Peace efforts in the far South should be taken out of the military's hands and left to civilians and politicians to direct, according to Kannavee Suebsang, the FAIR Party's secretary-general and only MP-elect.
The FAIR Party, which is a member of the prospective eight-party coalition led by the Move Forward Party (MFP), found itself in hot water after Hakim Pongtigor of the party spoke at a recent seminar on self-determination and Patani peace.
Mr Hakim has since been dismissed as the FAIR party's deputy secretary-general and Yamaruddin Songsiri as party deputy spokesman over the seminar that was criticised as supporting separatism, which amounts to a violation of the constitution.
During the seminar on June 7 at Prince of Songkla University's Pattani campus, members of Pelajar Bangsa, or the "national student movement", which represents students from the three southernmost provinces, stirred controversy when they simulated a referendum on the separation of the deep South from the rest of the country.
Mr Kannavee said he will push for a bill seeking to restore peace in the strife-torn deep South in parliament and make the matter a national priority within 100 days if the MFP can form a government.
Mr Kannaveee, 46, graduated from Ramkhamhaeng University's Faculty of Political Science and obtained master's degrees in international relations, international law and anthropology from the University of Oregon in the US.
An expert on peace, human rights, refugees and security affairs, he worked at the Office of the National Security Council (NSC) between 2003-2009.
He also served as head of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)'s field offices in Mae Hong Son, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and several other countries between 2009-2022; and founded the Peace Rights Foundation.
Foray into politics
Mr Kannavee made his first foray into politics when he joined the Thai Sang Thai Party and was unveiled as a candidate for a Bangkok constituency last year.
"But there were problems with the old political system. I felt that I wanted to do something new so I decided to quit and set up the foundation.
"I worked on humanitarian affairs, human rights, and peace-building in Thailand as well as helping Karen people, Rohingya refugees, and Uyghur asylum seekers who have been detained for about nine years in Thailand.
"There are also problems that remain unsolved, such as some 100,000 stateless highland people and peace efforts in the deep South.
"I had tried to find solutions to these problems to the point that I had to meet politicians in parliament to seek help. They tried to help but they did not know much about the details regarding human rights or humanitarian issues -- so I gave up.
"I decided that as I could not rely on politicians, I should become one myself,'' Mr Kannavee said.
He said he was later approached by Lt Gen Paradorn Pattanathabutr, a former NSC secretary-general, who knows him, to work at the FAIR Party led by Pitipong Temcharoen.
"I agreed to work on the condition that I could work on the party's policies without any interference. Mr Pitipong gave the nod. Initially, I served as the party's deputy leader and chief strategist. I shifted to the role of secretary-general in January,'' he said.
Mr Kannavee said that even though he worked hard on campaigning in the deep South, the party won only a small number of votes -- around 12,000.
Most votes came from the Northeast and some provinces which are military bases such as Phetchabun, probably because the party has a policy to bring soldiers sent to the deep South back to their home provinces, he said, adding this policy may have appealed to the families of the soldiers.
Joining an MFP-led coalition
One day after the May 14 election, Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of Move Forward, which won the most seats in the poll, announced that he would form a coalition government.
"Mr Pita talked about the formation of a government and mentioned the FAIR Party. I heard for the first time, along with the media, that the MFP wanted to approach the FAIR Party to be a part of the government.
"I did not know Mr Pita personally. I think it is because of our policies [that bind us]. Mr Pita spoke clearly before the media that the FAIR Party was invited because of its polices and commitment to work.
"Even though we have only one voice, it is still valuable. If the MFP believes we can work for the government, we are ready to support it, not only on issues related to peace in the deep South, but also on the country's diplomatic stance on the international stage, as well as humanitarian and human rights issues," Mr Kannavee said.
"Despite being a one-MP party, I think I can convince MPs from other parties to support our policies. We will also have to rely on the MFP to help push for these policies,'' he said.
"We don't bargain for any political office in return for joining the coalition. I only want to be allowed to do what I do best and I will go ahead with it without asking for any positions in return,'' he said.
Refugee issues
Asked about a solution to problems related to refugees, Mr Kannavee said Thailand is not a signatory of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the country has no laws regarding the admission of refugees and asylum-seekers.
They are subject to immigration rules like other foreign travellers and could face arrest, detention and deportation if they break the rules.
"Thai authorities define refugees differently. They see refugees as a threat to security. They approach the issue from a security point of view and that's why we are unable to find a sustainable solution."
Thailand now hosts more than 91,000 refugees from Myanmar in temporary shelters on the Thai-Myanmar border while about 5,000 refugees and asylum-seekers of various nationalities also live in Bangkok and the surrounding provinces, he said.
Their refugee status has not been recognised by the government and some who snuck out of their shelters have been arrested by police and had to pay for their bail and release, he said.
"I will table a bill seeking to help refugees in parliament regardless of whether I am in the government or opposition bloc.
"If we can legalise the status of refugees, we can benefit from them. They can make up a labour force to help develop the country.
"They would be required to pay taxes so they can be entitled to protection and benefits. The feeling of 'us' versus 'them' should have no place. The problem must be solved through legal means," Mr Kannavee said.
He said the UNHCR's "three durable solutions'' -- resettlement in a third country, voluntary repatriation to the country of origin and local integration in the host country -- should be adopted to help refugees in Thailand.
"Let them integrate into society and allow them to register as migrant workers under the law,'' he said.
Southern peace efforts
Asked to comment on efforts to restore peace in the three southern border provinces, Mr Kannavee said peace negotiations currently only involve military personnel from the two sides -- the Thai government and the Barisan Revolusi Nasional Melayu-Patani (BRN).
Before the coup on May 22, 2014, Thai negotiators were civilians, but after the coup, they have been only military personnel, he said.
He said legislation should be enacted to restore peace in the deep South and all the 500 MPs should push for the matter to become a national priority.
Mr Kannavee also insisted that peace talks must be held only in Thailand rather than in Malaysia. "I don't think that peace can be achieved if negotiations take place in other countries,'' he said.
In light of this, the government should provide protection for representatives from the BRN if they agree to come for talks in Thailand.
Peace talks should also be held at regional, provincial and local levels, and negotiators should be civilians rather than military personnel, he said, adding that politicians should also be involved to help with the peace effort.
He said laws should not be used to restrict the rights and freedom of local people in the deep South. In particular, martial law and the Executive Decree on Public Administration in Emergency Situations -- which are still in force in the region -- should be lifted, he said.
Under martial law, authorities can detain suspects for up to seven days without seeking a warrant from the court, he said.
Mr Kannavee also calls for the disbandment of the Internal Security Operations Command and the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre (SBPAC).
He said residents should be given more power to make their own decisions, adding the armed forces should also be streamlined and modernised.
"While the SBPAC has the power to make decisions to deal with problems, local people cannot have access to assistance from the agency. The structure and hierarchy of power hinders everything and that's why we have an idea to decentralise power so each province can run its own affairs," he said.
"The main priority is to push for a bill on peace-building in the deep South in parliament within 100 days [of the MFP-led coalition government taking office] and recognise it as a national priority," he said.
Despite many hurdles to the MFP's bid to form a government, Mr Kannavee said he is still confident Mr Pita will eventually become the new prime minister. But even if the MFP ends up in the opposition bloc, the FAIR Party and I will stick with the MFP no matter what, Mr Kannavee said.
