Residents in the far South may exist in a valley of violence but new initiatives by one mayor determined to bring them together are already bearing fruit, write Nauvarat Suksamran and Onnucha Hutasingh
The insurgent-led violence in the far South has entered its 14th year and even though there is no clear end in sight, locals should not put their lives on hold, according to Pongsak Yingchoncharoen, the mayor of Yala province. He said he has a number of projects up his sleeves to revitalise the morale of local people, bring them closer together and improve the environment of Yala city, named after the province in which it sits.
Yala is one of three southern provinces, as well as parts of nearby Songkhla, that has been rocked by years of strife. The security woes have taken their toll on peace and altered the way of life of local people, just as fears of stray bullets and bombs have sapped Yala of its economic vitality and caused tourism to stagnate.
Tourism matters a great deal to economy of this landlocked province but security scares have brought it to its knees after a decade of frayed nerves, according to observers in the business sector.
Yala municipality, being at the heart of the province’s economic bustle, is determined to lead the way in reviving the region’s prosperity, Mr Pongsak said.
He said the unrest has held back the province’s competitiveness for too long and something must be done to change that.
Mr Pongsak has served as mayor for more than a decade. He feels that when morale drops, people tend to lose their will to put their house in order. In his view, promoting greater cultural understanding and religious tolerance will help resolve the ongoing security mayhem.
But for his shorter-term vision, he wants Yala to become an economic hub for the southern border provinces as it shares a common border with Malaysia. If that can be realised, the province could be well-positioned to tap into the wealth of the entire Malayan Peninsula.
This would seem to be especially true given its favourable geography in terms of creating a major trade route to Malaysia and then on to Singapore. It could also serve as a distribution channel to Indonesia.
In Mr Pongsak’s opinion, the insurgent unrest has driven local residents to the end of their tether and they need to be encouraged to spruce up Yala city as a diversion to the sombre mood, and an antidote to the sense of helplessness many locals harbour.
Mr Pongsak said people who espouse more hardline views need to be steered away from insurgents who are keen to indoctrinate them and win them over.
“In my opinion, they [the insurgents] have tried to change their strategies because there is no place for violence and no one agrees with their destructive approach,” he said.
“Social media has opened up a channel of instant communication between people. If we can harness that, it could serve as an ideal opportunity to make things better for my home province,” he added.
“The majority of local residents do not support or condone the use of violence. So, this old-school campaign of violence is not winning over anyone,” he said, adding he might see a silver lining amid the gathering clouds.
The mayor has embarked on several
projects that can both kickstart the economy while bridging the gap between people currently divided along ethnic and religious lines.
The programmes were rolled out after they were put to debate in public forums, local councils and among civic groups. The municipality insisted that local people must have a say in designing the kind of projects that suit them best.
One of these is Yala’s “clean city” campaign on the zoning of fresh markets for improved hygiene and orderliness. As the markets become more inviting, they draw larger crowds and have a positive psychological impact on local people, he said, raising spirits in general.
“It wasn’t easy at first. It definitely wasn’t a piece of cake to relocate the markets where vendors have been trading their whole lives,” he said.
“But we eventually succeeded because we gave the vendors a chance to air their views on the designation of the new market zones so they could contribute measures top help clean them up,” Mr Pongsak said.
The mayor said more shoppers also meant more income for vendors.
In addition to this, more trees will be grown across the municipality to enlarge its green zones. Authorities are also mulling plans to promote the city as being friendly to cyclists.
“We’ve hosted many national and regional cycling events that drew quite a number of cyclists, not just from Thailand but also from neighbouring countries,” he said.
But planting more trees and relocating markets has not resolved the problem at its root, he said, as Buddhists and Thai Muslims remain at odds with one another in local communities.
Mr Pongsak said this divisiveness could be fixed by educational programmes and a broader acceptance of cultural and religious diversity.
He has launched an ice-breaking project targeting youngsters. The municipality has put together a series of fun activities where local children and teenagers, regardless of their religion, can spend time together as a team and exchange cultural knowledge to break down the barriers between them.
Mr Pongsak — a Buddhist who has managed to integrate successfully into his predominantly Muslim neighbourhood — said that project was already under way as peace talks reportedly continue between the government and the insurgent groups.
“I was raised in a Thai-Chinese family. I grew up in a peaceful environment, even though there are not many Buddhists living in my neighbourhood.”
“I remember that we were all friends [regardless of our religion]. We played football and went swimming together. We also studied at the same local school. Our parents, both Thais and Muslims, always welcomed one another to their homes. But that has since changed, because we don’t trust anyone anymore,” Mr Pongsak said.
The mayor stressed that reconciliation was the most viable way forward to restore trust among locals and neighbours, especially young people who may have been taught to not trust their friends or the people they regularly mingle with.
The municipality has been encouraging Thai and Muslim students at local schools to learn about each other’s cultures and traditions — not just from textbooks but also personal interaction.
“If they l ove their hometown, they wouldn’t do anything to damage to it. Some underprivileged children from violenceaffected communities will be invited to a camp under the project,” the mayor said.
“At the camp, they can share their thoughts and voice their opinions about how to foster peace in their communities,” he added.
“Yala is the second province where the Thailand Knowledge Park [TK Park] was established in 2005, after Bangkok. Three other centres will be up and running in the province soon,” he said.
The municipality has also resorted to sports and music to lift the spirits of local residents.
Some teenagers will be trained as football coaches in Bangkok before returning to Yala to help build local teams, while a provincial orchestra is being set up to compete at a music contest with those from other provinces.
Mr Pongsak said municipal projects to build cultural gaps is slowly producing substantial results and is being emulated by municipalities facing security disturbances in neighbouring Narathiwat, Pattani and Songkhla.
The mayor often travels to local administrative agencies, schools and universities in the South to broadcast the good news about how such efforts are bearing fruit, he said.
He has now forged close ties with administrative authorities in neighbouring countries including Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei.
Those countries are also members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, whose words and opinions are valued and can cast a strong influence on relations between Thailand and Arab states, he said.
The majority of local residents do not support or condone the use of violence. So, this old-school campaign of violence is not winning over anyone. PONGSAK YINGCHONCHAROEN MAYOR OF YALA MUNICIPALITY