ABSTRACT
An ethnic Malay insurgency in the southern three provinces of Thailand that erupted in 2004, has claimed the lives of over 7,000 people and over 11,000 have been wounded. The low-level insurgency grew out of local madrassas, and is committed to winning a homeland for the Malay community, or at the very least greater autonomy. Though there are no ties to transnational actors, the insurgents routinely engage in mass casualty attacks against civilians. Violence has declined in recent years, and targeting has become more selective. The Thai government’s initial mishandling of the insurgency compounded the violence. Although there have been significant improvements in terms of military professionalism, government policy, exacerbated by two coup d’états, has prevented any meaningful attempts to address core grievances. A peace process began in 2013, but to date, has borne little fruit, with the government unwilling to make any meaningful concessions.
