There is no quick remedy to restore peace in the Deep South, but a regional fishermen's group hopes that learning about different cultures will enrich the young and teach them to be more moderate and rational
When Sunirun Ratanawilailuck asked permission from his teacher at a Chiang Mai school to attend a muliticultural youth camp in Pattani, the teacher teased him, saying he would measure his body for a coffin.
"I knew he was making a joke, but I felt odd when he said it because I was feeling uncertain myself about going there," said Sunirun, a Karen-Thai who is a member of the Inter-Mountain Peoples Education and Culture in Thailand Association (IMPECT), a nonprofit organisation which is working to promote education for ethnic people in northern Thailand.
"But my desire to learn the facts about the problems in the southernmost provinces overcame my fears," said the Grade 12 student after he had returned safely to his home in Chiang Mai.
Sunirun attended the camp at the invitation of the Pattani Province Small-Scale Fisher Network Association (PSSFA).
The PSSFA is a network of community organisations in six districts of Pattani which has been working to promote the awareness and quality of life of small-scale fishermen in the province through peaceful means.
"We want to educate our younger generation about peace and living with people of different faiths. We want them to learn about the struggles of other people. But it is no less crucial that they also learn about their own roots," said Muhama Sukree Masaning, the chairperson of the PSSFA.
The core members of the PSSFA are aware that the ongoing violence in the deep South might give a wrong perception about people there to the general public in the rest of the country, as well as the young people in the area themselves. Mr Sukree said that neither the local Buddhists nor local Muslims are aiming for political power, they just want to live their lives in peace.
"But violence has interrupted our way of life and even caused some locals to have bad feelings about people of other faiths," he added.
"The youth camp was aimed to groom the young people, to broaden their thinking and attitudes. They should have the ability to think objectively and not accept generalisations or make judgments without sufficient information."
The PSSFA organised the camp with the assistance of the Canada Fund, the Embassy of Canada in Bangkok and Prince of Songkla University. The idea was to invite six young people with different ethnic backgrounds and religious beliefs from northern Thailand to join 56 young people from the South. Most of these were the children of fishermen in Pattani province, but some were from Narathiwat and Yala.
Some came from broken homes, others were children of parents who were killed in the violence, three attended a school for special children, two were autistic and one had Down syndrome.
Besides gaining information about different cultures and individuals, the youths took part in recreational activities and lessons in art and other subjects. All students interested in participating were asked to write an essay describing why they wanted to join the camp, their understanding of the situation in the South and what contribution they felt they could make to the learning process in the camp.
One of the essays submitted to the PSSFA from a young person from the North indicated his belief that violence was common throughout the whole region and killings were a daily fact of life. These perceptions were given by the mainstream media that penetrates people's homes and reports only violent incidents.
Some of the writers from the North said that the violence stems from the bad behaviour of some authorities. This occurs in the North as well, but it is passively accepted.
"There is more to the situation in the South than meets eye. It is not people against the authorities, but a mixture of things. There are good authorities and there are locals who are troublemakers as well," said one of the PSSFA leaders, who asked not to be named.
As for the southern youth, most of them wrote that they don't know who is causing the troubles, but they left no doubt that the violence does affect them.
"I am afraid that my father will be a target of militants as he works for the good of the community.
"He might be viewed as someone who works for the state because he has to cooperate with state officials. The troublemakers do not like the government - they might attack my dad," wrote a camp participant from the South, adding that her whole family worries about safety in their daily lives.
"My dad does nothing against them (militants), but we don't know who is who," she wrote, adding that she hoped the camp would help broaden the thinking of the younger generation and teach them to live in harmony with others.
Bukorri Jehuseng, from a pondok school in Pattani province, wrote that conflicts arise over trivial issues stemming from cultural differences between the Buddhists and Muslims, but these sometimes become big issues because of a basic lack of understanding. Asked why he wanted to participate in the camp, he said: "I will have the chance to learn from people of different beliefs."
From talking to and reading the words of these young people it is clear that the desire for a peaceful society is strong. Many pleaded with all concerned parties to stop using violence as a solution to conflicts.
"We want peace, I want to ask everybody, including young people and the general public, to stop their improper actions," said Fadeeha Doloh from Pattani. The sentiment was echoed by Suraida Samae "I beg the troublemakers to stop using violence, please let us have peace," she wrote.
EMPATHY EXCHANGE
The cultural exchange was not only from South to North. The young people from the North also shared their lives and difficulties with the students from the South. The six northerners were made up of animists, Christians and Buddhists and spoke five different dialects. What they have in common is that they are all from ethnic minority groups and they are all trying to live in the mainstream society without losing their dignity and cultural identities.
When 21-year-old Arefuh Bachuh, a Thai-Akha who lives in Mae Ai district of Chiang Mai, told his personal story he stunned the whole camp. He spoke Thai with a heavy accent, but no one laughed at him as Thai was not the first language of any of the young people at the camp.
Arefuh was born in Thailand but he has no citizenship status. Arefuh's family is landless and stateless and survives by doing odd jobs. He is luckier than his siblings as he has a chance to further his studies. He won a scholarship and gets support from his sister.
"My younger sister had to drop out of school to earn a living and set aside some money to support my schooling," he said in front of the 62 camp participants.
He gave some additional information about his community. "My village in Mae Ai has no electricity, and most of the people in the village have no Thai nationality. Some are addicted to illegal drugs. Our poverty is the result of our lack of access to land and jobs.
"People in my village cannot travel freely. We have to ask permission from the assistat district chief every time we want to travel beyond our district, and sometimes we have to pay a fee as well," Arefuh added.
Other students from the North said they were also victims of generalisations, such as being branded as people who are doing slash and burn agriculture or involved in drug trafficking.
"I have to tell you that we are being blamed for destroying the forest. How could that be? We live in the forest - we have to save the forest. If there is no forest, we have no food and no water," said Yuthana Rojanakhirisanti, a Hmong from Chiang Rai.
Mae Hong Son native Kemika Chanta, an ethnic Lau who also is without citizenship status, told a story passed down from generation to generation that indicates her ancestors have been living in what is now northern Thailand for more than 700 years. The oral history is supported by historical evidence.
"We had to stay in the forest after some conflicts with rulers of Chiang Mai [in the time of the ancient Lanna Kingdom]," said Kemika, a fourth year student at Rajabhat Chiang Rai University.
The information from their new northern friends provided a new perspective for the young people from the South, who also came from diverse backgrounds. Many in the camp expressed their feeling that it was a great experience to learn from other traditions. "It's great to learn how the northern tribal people live their lives and what their problems are," said Nipa Maeha, from Narathiwat.
Madeeha Lammuadoh, a Grade 11 student from Narathiwat whose parents are separated, said: "I appreciate that our friend from the North takes good care of Ti [nickname of the boy with Down syndrome] in the camp. It is a good example that we should learn to be more caring people.
"I also feel so sorry for Arefuh, who still lacks citizenship."
The participants at the camp had the chance to visit a fishing village in Yaring district of Pattani, where they learned about the struggle of fishermen against the big commercial trawlers that invade their three-kilometre protected zone along the coast.
They are using the nonviolent means of submitting letters, peaceful protests and following up on their demands for the government to enforce the law.
The young people were also encouraged to broaden their thinking by watching a documentary film about a music group whose members are Muslims from central Thailand and write down what they thought. It was impressed on them that their thinking was a reflection of their beliefs and judgements, which in turn are based on their culture and the way they are taught about their religion. At the same time, the documentary highlighted the diversity of Thailand's Muslim population.
Many of the young people were aware that the film was a tool to get them to engage in discussion and think more critically.
"The lesson can be applied to other situations, such as how we should look at the GT 200 device. Should we immediately believe what we are told?" asked Suwaiba Jehma, a Grade 12 student from Pattani.
Most of the participants were eager to attend more multicultural events, but they want them to be during school holidays. They also want such events to include more cultural performance activities.
"I am very impressed [with the camp], even though I had to be absent from school. I think it is worth it as I can learn from real life and friends from different cultures and backgrounds. I hope we can invite more people from other parts of the country to come to our homeland," said Fadeelah Sa-aa, a fisherman's daughter.
Sunirun said he has a deeper understanding of Muslim culture and Muslim people.
"I will go back to tell my friends in Chiang Mai that they are friendly people. We should not brand them as violent. They practise their religion dutifully. I think it is hard to be like them.
"I learned to respect the differences, and I have to say that our cultural diversity enriches Thailand. It's like food - we need different dishes on our table," he quipped.
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