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Southern village like no other

Former communist guerrillas look for ways to pass on
lessons of history to the young
Published: 1/05/2010 at 06:12 AM
Online news: Culture

Deep in the mountains bordering Malaysia lies a village unlike any other.

Chulabhorn Development Village 12 in Sukhirin district, with a population of 490, has had a communist past but also clung
faithfully to Islamic principles.

The village has not suffered insurgent attacks and is not on the authorities' radar as a suspected militant hideout.

Near the village entrance is a military outpost, an historic reminder of the Thai involvement in helping bring the campaign of
the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) to an end.

``We've asked them [the soldiers] to station themselves here for our safety. The military presence will also give the
government confidence that no ill-intentioned elements intrude into our village [and use it as a base],'' said Daroemae
Binsa, village head for 13 years.

The decades-long armed struggle by the CPM against the Malaysian government ended peacefully when Thailand helped
broker a peace deal in December 1989.
Children gather for the sports day.
More than a thousand former guerrillas agreed to stay in Thai
territory afterwards.

Apart from Chulabhorn Village 12, there are other ex-CPM communities. Two predominantly Chinese villages are located
in Yala's Bannang Sata and Betong districts and another Muslim-dominated village is in Yala's Yaha district.

All the ex-CPM villages were granted state land where locals could pass land on to their descendants, but were not
allowed to sell it.

The villages have enjoyed infrastructure development thanks to support from the military and Interior Ministry.

Local leaders have also taken responsibility for village development, especially in Sukhirin district of Narathiwat and
Betong district of Yala.

In Sukhirin district, ex-CPM boss Abdullah CD, whose real name is Cik Dat Anjang Abdullah, is credited with Chulabhorn Researchers from Prince of Songkla University
Village 12's development. check the physical and mental development of
children in the village.
In the village in Betong district, it is local leader Ar Chen (Poon Sae
Tan) who leads the development efforts.

Of all the four ex-CPM villages, Chulabhorn Village 12 is the most homogeneously Muslim. Only three Buddhist families live
there.

Chulabhorn village is also preparing for the 20th commemoration of the peace agreement _ a follow-up of last November's
grand celebration in Hat Yai district of Songkhla when thousands of brothers and sisters in arms from Malaysia and
Singapore as well as CPM leader Chin Peng showed up.

The commemoration will take place later this month.

As head of the CPM, Chin Peng, now in his early 80s, led an armed struggle against both the British and the Japanese.

Chulabhorn Village 12 is never quiet. It recently hosted a Tadika annual sports day for 20 Muslim primary schools in
Sukhirin district on April 10.

In the past, the village has welcomed Their Royal Highnesses Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and Princess Chulabhorn,
A boy is weighed during a check-up at the village. after whom the village was named. Princess Chulabhorn has provided assistance to displaced people in Yala, Pattani and
Narathiwat.

Plans are also afoot to turn Chulabhorn Village 12 into a tourist site. The village's attraction is its history.

The older generation of villagers, however, are concerned that the youngsters who have had no direct experience with the
past may not be interested in passing on political history.

Many old comrades remember the day when they took up arms.

They were 13 to 17 years old when they went into the jungle.

Yaakob Ibrahim, the village's external relations officer, agreed that parents needed to groom their children to be proud of
their ancestral heritage and keep pace with new economic and social developments.

Headman Doramae Binsa believes the village should have an eco-tourist/historic trail, an idea which has previously been
floated with forestry authorities. The villagers were hopeful the officials would come up with plans to display the village's
history so students could learn from the past and come to appreciate its significance. Gade Khamya, 71, one of the village’s three Buddhist
residents, packs her dried betel nuts to be sold.
Anas, Mr Abdullah's son-in-law, said the youngsters' lack of interest in the community's history was due to the generation
gap.

Mr Anas added many of the older generation, himself included, do not speak Thai. They speak Bahasa or Chinese.

On the southern insurgency problems, he said the stalled dialogue between the authorities and the insurgents should be resumed even though no peaceful resolution may be
forthcoming.

An old war horse hoping for peace, unity

Abdullah CD comes across as a wise old grandfatherly type and not the fierce guerrilla figure he once was.

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The bespectacled old warrior from Perak, whose real name is Cik Dat Anjang Abdullah, is educated and proficient in
several languages, speaking Chinese, Malay and English fluently.

One of the top Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) icons, Mr Abdullah is the only surviving Muslim leader of the movement
residing in Thailand.

His home is in Chulabhorn Development Village 12, which can only be reached through winding roads around 90km from
central Narathiwat.

Regarded as a senior leader by the villagers, Mr Abdullah has been a spiritual figure for this remarkable place for the past
20 years.

Although the ageing leader likes to live a low-profile, quiet life, as an historic icon he remains connected with the outside
world by reading Malay and Chinese newspapers delivered to his house a few times a month and watching Malay news
from a satellite dish in his nearby son-in-law's house.

``My routine is mostly reading history books and some newspapers. I try to receive fewer guests,'' Mr Abdullah said.

Unlike his colleague and CPM leader Chin Peng who unfortunately lost his wife a few years ago, Mr Abdullah is still living
Former Communist Party of Malaya boss Abdullah with his wife Suriani, who is of mixed Chinese-Malay ethnicity and who is also a former guerrilla fighter.
CD. ACHARA ASHAYAGACHAT
Mr Abdullah has many reasons for not returning to Malaysia.

``The Malaysian government twisted words, imposing too many conditions for the comrade returnees. So I decided to stay here with other Thai comrades,'' he explained.

Above all, he felt greater freedom staying in Thailand.

``[Here] I can talk, read and even write if I want to,'' he said.

His only wish now is to see his brothers in arms and their descendants live a better life.

In the old days, the people in Malaya only wanted to fight against the British and establish a society of equality.

But finally Mr Abdullah was forced to retreat to Thailand where these days he wants nothing more than to see a sustainable fraternity among Buddhists and Muslims.

``Whether communist or not, we would like to see a just society. I'd like to see it in my lifetime,'' Mr Abdullah said.

People are generally much better off now, although the protracted southern security problem remains the main concern for local people.

Children from 20 Tadika schools compete at the annual sports day in Narathiwat’s Sukhirin district.

A house doubles as a forestry department office at the Chulabhorn Development Village 12 in Sukhirin district.

A villager leaves betel nuts to dry. YAAKOB IBRAHIM AND ACHARA ASHAYAGACHAT

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