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Interpreting 10 Years of Violence in Thailand’s Deep South
Authors: Desmond Ball and Nicholas Farrelly
Volume 8, Number 2 (Winter 2012), pp. 1-18.
Abstract
Around 5000 deaths and more than 8300 injuries are attributed to Thailand’s ongoing “southern fire” (fai tai). A range of explanations for this violence in the southernmost provinces of Thailand have been offered by academics, journalists and other analysts. Terrorism, insurgency and gangsterism have all been introduced as labels for components of the violence. This article is motivated by the need to re-examine the empirical foundations of these explanations. We focus on two case study districts that illustrate some of the key trends, ambiguities and inconsistencies. We are particularly concerned to illuminate interactions between criminal violence, violence generated by personal disputes, and violence motivated by retribution. Based on the available evidence, our estimation is that a relatively modest proportion of the violence in Thailand’s deep south over the past ten years can be directly linked to insurgent or terrorist activities. To conclude, we pose challenging questions about the nature of criminality, insurgency and politics not just in Thailand’s deep south but in the country as a whole
About the Authors
Desmond Ball is a Professor in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University, Canberra. He was Head of the Centre from 1984 to 1991. desmond.ball@anu.edu.au.
Dr Nicholas Farrelly is a Research Fellow in the College of Asia and the Pacific at the Australian National University. For the past decade he has researched politics in mainland Southeast Asia, especially Thailand and Burma. In 2006 he co-founded New Mandala, a website on the region's social and political affairs. nicholas.farrelly@anu.edu.au.
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