Claim of Improved situation is just an illusion
It is undeniable that the February 20 car bomb attack in Narathiwat’s Muang municipal area which left 13 civilians injured, many houses and cars damaged has seriously affected public confidence in the government’s handling of the unrest problem in the Deep South.
The government’s claim that the general situation in the restive region has improved as proven by statistics showing a substantial drop in the number of violent incidents appears to be just an illusion because the basic problems namely injustice and bad feelings towards the government by some local people have not been properly addressed.
It should be understood that the fact that the government has done many good things for the region and its people or the fact that civic groups have staged several social activities does not necessarily contribute to the improvement of the situation. The truth is that the people who benefit from the positive things undertaken by the different group from those who hate the government or who are inclined to resort to violence.
Take for instance the recent peace march from Yala to Narathiwat which was organized by some local civic groups which came to a close on February 21. Despite its good intention, the peace march managed to attract the participation of just a handful of people. It lacks the momentum to build up public pressure among the locals to rise up against violence.
There is no unity among the civic groups working in the region although they may share the same wish for the restoration of peace in the region. It was reported that several groups were against the recent peace march and even tried to ditch the plan.
The complexity of the southern unrest problem is that there are not just two conflicting parties namely the government and the separatist groups. Even the civic groups dedicated to the restoration of peace are divided.
So the problem is not the fight between the good and the bad or between the right and the wrong. It is more complicated and it seems the government is not interested about it and focuses on preventing violence which is the symptom of the problem and not the origin of the problem.
Likewise, the peace process which is being pushed by the government has made very little headway because the government believes that it has the upper hand over the separatist groups. So far, the framework of peace talks which are known as the TOR is yet to be worked out between the governments of Thailand and Malaysia, the facilitator.
If the government believes that peace can be achieved through talks with just a handful of people thought to be core leaders of the separatist movement, then it shows that the government totally misunderstands the struggle of the separatist movement.
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Caption : Car bomb attack in Narathiwat
Note : This artcle was translated from the editorial of Isranews "ไฟใต้ กับภาพลวงตา" http://www.isranews.org/south-news/talk-with-director/item/36715-illusion.html