View source for Patani Malays People's Consultative Council

{{distinguish|Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia}}
{{EngvarB|date=March 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2015}}
{{Infobox political party
|name               = Bersatu
|native_name        =
|lang1              =
|name_lang1         =
|lang2              =
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|lang3              =
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|lang4              =
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|colorcode          = #FF0000
|leader             =
|chairman           =
|president          = [[Wan Kadir Che Man]]
|secretary_general  =
|spokesperson       =
|leader1_title      =
|leader1_name       =
|slogan             =
|founder            =
|founded            = 1989
|dissolved          = mid-2000s<ref name="gp"/>
|merger             =
|split              =
|merged             =
|headquarters       = [[Kedah]], [[Malaysia]]{{citation needed|date=March 2015}}
|newspaper          =
|student_wing       =
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|ideology           = [[Thai Malays|Patani]] [[nationalism]]<br>[[Separatism]]
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|country            = Thailand
|country2           =
|flag               = [[File:Flag of Pattani.svg|200px]]
}}
'''Bersatu''' ([[Malay language|Malay]] for "Unity" or "Solidarity"<ref name="Chalk">{{Cite book |author=Peter Chalk |title=The Malay-Muslim Insurgency in Southern Thailand: Understanding the Conflict's Evolving Dynamic |publisher=Rand |year=2008 |page=8}}</ref>), also referred to as the '''Patani Malays People's Consultative Council''' ({{langx|ms|Majelis Permesyuaratan Rakyat Melayu Patani}}, MPRMP)<ref name="Chalk"/> was an umbrella group of separatist organisations of the predominantly Muslim and Malay provinces of [[Southern Thailand]] ("Patani").<ref name="RG&AA">[[Rohan Gunaratna]] & Arabinda Acharya, ''The Terrorist Threat from Thailand: Jihad Or Quest for Justice?''</ref>
==History==
Bersatu, which is the [[Malay (language)|Malay]] word for "unity," was formed as an umbrella organisation in an attempt to unify all separatist groups operating against the Kingdom of Thailand.<ref name="RG&AA"/> It was established on 31 August 1989 by factions of the [[Barisan Revolusi Nasional Melayu Patani]] (BRN), the [[National Front for the Liberation of Pattani]] (BNPP), the [[Mujahideen Pattani Movement]] (BNP) and the [[Patani United Liberation Organisation]] (PULO).<ref>Thai News Agency, 31 August 2006. [http://etna.mcot.net/query.php?nid=24463 20 insurgent bombs in Yala banks, killing 1, injuring 18] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311005058/http://etna.mcot.net/query.php?nid=24463 |date=11 March 2007 }}, MCOT (retrieved on 31 August 2006).</ref> The core of BRN denies that it ever joined Bersatu.<ref name="RG&AA"/> Under the banner of "Bersatu", the PULO, New PULO (that had broken away in 1995) and BRN began coordinated attacks, using the codename "Falling Leaves," between August 1997 and January 1998, including bombing, incendiary and shooting, resulting in nine deaths, dozens of injured and substantial economic damage.<ref name="Chalk"/><ref>Liow, Joseph Chinyong. "The Security Situation in Southern Thailand: Toward an Understanding of Domestic and International Dimensions." ''Studies in Conflict & Terrorism.'' 27 (2004):531-48.</ref>
It was reported that some of Bersatu's prominent leaders were arrested or killed during the years prior to 2004. The highly coordinated torching of 18 schools in January 2004 led some to suspect that the Bersatu groups were responsible.<ref>Smith, Anthony L. "Trouble in Thailand's Muslim South: Separatism, not Global Terrorism." ''Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies'', Vol. 3, No. 10, December 2004, p. 3. [http://www.apcss.org/Publications/APSSS/TroubleinThailandsMuslimSouth.pdf] (.pdf file)</ref> In the mid-2000s however the coalition was disbanded. According to former president [[Wan Kadir Che Man]], it was sidelined by younger, more extremist Islamist fighters.<ref name="gp">{{Cite news |url=http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/asia-pacific/thailand/141204/southern-thailand-patani-islamic-insurgency-facebook |title=Red Light Jihad: Thailand's new breed of Facebook jihadis |publisher=GlobalPost |date=8 December 2014}}</ref>
Bersatu is not to be confused with ''Barisan Bersatu Mujahidin Patani'' (BBMP; "United Mujahideen Front of Pattani"), a radical breakaway from the BNPP, established in 1985, which follows a radically Islamist ideology.<ref name="RG&AA"/> The BBMP never was a part of Bersatu.
==See also==
* [[Gerakan Mujahidin Islam Patani]] (GMIP)
* [[Patani (historical region)|Pattani (region)]]
* [[South Thailand insurgency]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Southern Thailand Insurgency}}
[[Category:Islamist insurgent groups]]
[[Category:Rebellions in Asia]]
[[Category:Religiously motivated violence in Thailand]]
[[Category:Organizations established in 1989]]
[[Category:1989 establishments in Thailand]]
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