SOUTHERN VIOLENCE UPDATE: NEW BOMB ATTACK; NEW

C O N F I D E N T I A L BANGKOK 002822

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EAP, EAP/MLS
PACOM FOR FPA (HUSO)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/10/2016
TAGS: PREL PTER TH
SUBJECT: SOUTHERN VIOLENCE UPDATE: NEW BOMB ATTACK; NEW
POLITICAL PARTY?

Classified By: DCM Alexander A. Arvizu. Reason. 1.4 (b)


1. (C) Summary: On May 10 a bomb exploded outside a tea
shop in the far southern province of Pattani, killing one
soldier and three civilians. The type of bomb and tactic of
targeting security forces at a location they are known to
frequent is similar to past attacks. However, the reported
placement of the device by a female accomplice -- the second
reported instance this month -- is a worrisome development.
Separately, a prominent southern Muslim leader announced the
formation of a new "Muslim" political party focused on the
southern border provinces. It is unlikely that this party
will be organized in time to take part in the next election.
End Summary

LATEST BOMB IN SOUTH


2. (SBU) On May 10, a bomb placed in the front basket of a
stolen motorbike detonated in front of a roadside tea shop in
the far southern province of Pattani. The blast killed two
civilian women teachers (one of whom was pregnant) and one
soldier, and injured 16 others including four soldiers and a
police officer. The explosion occurred shortly after a group
of soldiers from a locally based 4th Army unit arrived at the
tea shop -- a restaurant regularly frequented by Thai
security officers.


3. (C) Nikon Chanamphai, the Chief of the Pattani
Provincial Defense Office, told Emboffs that the bomb had
been triggered by a cell phone and was similar in size to
other recent bombs used in the South. (Note: Of late, the use
of cell phones to trigger bombs has declined because of the
relatively successful effort by the RTG to block the signals
of unregistered phones. End Note) A local journalist who
covered the explosion agreed that the device was of similar
design to other bombs used in the area. However, he told us
that witnesses had seen a woman park the motorcycle at the
scene before the explosion.

MEANWHILE...A NEW "MUSLIM" POLITICAL PARTY?


4. (SBU) On May 9 Munso Salaeh, a southern political
activist and former chairman of the Young Muslim Association
of Thailand, announced the formation of a new "Muslim"
political party. Munso, who has been a frequent and
outspoken critic of U.S. policy in the Middle East, said the
party would also welcome Buddhist members. The party, likely
to be called Ruam ("united") Thai Muslims, will focus on the
problems in the far southern provinces and will reportedly
include other prominent Muslim leaders and academics.


5. (C) Comment: The latest bomb attack has many of the
hallmarks of the frequent bombings seen in the South over the
past two years: a small device, detonated by cell phone,
placed where security forces are known to pass. While the
bomb and tactics look familiar, the apparent use of a woman
to place the device is a worrisome new development. This is
the second time this month that a woman was implicated in an
attack in the South. On May 6, witnesses reported seeing a
woman carrying a suspicious package shortly before a bombing
outside a teachers house in Narathiwat. Ethnic Malay women
are not usually associated with the violence by Thai
authorities, or the larger Thai public. If women are
implicated in other attacks, it will certainly further
complicate the dynamic in the far south.


6. (C) Comment continued: It is unlikely that a new
"Muslim" party will be set up in time to participate in the
upcoming general election. Besides timing, the establishment
of a Thai "Muslim" party faces other challenges, most notably
a diverse Muslim community with widely divergent political
concerns. Many southerners view northern Muslims as being
more "Thai" than Muslim, while Bangkok Muslims are often
disdainful of their poor, ethnically Malay, southern
co-religionists. This is not the first attempt to set up a
Thai "Muslim" political party. In 2001, Muslim academic
Amnuali Suwannakit's attempt to set up the Santiphap
("peace") Party failed quickly from a lack of support. A
similar fate probably awaits this latest attempt to establish
a unified Muslim political vehicle in Thailand. End Comment
BOYCE