ECONOMIC LIFE OF MALAY MUSLIMS IN SOUTHERNMOST THAILAND AMIDST ECOLOGICAL CHANGES AND UNREST

DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII AT MNOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN ANTHROPOLOGY

AUGUST 2013

By Chalita Bundhuwong

Dissertation Committee: Leslie E. Sponsel, Chairperson Alice Dewey Jefferson M. Fox Alex Golub Chavivun Prachuabmoh Krisna Suryanata

Keywords: Malay Muslims, Economic Life, Ecological Changes, Southernmost Thailand

Acknowledgements
I could never have finished this dissertation and my PhD without the kindness and supports from many people. The first one is Professor Leslie E. Sponsel, my chair and my advisor, who always supported me in everything and provided me with his insightful knowledge on ecological anthropology. Also other committee membersAlice Dewey, Jefferson M.Fox, Krisna Suryanata, and Alex Golubprovided me the valuable experiences through their various classes I took. These classes gave me deep knowledge on political ecology, environmental issues, community-based resource management, ethnographic methods, and rural people adaptations. The committees thoughtful comments on my draft were highly helpful for me to improve this dissertation. Also their moral support is very meaningful to me during difficult time of writing. Without the East-West Center Graduate Degree Fellowship, I would never have had a chance to continue my PhD program at UHM. Moreover, East-West Center gave me a wonderful experience of living in a multi-cultural community having the great and live-long friendship with friends from various countries. Even though in general living in Hawaii is such a memorable period, sometimes the sorrows happened to my life, I was able to pass through those difficult times with supports from several of my very good friends in Hale Kuahine a nd Hale Manoa especially Pei-Luen Lu, Xiaofeng Kang, and Parichart Jungwiwattanaporn. I would never have been able to conduct the long-time field research safely in southernmost Thailand, which is the region full of unrest and violence, without friendship, care, and trust from Kampong Ai Hetae residents. I specially wish to express my indebtedness to my host familys members, who all the time makes me feel like I am also a real member of the family. I would like to give special thanks to Wipa Sukpornsawan (Pi Kiang) and Samsuding Dosormi and his family, and other friends in the southernmost region who brought me to the field in the first place and had helped assist me all the time during my fieldwork. Without love and sacrifice of my parents, I could never have come to this stage. It is my great loss that my father passed away three years ago when I was in Hawaii. I wish he could stay with me in the day that I can complete my degree. Finally, I would like to acknowledge Anusorn Unno, my husband. Without his supports and encouragements I am certain that I could not have been as I am today.

Abstract The economic life of rural Malay Muslims in Kampong Ai Hetae in southernmost Thailand is examined. The affects of the politics of Thai state development on the ecosystem is explored together with local farming practices and resource uses amidst ecological changes, the market economy, conflict and violence. This dissertation also relates agriculture to other dimensions of rural transformation to understand economic life. The dissertation research revealed that economic development in the region has aimed to stabilize Thai nation-state ideology under the assumption that poverty is the main cause of the civil unrest. However, the development, which aims to incorporate Malay Muslim identity and ignores ecological values and the meaningful participation of local residents, has not been successful in suppressing the unrest nor in improving the economic life. Local residents have adapted farming practices to try to continue to use the changing ecological system and also to pursue new economic incentives. While trying to cope with unsupportive development and intermittent violence, the local residents face many serious risks all alone. The use of chemicals in farming and conflicts over common resources seem unavoidable. Agriculture is the foundation for households to gain better opportunities in the non-farm sector in the face of the rural transformations in the region. Modern lifestyle and consumption cant be separated from investment in farming. The intensification of Islam strengthened by the robust commercial farming in turn shapes the communitys political power reproducing the failure of development. The local economic life is full of ups and downs although not destitute. However, increasing pressure on the land with population growth is unsustainable even with increasing involvement in non-farm activities, and it will bring more difficulties in the future. Even if development were sustainable and the rural poor could cultivate new skills, education, and networks for employment in non-farming jobs, the quality of life of local residents will still be depreciated if the conflicts continue in the south. Quality of life is not only economic, but also ecological, cultural, and political, and it will be diminished as long as the development is under the Thai nation-state ideology.

Table of contents
Acknowledgments.ii Abstractiii Table of Contents iv List of tables...viii List of Maps..ix List of illustrations.x List of abbreviations ...xii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCT ION..1 Can the Future be better than being a Coolie in the Rubber business? .........................1 Research Objectives ..4 Conceptual Frameworks ..5 Political Ecology of Ecological Changes.5 Ecological Transitions and Human Agency8 Rural Changes and Agrarian Transformations...11 The Critical Studies on the Notion of Community.........14 Studies on Development, Agriculture, and Natural Resources of Southernmost Thailand 18 Research Site.22 Location and People...22 Ai Hetae Ecosystem and Geography .....25 Violence Incidents..26 Research Methods.... 28 Dissertation Outline...........................33 CHAPTER 2 DEVELOPMENT AMIDST UNREST AND VIOLENCE IN THE SOUTHERNMOST REGION ......35 The Conflict and Violence: Background...35 History of Unrest and Conflict between Siam/Thai State and Malay Muslims.35 The New Round of Conflicts and Violence ...41 Development by Thai State in Southernmost Thailand.46 Mainstream Development Approach..49 Wetland Development and Water Management..49
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The Promotions on Cash Crops ..54 Alternative Development Approach ...58 Environmental Conservation...58 Sufficiency Economy..61 Civil Society Sector (CSS) in Southernmost Thailand..66 Civil Society in National Context...66 Southern Border Civil Society Assembly (SBCSA) .71 The SBCSA and the CSS and Development in Southernmost Thailand73 Local Community Movement before 2004 73 The SBCSA and the CSS after 2004...75 Conclusion79 CHAPTER 3 DEVELOPMENT ON THE GROUND...83 Development by State Agencies...83 Main Stream Development Projects..85 Sufficiency Economy93 The Change of Development Approach.93 Economic Failures..95 Sufficiency Economy and Enclosure.98 Development by Formal Community Leaders...103 Village Heads and Sub-District Head..104 Sub-district Administrative Organization (SAO)108 Development by Local Academic and NGOs112 Wetland: Conflict over Land Rights113 Wetland as an Ecosystem...115 Bhuminiwet Lumnam Saiburi: Saiburi Watershed Geo-Ecological Area..119 Conclusion.124 CHAPTER 4 ECOLOGICAL AND FARMING CHANGES.127 Today Ecosystem and Farming...128 From Wetland to Permanent Lake: Toward Intensive Fishing141 Grassland, Residents Uses, and State Enclosure147 Grassland and Livestock...147 State Enclosure 149 Intensive Uses of Grassland.153
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The Changes of Water Flow, Paddy Field, and Rice Farming ...156 From Wetland Rice Farming to Early rice Farming 156 The Decrease of In-Season Rice Field 159 Low hill Area: From Integrated Orchards or Traditional Rubber Plots to Modern Rubber Plots...163 The More Distance between Residents and Wetland Ecosystem167 Conclusion ..168 CHAPTER 5 MAKING A LIVING THROUGH MODERN FARMING171 Farming Economy ..172 Rubber .172 Watermelon. 177 The Lowest Status in Modern Market System 181 Modern Farming Practices ..185 The Uses of Chemical Fertilizers and Pesticides .185 Farming at Risk ...189 The Uses of Common Resources 192 State Public Land: Difficulties and Opportunities192 The Conflict on Resource Uses among Individuals 196 The Overexploitation of Natural Resources 199 The Persistence of Farming Activities 200 Hybrid and Practical Knowledge..200 Diversification of Production ..206 Different Views on Cost-Benefit. 212 Conclusion ..218 CHAPTER 6 LIVES AMIDST RURAL TRANSFORMATION 221 The Growth of Non-Farm Sector.221 The Shortage of Farmland among Young Generation...222 Wage Labor Jobs and Trading in the Village...225 Wage labor jobs ...225 Trading..227 Working outside the Village232 Working as State Employees...240 Consumptions and Modern Lives246
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Religious Revitalization..252 The Becoming of a Pious Muslim Community253 Modernization, Market Economy, and Islamization ...262 Embedded Islam and Economic and Political Structure in the Village 269 Conclusion ..271 CHAPTER 7: ECONOMIC LIVES AND THE STRUGGLES THROUGH DEVELOPMENT, MARKET ECONOMY, AND UNREST. 274

Politics of Development amidst the Unrest..274

The Economic Life of Rural Malay Muslims..278

Development for Well-Being and Peace..285 APPENDIX 1..288 APPENDIX 2..292 REFERENCES....294