IH的作业，写到我抓狂。
Class: 307
Name: Zhang Yang Fan 33
Date: 22-5-07
Practice Question:
“The conflict in South Thailand can be resolved.”
How far do the sources support the above statement? Explain your answer.
The conflict in South Thailand is that the Muslims in Thailand’s three southernmost provinces claim that the Thai government discriminates against them so that they seek the independence and separation of their land by using violence and the government responded with force, declaring martial law in the region.
Three of the sources do show that the conflict in South Thailand cannot be resolved since both of the separatists and the Thai Government prefer to use military force to solve the problem.
The sources show that and there may be a third party involved in the conflict. Source A is a photo from the Thai government showing Islamic separatists in a camp in Malaysia. From the picture, we can see the people are all young males and their facial expressions are quite serious. Thus we may guess that the separatists are training their new army for fighting against the Thai government and trying to get more people to join them at the same time. Since the camp is held in Malaysia, it may be possible that the Malaysia government supports the separatists’ plan. This makes the conflict to be more complicated and difficult to resolve. Because the photo is from the Thai government, it is obvious that Thai government is aware of this fact that a third party is involved in this conflict. Compared to source C, the sentences “Thais always love and protect their motherland. We will not let anyone steal any part from us” clearly show the statement of Thai government which is protecting the Thai motherland and fight against the separation which suggested by the Muslims and it may be a hint that the Thai government is not satisfied with the action of Malaysia.
In addition, according to source B, people will be with the government if Thai government gets stronger and thus the conflict will be possibly resolved since the government then obtains the trust of the generation. Improving “Military forces” and “a psychological campaign” can make the government become more powerful. The sentence “The local people in the affected areas have dismissed any quick fix solution” shows the difficulty of resolving the conflict. The warning raised by the Muslim community towards the government also shows the savageness of the separatists. The idea of gaining people’s trust for the government is also reinforced by source E. The Prime Minister of Thailand, Mr. Thaksin, said the government would “go on offensive” and use soldiers to “search and arrest”. As the government has failed many times, they are frustrated about this and have made up their mind to put more effort and even use military force to defeat the “bandits”. The word “bandits” and the phrase “kill our people” show that Mr. Thaksin even does not view the separatists who are Muslims live in South Thailand as citizens in Thailand. It may be an example of discrimination. Hence the conflict cannot be resolved since continuous riots and military attacks seem not to be avoided.
On the other hand, some sources do show that the conflict in South Thailand can be resolved since the Thailand government has paid a lot of attention to the conflict.
The government has faith and sincerity to resolve the conflict. Form Source C, Mr. Thaksin said the “southern situation would improve soon.” The folding paper birds program and the words wrote on the birds show “the nation’s concerns for southern people”. Evidence of government’s eagerness of peace is also present. As the source also points out that Mr. Thaksin was interested in the idea that “people from different cultures live happily and peacefully together”, this may be a hint that the government will do something to improve Muslims’ living situation in South Thailand and thus resolve the conflict.
Moreover, the comments in source D give us an idea that the people in South Thailand’s wills are to live peacefully and stop fighting as it states “we should stop killing one another because it is everyone’s loss”. However, the comments cannot represent the generation’s views as they are from the minority and both of the speakers are mothers who lost their sons in the conflict. Other people may not have the same thoughts as them.
A point to note is that source C being an excerpt from a news report in the Bangkok Post may have an axe to grind. The sources may try to convince the general public of Thailand of the hypocrisy of the government. By portraying the sympathy and sense of the government towards the people living in South Thailand, it is hoped that the people would be aware of the kindness and clear-sightedness of the government and question the separation of the Muslims. The proposal about the model village may be more in form than in kind, and largely symbolic in nature. The folding paper birds program though reflects the sentiments of certain people such as students and government officials at that point of time, it may not be entirely reliable in its portrayal due to the motivation of the source.
Looking at al the sources, I believe that they largely point to the fact that the conflict in South Thailand cannot be resolved.
Although source C and D do provide evidence to support the alternative view, they may not be strong enough. For example, source C states that Mr. Thaksin “pleaded for public patience”. This clearly shows that to completely resolve the conflict needs a long time and since “the picture” had just “become clearer”, the government may have not come out with a proper solution at the moment and that in reality is impossible to resolve the conflict in a short time. Furthermore, the minority’s view in source D is not a piece of strong evidence.
Thus, as both of the separatists and the Thai Government prefer to use military force to achieve their own ambitions and there may be a third party involved, it can be seen that the conflict in South Thailand cannot be resolved peacefully in a short time.
