Pattani or Patani: Memory, forgetting, history, and the conflict in Southern Thailand

The conflict in Southern Thailand has claimed over 7000 lives in the last 15 years, with no end it sight. The Thai state has consistently misinterpreted both the causes and the solutions to the problems. This article seeks to identify one cause for the conflict, through examining identity in the south through the lenses of collective memory and forgetting. By focusing on young activists at university, it demonstrates the ways that collective memory is generated through shared pilgrimages to sacred places, and shared activities in the pursuit of peace. It also explores the ways that shared memory is both created through debate, through sharing and even through hate speech on the internet, and discusses the ways that social media debates deepen collective memory in oppositional and dangerous ways. Finally, the article argues that until a place is found for local collective memories of Patani in the Thai national collective memory, long-term peace will be impossible.