Patani (region)

For other uses, see Pattani (disambiguation).

Patani

Patani (in Malay, or Pattani, (derived from Jawi: ڤتنا), also sometimes Patani Raya, or "Greater Patani") is a term that has been used to describe a region comprising the southern Thai provinces of Pattani, Yala (Jala), Narathiwat (Menara), and parts of Songkhla (Singgora), together with much of the northern part of modern peninsular Malaysia.

Patani is historically similar to sultanates such as Singgora (Songkhla), Ligor (Nakhon Si Thammarat), and Lingga (near Surat Thani): Patani was a semi-independent Malay sultanate paying tribute to the Siamese kingdoms of Sukhothai and Ayutthaya. After Ayutthaya fell to the Burmese in 1767, the Sultanate of Patani gained full independence, but under King Rama I, it again came under Siam's control.

A modern separatist movement has sought the establishment of a Malay Islamic state, Patani Darussalam, encompassing the three southern Thai provinces. This campaign has taken a violent turn in recent years, resulting in an insurgency across southern Thailand and the imposition of martial law.

Early history

Main article: Patani kingdom

The area was home to the Hindu-Buddhist kingdom of Langkasuka as early as the second century, as accounts from Chinese travelers attest. Langkasuka reached its peak in the sixth and seventh centuries, and then declined as a major trade center. Pattani subsequently became part of the Hindu-Buddhist Empire of Srivijaya, a maritime confederation based in Palembang, which spanned the seventh to the thirteenth centuries. Regional influence during these early centuries also came from the developing Khmer, Siamese and Malay cultures.

The founding of the Islamic kingdom of Patani is thought to have been around the mid-13th century, with folklore suggesting it was named after an exclamation made by Sultan Ismail Shah, "Pantai Ini!" ("This beach" in the local Malay language).^[1] However, some think it was the same country known to the Chinese as Pan Pan.

Siamese Rule

Main article: Patani kingdom

Patani came under Thai rule briefly during the Sukhothai period, and more extensively during the later Ayuthaya period.

In 1791 and 1808, there were rebellions within Pattani against Thai rule, following which Pattani was divided into 7 largely autonomous states (Mueang): Pattani, Nongchik, Saiburi (Teluban), Yala (Jala), Yaring (Jambu), Ra-ngae (Legeh) and Raman. All were ruled by the King of Ligor.

After the British had taken a large part of southern Thailand in 1909, Great Britain and Thailand signed the Bangkok Treaty of 1909. The British recognised Thailand's sovereignty over Pattani, and, in return, Thailand gave up a territory called Kelantan to the British.^[2] All seven mueang were reunited into a monthon and incorporated into the kingdom. Later, the central government in Bangkok renamed certain localities with Thai versions of their names and merged some of the mueang.

When the monthon system was dissolved in 1933, three provinces remained: Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat.

Greater Malay Patani state

On 8 December 1941, during the Second World War, the Japanese tried to invade Thailand, and crossed Pattani to invade British Malaya. The Thai government later became an active ally of Japan by promising to help Thailand take more than half of her territory back from the British and the French. Tengku Mahmud Mahyuddin, a prominent Pattani leader and the son of the last Raja of Pattani, allied himself with the British in the hopes that Pattani would be granted independence after an Allied victory. His main support came from ethnic Malays displeased by the nationalistic policies of the Phibun regime, which forced them to give up their own language and culture.

Mahyuddin assisted the British by launching guerrilla attacks against the Japanese. In 1945, a petition by Malay leaders led by Tengku Abdul Jalal demanded that Britain guarantee independence for the southernmost provinces of Thailand. At the war's end, the Greater Malay Pattani State (Negara Melayu Patani Raya) flag did fly briefly in Pattani. However, since the British had no power over Thailand, the Thai continued to rule over Pattani, while the British kept Thailand stable as a counterweight to the communist insurgency in Malaya. This led to the formation of several insurgent groups seeking the independence of Pattani.

Resistance movements in Patani

During World War II, along with the Greater Patani Malay Movement, led by Tengku Mahmud Mahyuddin, another resistance force under the leadership of Islamic scholar Haji Sulong Tokmina also fought against the Japanese. Their stated goal was to create an Islamic republic in Patani, which frequently put it at odds with Prince Tengku Mahmud who wanted to reestablish the Pattanese Sultanate.

Today, the goals and ideas of Haji Sulong Tokmina are still carried on by minor resistance groups interested in creating an Islamic republic. After the war, though, British and Thai policies essentially removed the possibility of an independent republic in Pattani.

Current insurgency

Main article: South Thailand insurgency

Patani separatist groups, most notably the Patani United Liberation Organization (PULO), began to use violent tactics in 2001. There have been suggestions of links between PULO and foreign Islamist groups, such as al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiyah.^{[citation needed]} A number of Pattani Muslims are reported to have received training at al-Qaeda centres in Pakistan, and the Pattani insurgents have forged links with groups such as the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in the Philippines and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Indonesia.^{[citation needed]}

Estimates of rebel strength vary widely from only 500 to more than 15,000.^{[citation needed]} Weekly reports throughout recent years show an unpleasant activity by extremists, and killings of soldiers, supposed rebels and civilians are quite common.^{[citation needed]} Roadblocks are a common sight everywhere across the three southernmost Thai provinces. Armored military vehicles have vanished in public on the roads and within the cities and villages.

See also

• Muslim Southeast Asia

References

1. ^ History of the Malay Kingdom of Patani, Ibrahim Syukri, ISBN 0-89680-123-3
2. ^ Moshe Yegar, Between Integration and Secession

Coordinates: 6°45′N 100°25′E / 6.75°N 100.417°E / 6.75; 100.417