Narathiwat (AsiaNews) – About 465 schools were shut down for three days in the southern province of Narathiwas to protest yesterday’s murder of teacher Vilas Kongkhum and his Komkhum Petchphrom, gunned down as they made their way home on a motorbike.
Bonsoom Thongsriprai, president of the Teachers’ Federation of the provinces of Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani, said that the labour action was designed to get the government to provide teachers with greater security.
In the three southern provinces, a former Malaysian sultanate with a Muslim majority in a Buddhist country, ordinary people are being killed just for belonging to a different religious or ethnic community.
Teachers have always been especially vulnerable to Muslim extremists who see school as a tool used by the state to impose a Buddhist culture. In 2008 alone, 153 teachers were killed.
In a resolution, the union “suggests that the police, soldiers and administrators co-operate effectively,” Thongsriprai said.
Cultural and ethnic differences are among the issues that require better handling. For instance, “police should not change their men frequently; instead, it should allow them to settle in an area and come to understand the local way of life and culture,” he said.
In addition, “We are educators, not warriors. At the moment, there are 30,000 frightened teachers who want the government to review the way it is handling the crisis and see whether things are getting better or not.”
In the last few years, the government tried to help teachers by offering them free courses on how to use guns for self-defence.
At the same time, teachers have shown that they are not willing to give in to fear. “Schools should not be closed, except in very high risk areas, not in the cities,” said Prasit Nukung, who is in charge of education in Narathiwat.
In response to the Teachers’ Federation request, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said he would visit the affected region “as soon as possible”.
