Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09CHIANGMAI77
2009-06-09 09:38:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Consulate Chiang Mai
Cable title:  

FIVE RELIGIONS, ONE VOICE: CHIANG MAI INTER-FAITH GROUP

Tags:  PGOV PHUM SCUL SOCI TH 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO4042
PP RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHCHI #0077 1600938
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 090938Z JUN 09
FM AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1063
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEHCHI/AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI 1145
UNCLAS CHIANG MAI 000077

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SCUL SOCI TH
SUBJECT: FIVE RELIGIONS, ONE VOICE: CHIANG MAI INTER-FAITH GROUP
PROMOTES RECONCILIATION

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Summary and Comment

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Of the 35 or so inter-faith groups that exist across Thailand,
Chiang Mai's Inter-faith Solidarity Committee claims to be the
only one with representatives from each of the five religions
officially recognized in the country's Constitution: Buddhist,
Muslim, Brahmin-Hindu, Sikh, and Christian. This non-official
committee, founded in 2008, meets monthly to promote long-term
community reconciliation and inter-faith understanding. It has
spoken publicly against "red-yellow" violence and has conducted
small-scale outreach to Muslim communities in Thailand's deep
South.




2. Comment: It is encouraging that local leaders of these
five religions have committed to working collaboratively and to
speaking out in support of peace and reconciliation between
conflicting political and religious groups. Chiang Mai's
Inter-faith Solidarity Committee could serve as a good model for
elsewhere in Thailand. We will continue to seek opportunities
to engage with it. End Summary and Comment.



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Peace, Love, and Politics

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3. Consul General and staff met June 5 with the leadership of
the Chiang Mai Inter-faith Solidarity Committee. This
non-official group, founded in 2008, claims to be the only one
of 35 or so inter-faith groups across Thailand with
representatives from each of the five religions recognized in
the country's Constitution: Buddhist, Muslim, Brahmin-Hindu,
Sikh, and Christian. The Committee meets monthly to promote
long-term community reconciliation and inter-faith
understanding. Its activities are funded solely by
contributions from each faith group. Although the Committee is
committed to maintaining its non-partisan stance, it does serve
an advisory role with provincial authorities. Indeed, one of
the Committee's goals is to ensure that government officials
understand the beliefs and historical context of each major
religion.




4. CG met with the group after hearing about it from the
Chiang Mai provincial Governor, who praised the Committee as a
useful mechanism for promoting long-term community
reconciliation. In recent months, the Committee has spoken out
publicly against "red-yellow" violence and conflict. During the
mid-April "Songkran" politically-motivated riots, it submitted a
media statement calling for reconciliation, and Committee
members conducted television and radio interviews. The
Committee firmly believes that religion can serve as a source of
stability and a means of promoting national unity in times of
political and social conflict. The group makes a special effort
to reach out to youth, encouraging young people to use their
religious beliefs as a moral compass.




5. The Committee has conducted small-scale outreach to
communities in Thailand's deep South in an attempt to assuage
distrust and suspicion between ethnic Thai Buddhist and ethnic
Malay Muslim communities. By hosting religious leaders from the
southernmost provinces, Chiang Mai's Inter-faith Solidarity
Committee seeks to promote religious understanding and discredit
"false doctrines" that lead to violence and religious extremism.
As such, the Committee's activities emphasize the beliefs
shared by all religions, including a desire for peace and the
promotion of ethical behavior.




6. The Committee, currently chaired by its Muslim
representative, praised post for bringing in Muslim speakers
from the U.S. in recent years, and noted that similar programs
would be well-received in the future.

MORROW