Takbai : Tentera tidak bersalah

Tajuk : Tentera Thai tidak bersalah

Sumber : Utusan Malaysia Online
Tarikh :30 Mei 2009
Link : http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2009&dt=0530&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Luar_Negara&pg=lu_01.htm

SONGKHLA 29 Mei - Hampir lima tahun selepas insiden Tak Bai yang mengakibatkan kematian 85 penunjuk perasaan beragama Islam dan dilihat sebagai satu daripada pencetus konflik di Selatan Thai, sebuah mahkamah Thai hari ini memutuskan bahawa tiada sebarang salah laku di pihak pegawai keselamatan.

Panel dua anggota dalam inkues post-mortem membuat kesimpulan bahawa pegawai tentera dan polis bertindak mengikut undang-undang, menggunakan pertimbangan mereka untuk menangani keadaan yang mendesak dan melakukan yang terbaik berdasarkan situasi ketika itu.

Hakim Yingyut Tanor-Rachin, yang bersidang bersama Hakim Jutarath Santisevee, berkata para pegawai hanya menjalankan tugas mereka dan mempunyai alasan kukuh bagi mengangkut lebih 1,000 penunjuk perasaan yang ditahan dari Tak Bai di sempadan Thai-Malaysia ke Kem Tentera Ingkayuthaborihaan di Pattani pada 25 Oktober, 2004.

Insiden itu berlaku ketika lebih 1,500 orang menyertai tunjuk perasaan di hadapan Balai Polis Tak Bai bagi mendesak pembebasan enam sukarelawan pertahanan kampung yang ditahan kerana disyaki membuat laporan palsu kepada polis membabitkan rompakan senapang patah yang dikeluarkan oleh kerajaan.

Polis menggunakan semburan air dan gas pemedih mata ke arah penunjuk perasaan, manakala peluru hidup ditembak ke udara dan ke arah orang ramai bagi menyuraikan tunjuk perasan itu yang mengakibatkan tujuh orang terbunuh.

Kira-kira 1,292 orang ditahan oleh pihak berkuasa. Menurut Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia Kebangsaan (NHRC), mereka yang ditahan itu dipukul dengan belantan, ditendang dan ditumbuk, ada antaranya diperlakukan begitu semasa terbaring di atas tanah dengan tangan diikat ke belakang.

Tahanan itu kemudiannya dimuatkan ke dalam trak serta diletak bertindih-tindih sebelum dipindahkan ke Kem Ingkayuthaborihaan, dalam perjalanan yang mengambil masa beberapa jam. Sejumlah 78 orang ditemui mati dalam trak itu dalam kejadian yang berlaku dalam bulan Ramadan.

Banyak pertubuhan tempatan dan badan hak asasi manusia menyalahkan peningkatan keganasan dalam insiden Tak Bai, selain insiden yang berlaku pada April 2004, apabila 32 kumpulan disyaki pemberontak terbunuh selepas pihak berkuasa menyerbu masjid Krue Se yang berusia 300 tahun di Pattani berikutan perbalahan selama sembilan jam.

Ketika membacakan keputusan itu di Mahkamah Wilayah Songkhla yang penuh sesak, Hakim Yingyut berkata, pegawai keselamatan terpaksa mengambil tindakan pantas untuk memindahkan tahanan dalam keadaan seperti itu ke Pattani atas sebab keselamatan memandangkan lokasi tunjuk perasaan itu tidak jauh dari Thaksin Ratchaniwet Palace dan sempadan Malaysia.

Keputusan itu sukar diterima oleh kalangan keluarga mangsa yang melakukan perjalanan beratus-ratus kilometer untuk ke mahkamah.

Zainah Saleme, yang menubuhkan sebuah kumpulan wanita bagi memperjuangkan keadilan untuk mangsa Tak Bai berkata, beliau berasa amat kecewa dengan keputusan itu.

"Tak timbang langsung keadaan mangsa, perasaan keluarga. Mahkamah kata mereka (78) mati bukan kena bedil... tapi mereka diletak bertindih-tindih. Langsung tidak fikir nyawa mereka," kata Zainah yang anak lelakinya ditahan dua tahun kerana terlibat dalam demonstrasi itu.

Hamiah Ahmad, 53, berkata, beliau amat sedih kerana tidak langsung ada keadilan pada mangsa-mangsa dan keluarga mereka yang terpaksa berulang-alik ke mahkamah sejak kes itu bermula beberapa tahun lepas.

"Anak saya kebetulan berada di situ tetapi terkena tembakan dan mati," kata Hamiah yang mendapat upah membuat tudung untuk dijual di Malaysia dan mendapat pampasan RM2,000 (20,000 baht) daripada kerajaan.

Muhammad Hassan, 50, yang kehilangan satu-satunya anak lelaki beliau yang meninggal dunia selepas diletak bertindih-tindih dalam lori, berkata beliau terkejut dengan keputusan itu.

"Anak saya bekerja baiki rumah dan memang selalu keluar kampung... saya langsung tidak tahu dia pergi Tak Bai. Apabila dia tidak pulang untuk berbuka puasa dan melihat di televisyen tentang Tak Bai, kami pergi ke balai polis untuk cari dia," katanya.

Kerajaan Thai sebelum ini yang dipimpin Perdana Menteri yang dilantik oleh tentera, Surayud Chulanont membayar pampasan berjumlah 42 juta baht (RM4.2 juta) kepada anggota keluarga mangsa Tak Bai, menggugurkan pertuduhan terhadap 56 orang yang terbabit dalam tunjuk perasaan itu dan memohon maaf kerana tragedi yang berlaku itu. - Bernama

Takbai and Krue Se report

An official report by a government-appointed investigative team released by the National Reconciliation Commission on Sunday has confirmed a number of suspicions and allegations regarding the crackdown on protesters outside Narathiwat’s Tak Bai police station last October.

The report also points the finger at certain senior military officers, including the then Fourth Army Region commander General Pisarn Wattanawongkiri.
The fact-finding committee and its four sub-committees have compiled a report with four sections: the introduction, the facts regarding the Tak Bai demonstration, the points of consideration by the fact-finding committee and the suggestions by the fact-finding committee.

The facts section is divided into 10 parts as follows:

1 Demonstration at the Tak Bai district police station in Narathiwat
2 Intelligence work by the authorities and preparations to deal with demonstrations, and negotiations with demonstrators
3 Use of force to break up the demonstration
4 Loading of arrested protesters on to military trucks
5 Transportation of arrested protesters from Tak Bai to the Ingkayuth military camp in Pattani’s Nong Chik district
6 Unloading protesters from the military trucks at the camp
7 Discovery of dead protesters inside the trucks, the filing of death reports and taking care of detainees
8 Results of the post-mortems on seven people killed during the dispersal of demonstrators, and on 78 detainees who died on the trucks. The results of drug tests on detainees.
9 Legal proceedings against detainees
10 Remedy process: Government’s dealing with the injured and killed as well as detainees’ belongings.

Demonstration


People gathered in front of Tak Bai district police station on October 25, 2004 to demand the release of six suspects who were defence volunteers of a village and were charged with giving state guns to militants. Security forces’ attempt to have the demonstrators disperse failed.
It was later discovered from detained protesters that some of them could not leave the rally’s location because they were blocked by the demonstration leaders as well as being surrounded by security forces.
Moreover, many demonstrators did not hear the security forces, religious leaders or their relatives who came to the rally’s location to ask them to disperse. This was because when the authorities, religious leaders and relatives spoke through a loudspeaker, organisers of the protest would boo and jeer.
At 3:10pm, some demonstrators tried to break through the barrier to go inside the district police station’s compound. As a result, the Fourth Army region commander ordered the dispersal of the demonstrators. At that time, gunfire was heard to the side of the demonstrators and a policeman was injured. A videotape recording by a reporter from the Mass Communication Organisation of Thailand revealed that a soldier fired a warning shot, but his gun was not aimed at the sky but horizontally. Several military officers later explained that firing horizontally was a tactic to force the demonstrators to lie down.


Transportation of detained demonstrators from Tak Bai district police station to the Ingkayuth military camp in Pattani’s Nong Chik district


The Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command testified that there were two convoys of military trucks. The first convoy departed Tak Bai at 4.15pm and reached the military camp at 7.30pm. The second convoy left Tak Bai at 7pm and reached the destination at 10pm.
But a driver [name withheld] of a truck, on which 23 dead bodies were found, testified that his truck left Tak Bai at 5pm and reached the military camp at 10pm. Another driver [name withheld] of a truck, on which 21 dead bodies were found, said he left Tak Bai and reached the camp at nearly the same time.
A sub-committee in charge of determining the facts and evidence learned from detained protesters that the first truck left the Tak Bai police station at 3.40pm and reached the camp at 5.40pm. The detainees said some trucks left the police station at 6pm and reached the camp at 9pm and some left the police station at 9pm and reached the camp at 2am the following day.
The detainees also testified that during the journey when detainees called for help, they were assaulted by guards who used either a rifle butt or a baton. Some soldiers also kicked or stomped on the detainees. Detainees also said some soldiers treated detainees very well during the journey. The sub-committee interviewed 92 detainees and nearly all of them testified that they were ordered to lie face down on top of one another during transportation. They reached the camp in the same face-down, prone position. But one of them was allowed to sit during the trip.
Lt-Col Watchara Sukwong, who was among officers unloading the detainees, found about 20 dead in a truck carrying about 70 detainees. The detainees were lying face down with hands tied behind their back. Col Noppanan Chunpradab found that detainees were lying face down inside the first truck but they did not lie on top of one another. The first truck had one fatality, killed by being hit by a hard object.


Discovery of the dead inside the military trucks


1 Death toll

A total of 78 detained protesters died during transportation. The military report revealed details of the deaths in each truck as follows:

Truck with Army Licence Plate No 19338, 21 detainees killed
Truck with Army Licence Plate No 19232, 5 detainees killed
Truck with Army Licence Plate No 19263, 6 detainees killed
Truck with Army Licence Plate No 13164, 23 detainees killed
Truck with Marine Licence Plate No 531, 5 detainees killed
Truck with Marine Licence Plate No 5256, one detainee killed
Truck with Marine Licence Plate No 530, six detainees killed.
Eleven other detainees died in trucks whose licence numbers could not be identified.


The fact-finding committee tried but failed to determine the order of departure and arrival of the trucks in order to determine travel time.


2 Number of detainees transferred on each truck


The committee did not get details on how many detainees each truck carried but obtained the following information:
Col Noppanan Chunpra-dab, who took part in unloading detainees at the camp until 9.30pm, found that the first truck was not too crowded and there was only one death. The dead person appeared to have been hit by a hard object.
Lt-Col Watchara Suk-wong testified that a truck carrying about 70 detainees had about 20 deaths.
The Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command reported to the prime minister that each truck transported about 50, 70 or 90 detainees. The 21st truck carried 90 detainees and there were 23 deaths in the truck.
Information found by a sub-committee of the fact-finding committee found that each truck carried about 60 detainees, 70 detainees or 80 detainees.


3 People who discovered the deaths


When soldiers unloaded detainees from each truck, they found that some detainees were lying face down and not moving. Soldiers shook the bodies, which did not move, and then asked a military doctor, Lieutenant Jirasak, who was treating the injured, to check them. Jirasak found that the motionless detainees were dead after checking their pulse and retinas.


4 Times of death


The exact times of the detainees’ deaths are not known. But it was learnt from testimonies that the detainees died during transportation from the Tak Bai police station to the Ingkayuth military camp.


5 Time when the dead were discovered


Col Noppanan Chunpradab testified that the first death was discovered in the first truck. Later at 11pm, word spread among the soldiers that 20 more dead were found. Between 1am and 2am, it was reported among the military officers that the death toll had climbed to about 70.


6 Handling of transported detainees after the deaths were discovered


The fact-finding committee asked military officers in charge of transporting detainees why they did not remove detainees from the other trucks after the deaths in earlier trucks had been discovered. The officers replied that although the trucks had reached the camp, they had to gradually unload one truck at a time for fear that they would not be able to control so many detainees when they were on the ground at the same time.


7 Handling of the bodies


Bodies of the dead detainees were sent to a building for post-mortems.


Reporting the deaths


1 Reporting inside the Ingkayuth military camp


Verbal reports were made irregularly inside the military camp about the deaths. Col Noppanan Chunpradab, who left the military prison for his residence inside the camp at 9.30pm, heard that the number of deaths had increased by 20. Between 1am and 2am on October 26, it was reported among military officers that the death toll had climbed to about 70.


2 Reporting to higher authorities


Higher authorities received reports as follows:
The deputy commander of the Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command, Siwa Saengmanee received a report at 10am on October 26 that a total of 78 detainees had died.
The then southern Army commander testified that he received a report at 7.45am on October 26 that 78 people had died. He said he left the Tak Bai police station at 7pm on October 25 to meet the prime minister at the Royal Princess Hotel in Narathiwat and was granted an audience with Her Majesty the Queen. He left the Southern Palace at 4am on October 26. He did not receive any report between 7pm on October 25 and 7.45am the following day.
But General Wiset Konguthaikul, deputy chief royal guard of the Queen, testified that the southern Army commander and several other military and civilian officers were granted an audience at 00.30am and left at 1.30am on October 26. During the audience, it was already heard that the death toll of detainees had climbed to 70. Wiset said the southern Army chief could have used a mobile phone during the audience in case of an emergency.


Treatment and registration of detainees


Detainees received Halal food and water inside the Ingkayuth camp. Detainees from the first truck received the food and water at 8.30pm and the rest were gradually given food and water. The last group received food and water at 3.30am on October 26.
Detainees, who received minor injuries, received medical treatment at the hospital inside the military prison. Those with more severe injuries were sent to the camp’s military hospital. Those with conditions considered to be too severe to be treated at the camp’s hospital were sent to the provincial hospital and the Prince of Songkhla University Hospital.
The post-mortem examinations of victims (seven people who were killed when security forces dispersed crowds at Tak Bai police station, and 78 others found dead on arrival at Ingkhayuth military camp), and drug tests on detainees:


1 Post-mortem examinations

On the post-mortem examinations of 85 people killed as a result of the demonstration at Tak Bai police station, an independent committee has reviewed the following:
- Post-mortem examination results by Tak Bai police station’s investigators and the Central Institute of Forensic Science
- Investigation report by a fact-finding subcommittee on medical aspects
- Investigation report by a fact-finding subcommittee as well as clarifications by the Central Institute of Forensic Science’s deputy director Khunying Pornthip Rojanasunand, who conducted the post-mortem examinations, and Ingkayuth Military Camp Hospital’s acting director Lieutenant Dr Jirasak Intasorn in his capacity as a doctor who found many detainees dead at the military camp.
Results of the post-mortem examinations:

1.1 The post-mortem examinations of 85 victims by Tak Bai police station, Nong Chik police station and Central Institute of Forensic Science.

1.1.1 Report by investigators at Tak Bai police station, Narathiwat, which looked into the deaths of the seven demonstrators. Six victims died at the protest site, while the seventh died at Narathiwat Ratchanakarin Hospital. Police officers, administrative officers (an assistant district officer of Tak Bai District Office and an assistant district officer of Muang Narathiwat District Office), and public prosecutors conducted the autopsies between 4pm and 5pm on October 25, 2004. Their autopsy report said the seven protesters died of gunshot wounds.

1.1.2 A: The post-mortem examinations on the 78 people who died while being transferred from Tak Bai police station in Narathiwat to the Ingkayuth military camp in Pattani’s Nong Chik district. A medical team from the Central Institute of Forensic Science, Pattani Hospital doctors, police officers, administrative officers and public prosecutors conducted the post-mortem examinations (without dissection of the dead bodies) between 9am and 5pm on October 26, 2004.The post-mortem examinations found that:

1 Thirty-three people died of asphyxiation and pressure on their chests.
2 Four people died of asphyxiation as a result of pressure on their chests and also had injuries caused by blunt objects.
3 Ten people died of asphyxiation as a result of pressure on their chests. They had also suffered seizures as a result of a chemical imbalance in the blood and had injuries caused by blunt objects.
4 31 people died of asphyxiation.


B: Khunying Pornthip also clarified to the independent committee that:
- There was no trace of asphyxiation caused by strangulation, or by having plastic wrapped tightly around the victims’ heads. Most bodies had sclera haemorrhage, and had venous congestion.
- Fasting was not the cause of any of the deaths, which was rather to do with the standard of health of the detainees.
- The physical pressure exerted on detainees from being laid upon was insufficient to cause death.

1.2 Investigation report by a fact-finding subcommittee on medical aspects

1.2.1 Regarding the seven people killed at Tak Bai police station and the one who sustained serious injuries and later died in hospital, the report concluded that it was clear the victims died of gunshot wounds caused by bullets shot from distance.

1.2.2 Regarding the deaths of the 78 people at the Inkayuth military camp in Pattani, the fact-finding subcommittee on medical aspects inferred their causes of death from physical examinations conducted on injured survivors. Of the injured victims, most suffered crush injuries and four also had compartment syndrome that meant they required urgent operations. Medical specialists said the fact that the protesting Thai Muslims had been fasting without food or liquids for more than 12 hours; that they had been exposed to the scorching sun; and that they had experienced violent treatment during the demonstration, dispersal and transfers on overcrowded vehicles had led to their injuries. The transfers took more than three hours, in some cases on overcrowded vehicles, causing rhabdomyolysis as well as a chemical imbalance in the blood and blood cells. The imbalance was so severe that muscles involved with breathing could hardly function. In the most severe cases the victims died. It was concluded that the above factors caused the deaths of the detainees. Furthermore, the autopsies on the 78 detainees who died on their way from Tak Bai police station in Narathiwat’s Tak Bai district to Ingkayuth military camp in Pattani’s Nong Chik district showed that most deaths were caused by asphyxiation and pressure on the chest and breathing muscles. There were also some signs of seizures and chemical imbalances in the blood, which could have resulted in death. Therefore, the subcommittee concluded that all 78 detainees died of the same cause - rhabdomyolysis, which causes abnormal breathing. When coupled with the shortage of food and water and long exposure to sweltering heat, the condition can result in death.


2 Drug test results

The fact-finding subcommittee on medical aspects reported the results of drug tests carried out on detainees at Ingkayuth military camp, injured victims from the Tak Bai incident and those who died while in detention as follows:
2.1 Of 1,093 subjects from detainees at the military camp, 13 tested positive for drugs. Details are:
2.1.1 Eight subjects tested positive for methamphetamines
2.1.2 One subject tested positive for ephedrine
2.1.3 One subject tested positive for Benzo
2.1.4 Two subjects tested positive for THC (marijuana)
2.2 Of the 13 injured subjects tested at Pattani Hospital, one tested positive for morphine.
2.3 Of the 78 detainees found dead at Ingkayuth military camp, only 40 were selected for drug tests. Of those, two tested positive for drugs: one for ephedrine and one for morphine. The results of the drug tests are limited, however, as not all the detainees who died were tested.


The independent committee’s findings

Was the protest outside Tak Bai District Police Station in Narathiwat on October 25 systematically organised?

Yes. There were two reasons the protest was organised: to call for the release of six village defence volunteers and to pray for them.
The committee analysed the behaviour of the protesters before and after the crack down and found that the protest was systematically organised in the same way as earlier protests in Pattani and Narathiwat.
The protest leaders intentionally organised the protest during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and planned to instigate police anger.
About 30 protest leaders were in front of the crowd, the rest of the protesters were persuaded to gather to give morale support to the defence volunteers and to pray for them. Some joined the protest out of curiosity.


Did the protesters carry arms?

Reports from the South-ern Border Provinces Peace-building Command and Lt-General Pisarn Wattanawong-kiri, commander of the Fourth Army Region at the time of the protest, concluded that some protesters carried arms. Police reported that they found bullets and arms hidden in the river.

The committee’s analysis of reports and questioning of witnesses led it to believe that some protest leaders carried arms, although the number was not great.
A policeman was wounded after a shot was fired from where protesters were gathered. If there had been a large number of arms, more police would have been wounded or killed when they tried to disperse protesters.


Were the measures used to disperse protesters appropriate?

They were appropriate. There were roadblocks preventing people from going into Tak Bai District Police Station and six separate negotiations were undertaken to try to get the crowd to disperse. Those negotiations involved police, religious leaders and the parents of the six detained defence volunteers.
The committee, however, noted that had the roadblocks been erected earlier or more effectively, there would have been fewer protesters. Loudspeakers used by state officials to ask protesters to disperse were not loud enough.


Were the reasons given for dispersing protesters or the methods used for removing them appropriate?

The committee believes state officials had grounds to disperse the protesters, because the protest involved a large number of people.
The protest was planned and organised. The protesters carried sticks, stones and may have had hidden arms. State officials were also placed under pressure because of the length of the protest.
However, the committee did not agree with the use of military Rangers or conscripted military or the firing of real bullets to crack down on protesters.
Seven protesters were killed [five were shot in the head] and 15 police officers were injured during the crack down. About 1,370 protesters were detained.
Since police and protesters were injured or killed in the crackdown, their cases should be allowed to go through the justice system.
Autopsies refuted reports that protesters were shot at point-blank range.


Was the detention of protesters appropriate and legal?

There were mistakes and flaws in the detention, because state officials had wanted to detain only protest leaders. But after protesters removed their shirts, officials could not identify the leaders. They then decided to detain all the protesters.
Only four trucks were sent to transport protesters because authorities initially intended toarrest just the leaders.
According to martial law, protesters can be detained no longer than a week.


Was the decision to use a military camp in Pattani to detain protesters appropriate?

It was appropriate, because the military camp in Narathiwat would not have been large enough to house them all, and the Pattani camp also had facilities to treat any injured protesters.


Was the transport of protesters from Tak Bai to the camp in Pattani up to scratch?

The transport operation was rushed and carried out in a state of confusion.
A total of 28 trucks were provided without knowing how many protesters needed to be transported.
The trucks that left first carried only 50 protesters each, while the rest were heavily packed.
The committee found that protesters were laid out on top of each other facing down in layers of three to four on the trucks.
High-ranking officials who oversaw the transport of protesters were guilty of dereliction of duty, as they failed to ensure it was carried out sensibly.
Seventy-eight protesters died while being transported.


Was the time it took to transport protesters acceptable?

The trucks in which 77 of the protesters died took some five hours to travel to the camp - an acceptable time given that it rained and was dark.
There were also nails and a blockade left by militants on the roads.
The trucks were forced to stop frequently because of shift changes for security personnel and rumours that militants were planning an operation to free the protesters.
However, it was irresponsible for security officials not to act sensibly when they found out that protesters had died on the trucks.


Were protesters treated well at the military camp in Pattani?

Yes. Doctors and nurses were on hand to treat injured protesters.


Are any protesters missing?

Seven people from Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala are missing. Local officials must speed up investigations to find their whereabouts. They must also provide moral support to relatives of the missing.


Who must take responsibility for the crackdown and the transportation of protesters?

The committee found that Maj-General Chalermchai Wiroonphet, then commander of the Fifth Infantry Division, is responsible for both incidents.
He was not at the scene to oversee the operation to the end. Instead, he left the scene at 7.30pm without an acceptable excuse, to meet the prime minister in Narathiwat.
Maj-General Sinchai Nutsatit, the then deputy commander of the Fourth Army Region, was assigned to prepare water, food and accommodation for protesters once they arrived at the camp in Pattani.
He failed to take any action against officials who were in control of the transport of protesters when he found that some had died on the trucks.
He also did not act in any way to help protesters detained on the trucks. If he did act, he could have reduced the number of casualties.
Lt-General Pisarn was the highest authority after martial law was imposed.
Although he assigned subordinates to oversee the operation, it was his responsibility to make sure they succeeded in carrying out their tasks.
When he was informed 70 protesters had died on the trucks, he failed to act.
The committee concluded the tragedy that led to 78 deaths was beyond expectations and was not intentional.
State officials carried out their work under limitations that led to flaws and mistakes, but there was no deliberate act to cause death and injury.

source : http://www.nationmultimedia.com/specials/takbai/p1.htm

Program Qurban Eidul Adha 1431 H Di Selatan Thailand

Program Qurban Eidul Adha 1431 H

Di Selatan Thailand

Aman Pattani (AMANI) terus prihatin dan terpanggil untuk membantu umat Islam di Selatan Thailand dengan perlaksanaan Ibadah Qurban. Hasrat kami, agihan daging qurban sedikit sebanyak dapat membantu anak-anak yatim, ibu-ibu tunggal, serta fakir dan miskin terutamanya kepada mangsa yang terlibat dengan konflik di Selatan Thailand.

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5 Dibunuh DI Selatan Thailand

5 dibunuh di selatan Thailand 2010/09/29 Menurut polis, sekurang-kurangnya lima lelaki bersenjata yang menaiki trak melepaskan tembakan terhadap penduduk kampung dan peniaga buah-buahan di Pattani, menyebabkan empat lelaki dan seorang wanita terbunuh awal pagi semalam. Penyerang turut membakar trak milik seorang mangsa sebelum meninggalkan tempat kejadian. Tiga mangsa berkenaan beragama Islam dan dua Buddha. Tiga orang, termasuk seorang kanak-kanak perempuan berusia 10 tahun cedera dalam kejadian itu. Lebih 4,100 orang terbunuh sejak keganasan meletus di selatan Thai enam tahun lalu. Penduduk Islam di wilayah itu sudah sekian lama mendakwa ditindas oleh kerajaan pusat yang dikuasai penganut Buddha. - AFP

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Hubungi bahagian pengiklanan kami untuk tujuan pengiklanan dan tajaan di dalam Harian Metro Online .
© Hak cipta terpelihara The New Straits Times Press (M) Berhad

PERINGATAN 6 TAHUN TRAGEDI TAK BAI, NARATHIWAT, THAILAND SELATAN (1)

oleh Patani Fakta Dan Opini

pada pada 30hb September 2010 pukul 4.56 pagi

Tragedi Tak Bai Di Narathiwat, Thailand Selatan (1)

Disusun Oleh: Ben (Sekedar Pemerhati konflik di Thailand Selatan) & di edit oleh AMANI

MOTTO

Right Of Self Determination:

“hak anda untuk menentukan nasib sendiri atas wilayah yang kini diduduki asing.

Alasan anda benar. Keinginan anda pasti terwujud. Insya Allah’’

PERSEMBAHAN

Ku persembahkan tulisan ini untuk kedua orang tua ku yang selalu ku sayangi, ku kasihi, kupuja dengan segenap jiwa dan perasaan ku. Segala pengorbanan dan ketulusan senantiasa terukir indah dalam kasih mereka, tanpanya ku lelah, tanpanya ku seakan kehilangan pelita yang hadir berikan cahaya kehidupan atas roh ku. Dan aku ingin ungkapkan “aku memujai mu Ibu-ku (tanah air) dan aku memujaimu bapak-ku (bangsa)”.

DAFTAR ISI

1. Pendahuluan

A.Latar Belakang Masalah

2. Tragedi Tak Bai

A. Faktor dan Peristiwa

B. Sikap Pemerintah Thailand dan Kritikan Dunia Internasional

C. Pandangan Domestik Terhadap Tragedi Tak Bai

1. Tanggapan Pemerintah

2. Tanggapan Para Ulama dan Aktivis Islam

3. Tanggapan Tokoh Akademik - Politik

4. Tanggapan Keluarga Korban dalam Tragedi Tak Bai

3. Pasca Tragedi Tak Bai

A. Pasca Tragedi Tak Bai,

1. Kebijakan Pemeritah

2. Daftar Hitam Warga Muslim

3. Amnesty International Mendesak Pemerintah Thailand

B. Tuntut Warga Menyelidiki yang ‘dihilangkan’

C. Eksodus Massal 131 Orang Penduduk Melayu Muslim di Thailand Selatan

1. Penyebab

2. Tuduhan Pemerintahan Bangkok Terhadap Pengungsi

3. Tanggapan Malaysia Terhadap Pengungsi Muslim Melayu dari Thailand Selatan

4.Kesimpulan

1.PENDAHULUAN

A.Latar Belakang Masalah

Dalam realiti kehidupan masyarakat muslim sebagai golongan minoriti, maupun majoriti baik di Barat maupun di Asia Tenggara selalu dipandang sebagai masalah.

Sekolompok majoriti akan selalu menindas minoriti. Tampaknya telah menjadi sebuah hukum alam. Walaupun asumsi di atas, masih harus dipertanyakan kebenaran. Tapi, pada kenyataannya kondisi tersebut sesuai dengan realiti yang ada. Seperti yang dialami masyarakat Patani. Patani sebuah wilayah yang terletak di Thailand Selatan. Dengan majoriti penduduknya beragama Islam mengalami tekanan-tekanan agar menerapkan beberapa kebijakan yang disodorkan pemerintah.

Dalam hal ini pemerintah yang ada di Thailand didominasi oleh agama Buhda. Sehingga tidaklah menghiraukan apabila kebijakan-kebijakan yang ambil dilandasi dengan sentiment keagamaan Thailand yang majoriti penduduk beragama Budha berusaha merubah system atau tataran kehidupan rakyat Patani dan menjauhkan mereka dari social cultural yang telah mereka aplikasi selama ini.

Di wilayah perbatasan Thailand Selatan sendiri tercatat pernah terjadi pemberontakan bersenjata, beragam faksi perlawanan Patani. Setelah sempat padam tahun 1990-an, aktiviti perlawanan Patani mulai muncul kembali awal tahun 2004. Apa yang terjadi di Thailand Selatan jelas tidak lepas dari pergolakan di Indochina sejak pertengahan tahun 1950 hingga 1980-an. Termasuk perang Vietnam, Kamboja, dan Laos. Sedangkan Myanmar hingga sekarang masih terus bergolak.

Bahwa pada awal, Selatan Thailand merupakan Kerajaan Patani Merdeka, yang kemudian dirampas Kerajaan Siam tahun 1902 dan diintegrasikan sebagai bagian dari Thailand (Maruli Tobing, Kompas, 8 Desember 2004).

Dalam perspektif demikian, lambatnya pembangunan di wilayah selatan dilihat sebagai diskriminasi terhadap rakyat keturunan Melayu. Diskriminasi yang selalu melekat dalam struktur penjajahan. Termasuk dalam kesempatan kerja di pemerintahan, pendidikan, dan pembangunan ekonomi. Situasi demikian jelas rawan dan meledak (explosive). Pemerintah Thailand meresponsnya seperti halnya penjajah terhadap rakyat jajahan. Bahwa wilayah Thailand selatan dulu merupakan kesultanan merdeka bernama Patani Darussalam sebelum Bangkok menguasainya seabad lalu. Penduduk di perbatasan memiliki kebudayaan dan agama sama dengan Malaysia. Perang gerila untuk memperoleh kemerdekaan di Thailand Selatan berlangusng tahun 1970-an dan 1980-an.

Majoriti warga di tiga provinsi Patani, Yala dan Narathiwat, adalah warga Muslim keturunan Melayu. Jumlahnya sekitar 80 persen dari sekitar 6 juta penduduk Muslim di Thailand. Penduduk negeri Gajah Putih ini berkisar 63 juta jiwa. Tidak mudah memang mengurai fakta-fakta tersebut. Di satu pihak rakyat di wilayah Selatan tidak pernah merasa bagian dari Thailand. Namun, di pihak lain, mereka ikut bersaing (competition) dalam arena politik nasional.

Di Thailand Selatan terdapat minoriti Muslim yang pada masa yang lalu kurang mendapat perhatian dari pemerintah pusat (Sutopo A.R. Soesastro Hadi, 1981, 387). Seperti halnya juga rakyat Thailand Selatan selalu merasa diabaikan pemerintah pusat dalam segala hal, termasuk dalam aktiviti pembangunan, tetapi saat pemimpin nasional Thailand berasal dari wilayah Selatan, hal ini tidak segera dibenahi.

Thailand Selatan tetap seperti beberapa dekad silam. Dalam hal ini, persoalannya bukanlah siapa yang berkuasa di Thailand. Sebab terbukti persepsi pada Thailand Selatan sebagai daerah pembuangan tetap tidak berubah. Persepsi inilah yang menyebabkan daerah Selatan makin tidak terurus dan mirip daerah tidak bertuan. Situasi demikian menyebabkan rakyat terpisah (alienation) (a) terpencil dan tidak merasa bagian dari Thailand.

Kesan bahwa tidak banyak yang berubah diperkuat oleh kenyataan bahwa agama Buddha Thai di bagian-bagian selebihnya negeri itu masih menganggap bagian Selatan sebagai wilayah perbatasan terpencil. Dari perspektif Bangkok hingga saat ini wilayah itu tetap merupakan Thailand’s Deep South, provinsi terpecil di selatan, atau Far South, selatan yang jauh, semua istilah-istilah ini banyak digunakan dalam akhbar-akhbar dan media Thailand.

Apa yang terjadi di Thailand Selatan merupakan suatu rasa benci dan kecurigaan yang sudah lama membubung kembali selama perang melawan terorisme yang diumumkan setelah tanggal 11 September 2001 dan penangkapan sejumlah Muslim Thai yang dicurigai sebagai anggota Jemaah Islamiah (JI) di Thailand. Kaum Melayu Patani yakin bahwa pemerintah dalam kenyataan sebenarnya melancarkan perang atas agama mereka dan sekolah-sekolah agama mereka atau yakin bahwa Bangkok mengorbankan mereka untuk menjaga hubungan baik dengan Washington (Masri Maris, 2005, 216).

Tak Bai adalah kota district di Provinsi Narathiwat, yang terletak sekitar 1.300 kilometer selatan Bangkok, tiba-tiba menjadi perhatian dunia internasional setelah terjadi pembantaian demontrasi pada 25 Oktober 2004. Jalan menuju Tak Bai hanya satu dan berakhir pula di sini, di sisi Sungai Nara, sungai yang penting bagi lalu lintas perahu motor yang menghubungkan Tak Bai dengan Negara Bagian Kelantan di Malaysia.

Pasca tragedi kemanusiaan di Tak Bai, Narathiwat, yang menelan korban nyawa sekitar 80an demonstran, ada beragam pandangan terhadap kepemimpinan Pemerintahan Thailand, baik pandangan politik domestik setempat maupun kritikan internasional karena dianggap menempuh cara-cara menahan dan menindas (repressive) dalam menghadapi demonstrasi warganya.

Tindakan menahan dan menindas (repressive) pemerintah Thailand terhadap demonstrasi Tak Bai di Narathiwat Selatan Thailand merupakan bentuk pengingkaran Pemerintah Thailand tersebut atas hak-hak masyarakat minoriti Muslim di Thailand Selatan. Tindakan ini juga merupakan bentuk nyata dari upaya pemerintah untuk meminggirkan minoriti Muslim Melayu Selatan Thailand dari sistem produksi mereka. Sekaligus merupakan bentuk diskriminasi kepada komuniti masyarakat etnis Melayu yang manoriti Muslim. Karena penduduk Muslim setempat tersebut merupakan bagian dari masyarakat minoriti di Thailand, yang seharusnya mendapatkan jaminan hukum dan perlindungan keamanan dari tindak diskriminasi apalagi pemusnahan.

Deklarasi Universal Hak-Hak Asasi Manusia dan diproklamirkan oleh Resolusi Majlis Umum 217 A (111) 10 Desember 1948 menerangkan pasal 9: Tidak seseorang pun boleh ditangkap, ditahan atau dibuang secara sewenang-wenang. Mengikut Pasal 5: Tidak seorang pun boleh dianianya atau diperlakukan secara kejam, dengan tidak mengingat kemanusiaan, ataupun jalan perlakuan atau hukum yang menghina (A.Rahman Zainuddin, 1994, xxviii-xxix).

Kebiadaban tentara Thailand terhadap umat Islam di Patani sebenar telah mengakar sejak berdirinya negeri gajah putih itu. Ini tidak hanya menyangkut ketegangan budaya tetapi soal ketegangan beragama. Bangsa Thai yang majoriti beragama Budha kelihatannya belum menerima orang Patani sebagai masyarakat sebangsa. Secara giografis Patani di claim sebagai wilayah kerajaan Thai, tetapi sebaliknya secara demografis dan cultural Patani selalu dilihat sebagai bangsa lain yang kehadirannya dianggap mengganggu keutuhan bangsa itu, akibatnya mareka didiskriminasi karena berbeda ras dan berebeda agama dengan demikian juga beda budaya. Perbedaan itu yang membuat pemerintah Thai bersikap diskriminatif bahkan cenderung diungkapkan dengan tindakan kekerasan maupun masal.

Sikap inteleransi pemerintah Thailand dan masyarakat budha di negeri itu pada umumnya terhadap komuniti muslim terjadi karena mereka tidak bisa menerima plurality, menghendaki hegemoni tunggal oleh Budhisme. Sikap terungkap secara sadar atau tidak mengelola politik di provinsi dibagian selatan yang terdiri dari ras melayu itu kemelayuan dan keislaman rupanya belum bisa diterima oleh pemerintah dan masyarakat disitu, ini terjadi kerana belum tuntas orientasi kemanusiaan dikalangan mereka sehingga cenderung rasialis.

Sistem demokrasi Kerajaan Thailand yang terbentuk oleh budaya dan agamanya cenderung otoriter terhadap minoriti Melayu di bagian Selatan Thailand. Demokrasi barangkali baik bagi orang lain, tetapi bagi bangsa Patani bagaikan negara yang aristocracy atau sejenisnya.

Adapun awal perkembangan politik Thailand di Selatan (Patani) berdasarkan pada mendelegitimasikan bangsa Patani dan berusaha melegitimasikan atas haknya. Jadi jelas bahwa Kerajaan Thai bertujuan untuk menghapuskan kepemilikan hak atas bangsa Patani, baik secara politik maupun fisik, merupakan suatu simbol yang tak dapat dihindarkan.

Jadi, apa yang terjadi pada hari Isnin, 25 Oktober 2004 di depan Balai Polis di Daerah Tak Bai, Narathiwat terhadap para pengunjuk perasaan yang memprotes penangkapan warga Patani Muslim yang oleh polis dan tentera dituduh telah menyediakan senjata untuk gerakan gerilia Patani, sehingga 6 orang mati dibedil, sedangkan 78 warga Patani lainnya mati ketika sekitar 1300 orang dijejalkan ke dalam 6 truk tentera yang tidak cukup mendapakan oksigen untuk bernapas ketika diangkut ketempat penjara yang memerlukan 5 jam waktu perjalanan. Bahwa demontransi hanya sekadar picu, bukan sebab utamanya karena itu tanpa ada demontransi, pasukan Thailand akan berbuat dengan alasan apapun. Bahkan demontransi terjadi juga karena adanya kekerasan yang mereka derita selama bertahun-tahun.

Hal-hal di atas inilah yang menjadikan ketertarikan dan keingintahuan penulis untuk melakukan penelitian dalam bentuk penulisan dengan judul: “TRAGEDI TAK BAI DI NARATHIWAT, THAILAND SELATAN”.

Akan ada sembungan berikut ke- (2)

(a). Teralienasi: Keadaan merasa terasing atau terisolasi. Konsep ini di gunakan oleh Karl Marx untuk nenunjukan keterasingan menusia yang disebabkan oleh adanya persaiangan dan sikap egoisme, sehingga orang tidak lagi saling menghargai tetapi saling memanfaatkan. Lihat dalam Marbun, Kamus Politik, Pustaka Sinar Harapan Jakarta, 2002, hlm.16.

References

A.Rahman Zainuddin, Hak-hak Asasi Manusia, Yayasan Obor Indonesia, Jakarta, 1994, hlm.xxviii-xxix.

Maruli Tobing, “Thailand Selatan, dari Konflik Identitas Menuju Benturan Peradaban”, Kompas, 8 Desember 2004.

Masri Maris, Konflik Kekerasan Internal, Tinjauan Sejarah, Ekonomi-Politik, dan Kebijakan di Asia Pasifik, Yayasan Obor Indonesia, MOST-LIPI, LASEMA-CNRS, KITLV-Jakarta, 2005, hlm.216.

Sutopo A.R. Soesastro Hadi, Strategi Dan Hubungan Internasional Indonesia Di Kawasan Asia Asia –Pasifik, CSIS: Centre For Strategic And International Studies, Jakarta, 1981, hlm.387

Quietly, US aids Thai terror fight

A storied US agent supports Thailand counter terrorism efforts, but only at arm’s length.
By Patrick Winn - GlobalPost
Published: September 24, 2010 09:59 ET in Asia

Thai soldiers secure the site of a bomb blast believed to be the work of suspected Muslim militants in Thailand's restive south in 2009. (Muhammad Sabri/AFP/Getty Images) Click to enlarge photo

BANGKOK, Thailand — U.S. Agent Randall Bennett built his reputation the hard way. He has survived assassination attempts (at least 12, he says) and dragged suspected terrorists through back alleys in Karachi, Pakistan (at 2 a.m. while being shot at).

Those duck-and-run feats eventually led him to the Pakistanis who beheaded Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in 2002. But the agent’s resume runs deeper still. Bennett also led what he calls “Iraq’s third-largest army,” the assemblage of hired soldiers working for contractors such as Blackwater.

Now, at 59 and nearing retirement, Bennett finds himself in Thailand. As the “senior regional security officer,” his post entails protecting United States interests here while also lending expertise to his host nation.

After narrowly surviving his post in Karachi, this leading anti-terror authority would appear perfectly suited to help Thailand with its own insurgency: an Islamic separatist campaign in the tropical Thai-Malay borderlands.

But in Thailand, the seasoned agent must operate on a leash. Both the U.S. and Thailand agree that inserting Americans into the fight could transform Thailand into the terror war’s next international front. Neither country wants to attract global networks supplying cash, weapons and young ideologues willing to die.

“We’re very concerned and very interested,” Bennett said. “But this is an internal insurgency. The U.S. is not going to step into that. If we step into that, we’re inviting transnational global terrorism to provide support. It’s completely the wrong approach.”

The U.S. can never put “boots on the ground” in the Thai-Malay borderlands, Bennett said. But, he said, agents can assist with “equipment, training and advice.”

Though less conspicuous and less sophisticated, Thailand’s insurgency is no less savage than Pakistan’s. A loose network of militants in the three southernmost provinces is fighting to restore a lost Islamic sultanate known as “Pattani,” annexed by Thailand (then Siam) in the early 1900s. They have torched state-run schools, beheaded monks and targeted civilians with remote bombs.

The century-long insurgency reignited in 2004 when separatists seized assault rifles and grenade launchers from an armory, shot troops and went on an arson spree. Since then, the insurgency has led to 4,100 deaths and 7,100 injuries, according to Human Rights Watch.

Bennett’s subdued role in Thailand’s insurgency indicates the pains America has taken to avoid any visible meddling. As insurgency roils in Thailand, he is largely confined to Bangkok, where he assists local police and tracks American fugitives on the lam.

Bennett’s high profile raises the stakes higher. He was personally targeted after helping solve the Pearl case in Karachi. He was also portrayed as a no-nonsense terrorist chaser in “A Mighty Heart,” a film based on the search for Pearl’s kidnappers. (Angelina Jolie starred as Pearl’s widow.)

Bennett has largely assisted the military through regular “anti-terrorism assistance” training to both military and police units. Some sessions have been held in Washington, D.C.

But he has also worked from military facilities in Songkla Province, just a short drive from the bloodiest conflict zones. Visits are conducted with zero fanfare.

“If we go (to Thailand’s deep south), we go down without profile,” Bennett said. “It’s kind of an invisible presence.”

Ties between the U.S. and Thai militaries are close, particularly for an Asian nation. U.S. jet fighters launched from bases in Thailand’s northeast during the Vietnam War. And today, the two nations hold the world’s largest war games, known as Cobra Gold, along Thailand’s mountainous coastline each year.

Not all U.S. authorities, however, are convinced American troops should stay out of the insurgency. A U.S. Naval War College report from 2007 advocates lending Special Forces soldiers to the fight.

“Bangkok has not a moment to lose,” wrote the report’s author, Marine Corps Maj. Nicholas Vavich. “The United States should do all it can to help its ally come up with a strategy to resolve the conflict.”

But despite near-daily killings, Thai authorities have insisted that the insurgency is growing weaker. In February, Thailand’s foreign minister optimistically predicted it could cease this year.

“I tell my soldiers that if they go into villages and people don’t wave, they’ve failed in their mission,” said Lt. Gen. Pichet Wisaijorn, outgoing commander of Thailand’s fourth army, which oversees counterinsurgency strategy.

“Previously, instead of waving, they’d make a gesture of shooting at the soldiers,” he said late last year. “That doesn’t happen anymore.”

A native of the region, Wisaijorn has attempted a “hearts and minds” approach: modernizing farming practices to boost villager incomes and offering free medical treatment through army medics.

Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and other nongovernmental organizations have accused Thai troops of employing brutal tactics against suspected insurgents. But Wisaijorn said wayward soldiers are given no mercy.

“When I first took my position, there was a low-ranking soldier who slapped a villager. I imprisoned him ... and expelled him,” he said.

Bennett is “philosophically aligned” with this softer approach, he said.

“The world of Islam is a beautiful world,” he said. “The words in the Holy Quran, if you’ve ever read it, are absolute peace and equality and happiness.”

Bennett reserves harsher language for terrorists. He deems them “psychopathic killers” who misinterpret scripture “for personal interests of greed and power.”

“I think we’re currently in World War III,” he said. “And this is not a World War III like we picture in the movies, where there’s 2,000 nuclear missiles going this way and 3,000 missiles going that way.”

PROGRAM ZIARAH DAN SUMBANGAN KEPADA MANGSA KONFLIK UMAT ISLAM DI SELATAN THAI.

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• Dana pendidikan dan biasiswa anak-anak konflik.


Untuk sumbangan dana, sila salurkan atas nama :
Persatuan Ulama' Malaysia Cawangan Pulau Pinang (PUMPP),
nombor akaun Bank Islam : 7043011013136.
(sila maklumkan jumlah sumbangan kepada HOTLINE AMANI 019-4131472 @ amanpattani@yahoo.com selepas kemasukan sumbangan kerana akaun tersebut adalah akaun rasmi PUMPP yang turut digunakan untuk badan-badan lain di bawah PUMPP)

“Tidak akan dikurangi harta dengan sebab bersedekah, Allah tidak menambah keampunan seseorang hamba melainkan seseorang itu ditambahkan dengan kemuliaan. Tidaklah seseorang itu merendah diri kerana mengharapkan keredhaan Allah melainkan akan diangkat darjatnya”.
(Riwayat Muslim)

Nasib Umat Islam Patani Tanpa Perhatian Dunia

“Apa yang berlaku di Palestin sebenarnya berlaku di Patani. Sebenarnya tiada bezanya antara nasib umat Islam di kedua wilayah ini, cuma nasib rakyat Patani tidak mendapat perhatian masyarakat antarabangsa”.

“Bangsa kami dizalimi, hak dirampas, para pemuda dihalang mendapatkan pendidikan dan dikenakan tuduhan pengganas, berlaku transmigrasi dengan pemindahan beramai-ramai bangsa Siam ke kawasan penduduk Melayu-Islam. Asimilasi kaum juga berlaku dengan usaha menghilangkan budaya melalui perlembagaan”.

“Terdapat usaha yang kuat daripada pihak kerajaan sendiri bagi menghilangkan identiti Melayu-Islam termasuk memaksa penggunaan bahasa Siam dan melarang kami bertutur bahasa ibunda kami daripada sekolah rendah hingga ke universiti. Sehingga kini di kalangan generasi muda, tidak sampai 30 peratus sahaja yang boleh bercakap Melayu”.

Demikian diluahkan pemimpin Persatuan Mahasiswa Islam Selatan Thai, Ahmad Shah Masood, 25, ketika berceramah dalam program ‘Santai Anak Muda’ di di Lanai Lestari, Gantok, Temerloh Pahang baru-baru ini tepatnya pada 21 April 2010.

Beliau bersama rakan-rakannya Ismail Yusof, Ali Muhammad dan Arif Abdullah dalam road-show bagi menyedarkan masyarakat luar terutamanya Malaysia tentang nasib masyarakat Patani di wilayah bergolak selatan Thailand.

Ahmad Shah memilih Pahang sebagai destinasi pertama kerana menurutnya terdapat pertalian persaudaraan kerana pernah seorang kerabat di raja Patani berkahwin dengan anak raja Pahang.

“Setiap hari berlaku pembunuhan dan perempuan-perempuan dirogol. Ada kisah seorang gadis bernama Norhayati dirogol beramai-ramai oleh tentera Siam kemudian dibunuh. Bila ibu dia lihat, pihak tentera menangkapnya dan diselimutkan lalu dicucuh dengan api, tetapi nasib ibu itu baik dan tidak mati. Daripada situlah dipecahkan cerita kezaliman dan kebuasan pihak tentera,” katanya yang fasih berbahasa Melayu.

Menurut Ahmad Shah, dendam zaman berzaman Siam terhadap masyarakat Melayu-Islam Patani bermula sejak penjajahan Bangkok 1786. Sebelum itu, orang Melayu Patani mempunyai sebuah kerajaan yang besar dan kuat di Tanah Melayu. Selepas penjajahan dan pertelagahan dengan Siam dalam tempoh yang panjang akhirnya termeterai Anglo-Siam Treaty atau Perjanjian Bangkok pada tahun 1909 dengan membahagikan Patani kepada 7 bahagian.

Sejak itu pemerintahan Kesultanan Melayu terhapus. Beberapa orang pejuang Patani seperti Tengku Mahmud Mahyudin dan Haji Sulung berusaha mendapatkan kemerdekaan Patani atau berusaha membawa wilayah tersebut masuk ke Malaysia yang merdeka. Namun kedua-duanya dibunuh oleh tentera Siam pada tahun 1954.

Menurut Ahmad Shah, selepas kematian kedua-dua pemimpin tersebut perjuangan masyarakat Melayu Patani tidak lagi dipimpin pemimpin besar disebabkan wujud banyak kumpulan pejuang-pejuang kecil. Itupun kebanyakannya dibunuh, ditangkap atau dihilangkan terus tanpa diketahui nasib mereka.

Sejak 2004, tekanan kerajaan Thailand terhadap orang Melayu Patani makin hebat iaitu dengan memberi kuasa kepada tentera, polis dan pegawai kerajaan untuk melakukan kezaliman.

Mereka juga ditambat dengan undang-undang tanpa bicara Emergency Degree, Marshall Law dan Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri.

Beberapa peristiwa menyayat hati umat Islam Patani ialah tragedi Masjid Krisek 28 April 2004 yang mengorbankan 108 orang Islam, peristiwa berdarah Tak Bai pada 24 Oktober 2004 yang meragut 78 nyawa dan pembunuhan 19 ahli jamaah di Masjid Al-Furqan daerah Cha-Airong, Narathiwat ketika menunaikan sembahyang Isyak pada 8 Jun 2009.

Dendam kesumat dan rasa curiga bangsa Siam terhadap umat Islam Patani tidak pernah padam dan pembunuhan berlaku hampir setiap hari. Sejak 2004 sehingga kini sudah lebih 4,000 yang menemui ajal.

“Namun semua itu tidak pernah menggentarkan hati kami dan perjuangan rakyat Patani tidak pernah berhenti. Jika dulu lelaki yang banyak ditangkap, kini perempuan pula yang terpaksa bangun berdemonstrasi. Kami yang masih belajar ini pula terpaksa berada di barisan hadapan,” jelas Ahmad Shah.

Ahmad Shah berkata, beliau bersama tiga sahabatnya pernah beberapa kali dipenjara dan didera oleh pihak berkuasa Thailand. Mereka juga melihat sendiri pihak tentera menyiksa orang kampung di depan mata mereka. Pada peringkat ini,

Ahmad Shah bersama kumpulannya sedaya upaya mengusahakan hubungan antarabangsa termasuk menemui duta dalam negara Asean, supaya mereka sedar penderitaan umat Islam Patani sama seperti nasib bangsa Moro, Rohingya, Palestin dan Bosnia.

“Kami mahu dunia sedar bahawa kami bangsa yang dilarang bertutur bahasa sendiri. Kami bangsa yang dihalang mengamalkan budaya kami sendiri. Kami bangsa yang disekat daripada menjalankan aktiviti agama kami. Kami mahu dunia sedar ada satu bangsa sudah makin memupus jika tidak diberi perhatian”.

“Kami berikrar tidak akan berhenti berjuang bagi menuntut keadilan dan kedamaian bangsa kami. Kami yakin kejayaan akan datang juga tetapi mengakui terpaksa menempuh pelbagai cabaran. Jadi kami harapkan sekurang-kurangnya secebis doa daripada rakan-rakan seIslam di sini,” katanya penuh bersemangat.

sumber : selamatkanpahang.blogspot.com