MUSLIM LEADER SHOT DEAD IN PATTANI

Pattani, Thailand, 30 Ramadhan 1434/7 August 2013 (MINA) – A Muslim leader seen as a major figure in efforts to end bloody fighting in Thailand’s south has been shot dead, raising concern about the future of peace talks.

Imam Yacob Raimanee of the Pattani Central Mosque, the main house of Islamic worship in one of several violence-plagued southern provinces was gunned down on Monday afternoon in the town of Pattani, police said.

According to worldbulletin.net report quoted by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA), The killing came despite an agreement between Thailand and Muslim from the region to try to avoid bloodshed during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which ends this week.

The fighting in the Muslim-dominated region has claimed more than 5,700 lives since 2004.

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The southern provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat were once part of an independent Malay Muslim sultanate until annexed by Buddhist Thailand in 1909. About 80 percent of residents are Malay-speaking Muslims, while most of Thailand is populated by Thai-speaking Buddhists.

Pattani is located on the Malay Peninsula, with the coast of the Gulf of Thailand in the north. In the south mountainous landscape with the Sankalakhiri mountain range, including the Budo – Su-ngai Padi National Park, is located at the border to Yala and Narathiwat, protecting hill forests with rare vegetation such as the Bangsoon palm (Johnnesteijsmannia altifon) and Takathong rattan, as well as birds like the hornbill. Namtok Sai Khao on the border with Songkhla and Yala is a forest park, remarkable for the Sai Khao waterfall.

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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 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.

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Islam, while a minority faith in Thailand, is quickly growing, with recent statistics suggesting a population of anywhere from around 3.9 to 7 million Most Thai Muslims belong to the Sunni branch, although Thailand has a very diverse and developing population which includes immigrants from around the world.

Thailand’s Muslim population is diverse and multicultural, with ethnic groups having migrated from as far as China, Pakistan, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Indonesia, as well as comprising indigenous Thais, while about two-third of Muslims in Thailand are ethnically Malay. (T/P015/P04)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)