National Reconciliation Commission's recommendations were submitted in 2006, including introduce Islamic law, establish an unarmed peacekeeping force and establish a peaceful strategic administrative center for southern border provinces. The government vowed to implement the recommendations. However, due to opponents' vigorous opposition, the NRC's recommendations were not implemented. More dialogue was initially started in March 2013 by the civilian government, but was suspended in December 2013 as massive anti-government protests paralyzed the capital. The Thai military government called for negotiations in August 2014, but it was interrupted as in the past. Also, Malaysia supports negotiations between the Thai junta and Muslim Malays in Patani.

Thailand's military government has severely repressed fundamental rights and freedoms since the May 22, 2014 coup, HRW said in its World Report 2015. In response to calls from the UN and many concerned governments to respect rights and transition to a civilian government, the HRW also has raised serious concerns regarding the use of arbitrary arrest and secret military detention in Patani province. Recently, the Thai military government has rejected the demand of 17 students about receiving education with a headscarf.