Was there any method to permanently resolve the unrest problem at the South of Thailand?

  To resolve the present unrest in the south, the key thing that everyone needs to do is to avoid resorting to violent measures, but rather to incorporate kindness and wisdom in equal proportion.   Kindness needs to take precedence, followed closely by wisdom in order to relieve the tense atmosphere.  Doing so, there’ll be a chance to resolve the problem.

What I am saying is whenever there’s a lack of wisdom, there usually will be problems.  The existing problems of the south are:

1) The educational and occupational problems.  The first part involves a deficiency in the general knowledge of the people.  This deficiency needs to be provided quickly.  

Second, it is a problem of religious comprehension.  I can speak confidently that the people in the south, especially the groups that reside in the areas of the dispute, whether they’re Buddhists or Moslems, have a limited comprehension of their respective religion and its principles.

If their depth of religious knowledge were greater, their fortitude would be greater too.  When there’s enough fortitude, the tension will slowly be relieved by itself.

We first need to see the overall picture in this way.

1)   Solving the problems by providing knowledge and fundamental academic education to the local people.

2)   Increasing the local people’s knowledge and understanding about morality of their respective religion.

Buddhists have a duty to send educated monks from neighboring or any other provinces to go teach and increase the knowledge of Buddhism to the local Thai Buddhists of the south.

If they’re suffering any kind of hardships, we should go visit and see what we can offer to help address their troubles.  Whatever they’re lacking, we should go find out.

The same goes for the Islam, the leaders of the Islamic people who are educated on the doctrines of their religion should educate their people earnestly, so that those who are uneducated will gradually become educated.

If they’re not all educated, then only be a few will remain, and the feeling of shame and the fear from unwholesome consequences will arise.  Soon it will all get better.

However, the goal of addressing the problems of education and morality development of both Buddhists and Islamic people will require a certain amount of time.

The problem that each group will encounter is economic.  Simply speaking, if we can settle the economy and poverty, the resentment among different groups of people will dissipate and in due time they will become more tolerable of one another.  But in the long run it will require time, effort, and brain power to heal the rift between both sides.

So in this incident, whatever happens will be bad.  The government should quickly lend a hand to resolve the economic trouble of the south.

Thai brothers and sisters from both sides, irrespective of religion, should join together along with the government to stimulate the economy.  Together we should go help whoever is sick, hurt, or lacking in whatever necessities.  We need to hurry with these matters.

When the immediate troubles are remedied, the others will gradually be solved along with them.

Lord Buddha gave special mantras for every Thai brothers and sisters, not only for Buddhists.  They are:

1.  Fortitude.  However it may be, we all are human and we are all Thai.  Our progenitors helped built this country together through hardship.  Therefore, we must endure and persevere.  This is the first useful mantra that we need to remember.

2.  If we’re Buddhists, we must remind ourselves that our destiny is Nirvana.  If we’re Islamic, we’d wish to be with our God in heaven.

Simply speaking, the disciples of both religions should be ashamed of performing evil deeds and afraid of the fruits of the misdeeds, and think only about heaven or Nirvana.  Then we will develop compassion for each another.  The second mantra is compassion.

3.  Avoid force or violence.  Violence causes distress; once you put it into speech and action, it leads to even more distress.

We are all Thai and we are all human beings.  Before enabling us to take the human form at rebirth, we have had to cultivate good deeds through many lifetimes.  For that reason, we need to preserve our human virtues.  When you look at it this way, soon everything will surely subside on its own.  Also give the government the time and opportunity to solve the problem as well.