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June 15, 2006

Thailand: Mass Bombings In Muslim South

News from the Bangkok Post, from FT News and Reuters via Ynet News reports that a series of more than 50 bombs were set off earlier today, killing at least three people and injuring 16 more. The bombs happened as the country's caretaker deputy prime minister, Chitchai Wannasathit, visited the south. The bombs went off between 8.30 and 9 am local time, in 29 separate locations in the provinces of Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani.

There were 12 bombs in Yala, 18 in Pattani and 20 in Narathiwat. The caretaker Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, blamed the security forces for allowing the bombings to take place. Speaking in the province of Chiang Mai, he claimed: "Prevention measures are not good enough".

Intelligence sources had apparently stated that June 15 was a special date in the Islamist insurgent's calendar, and a potential time for atrocities to happen. This is the anniversary of the meeting held in 1997 called "free Pattani state" which declared this date to be the "national day of Pattani".

The three southern provinces, where the population is 80% Buddhist, formerly comprised, along with two districts of Songhkla province, an independent sultanate of Pattani, which was invaded, and eventually annexed into Thailand a century ago. Many Muslims wish to see Pattani "state" come back into being, and want the three provinces to secede from Thailand.

Since January 4, 2004 a violent insurgency has been in place, which has so far cost the lives of almost 1,300 people. There are 1,8 million people living in the three provinces, mostly ethnic Malay Muslims.

On army radio, the nation's interior minister, Kongsak Wantana, said that the devices which exploded today were manufactured in "a neighbouring country", a strong hint that they were made in Malaysia, which adjoins Thailand's southern border.

The explosions happened in one government building (Pattani provincial hall), police stations, a library and other state-connected establishments.

Last year, the government set up a National Reconciliation Committee, to come up with solutions to the southern problems, Recently they recommended a powerful specialist agency to control the south, giving acknowledgement to the history, ethnic and religious aspects of the region.

One member of the NRC, Voravit Baru, who is rector of Songkla University in Pattani province, blamed the government and security forces for not preparing, knowing that intelligence had warned of an attack upon this date. "What's happening to the security forces?" he asked. "Many of the bombings took place in government buildings."

Voravit said that the Executive Decree on Administration on Emergency Situations in the Deep South should be abolished. He said this decree gave excessive power to the authorities to raid and search, and also arrest, without having strong evidence. This caused resentment from local people.

In a related article from the Bangkok Post, a Muslim leader said that people in the deep south had lost confidence in the government's capacity to control the violence.

Waedueramae Mamingji, who is chairman of the Islamic Committee of Pattani province, said the bombings gave the lie to government claims that the situation was improving. He said: "Is this what they call the right track or an improving situation? They need to consider where the mistake lies."

A colleague of Somkid Boonsuwan, a man killed in Pattani Provincial hall's blast said that the bombing showed no-one could guarantee their own safety, and was considering leaving government employment.

Other individuals concurred that the government had lost the ability to control the situation. Muhammad-amin Sarikhan, the chairman of the Narathiwat Cultural Council, claimed the government was groping in the dark.

A civilian from Rueso dietrict in Narathiwat who runs a grocery store with his elderly mother said: "'Unless the government can put out the southern fire, I believe that in the near future local people will be gunned down and driven out of town until only militants and officials are left to engage in a civil war."

UPDATE: June 16. According to AKI, the total number of bombs in the southern provinces was 65 in all. Places bombed included the Yala Provincial Hall (pictured above). There were 13 bombs in Yala, 26 in Pattani and 26 in Narathiwat. As well as three people killed, 10 were injured.

AKI states that in the three southern provinces, the predominant language is Yawi, a dialect of Malay. The three southern provinces are the poorest in the country, with high levels of unemployment. The national average of unemployment is 14%, but in Yala it is 35%, in Narathiwat it is 28%, and in Pattani the rate is 25%.

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at June 15, 2006 9:05 PM

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