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Pattani or Patani: Memory, forgetting, history, and the conflict in Southern Thailand
Author(s) -
Ockey James
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
asia pacific viewpoint
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.571
H-Index - 38
eISSN - 1467-8373
pISSN - 1360-7456
DOI - 10.1111/apv.12299
Subject(s) - forgetting , collective memory , sociology , state (computer science) , collective identity , identity (music) , social memory , media studies , political science , psychology , aesthetics , law , cognitive science , cognitive psychology , politics , art , computer science , algorithm
The conflict in Southern Thailand has claimed over 7000 lives in the last 15 years, with no end it sight. The Thai state has consistently misinterpreted both the causes and the solutions to the problems. This article seeks to identify one cause for the conflict, through examining identity in the south through the lenses of collective memory and forgetting. By focusing on young activists at university, it demonstrates the ways that collective memory is generated through shared pilgrimages to sacred places, and shared activities in the pursuit of peace. It also explores the ways that shared memory is both created through debate, through sharing and even through hate speech on the internet, and discusses the ways that social media debates deepen collective memory in oppositional and dangerous ways. Finally, the article argues that until a place is found for local collective memories of Patani in the Thai national collective memory, long‐term peace will be impossible.