2 May 2023 was a symbolic day for Thai politics because it marked the ninth anniversary of the 2014 coup d’état. In the hope of restoring democracy, eight political parties jointly signed a 23-point memorandum of understanding (MOU). That same day, at the MOU’s signing, Wan Muhammad Noor Matha (hereafter Wan Nor), the veteran Muslim politician of Yala province and leader of the Prachachart Party, gave a powerful speech.

He wished to see change in Thailand, begging the “powerful and mighty ones” to “use your power and your mighty strength to help those who want to work for their people…let them work for their people”. (Author’s translation.) His inspirational speech was powerful and went viral; Wan Nor’s political star was burnished overnight.

On 4 July, Wan Nor gained more fame when he was appointed as the compromise choice for Thailand’s House Speaker. People in the southernmost provinces of Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat celebrated this news with tremendous joy.

The symbolism of a politician from Thailand’s Muslim-majority “Deep South” being the Buddhist kingdom’s peacemaker led to netizens flooding social media platforms with their selfies or pictures with Wan Nor. For some, Wan Nor can now claim to be the saviour and pride of Thailand’s Malay-Muslims but the key question now is, can he mend a divided parliament in Bangkok?

A former deputy prime minister (under then PM Thaksin Shinawatra), Wan Nor had previously served as House Speaker between 1996 and 2000, under then PM Chuan Leekpai. Wan Nor is the first Muslim to hold such high positions in Thai government.

Hailed for his calm demeanour and deliberate conscientiousness, he is considered by his generation as one of the most respectable Thai politicians. However, Wan Nor can be considered a public figure who may inspire ‘love’ or ‘hate’ depending on one’s religious or political affiliation. Many Malay-Muslims would view him as their most reputable representative but, from the author’s recent interviews with Buddhist elements in Yala, some Buddhist extremists have associated Wan Nor and Prachachart with the Muslim separatist movement. They have even pejoratively labelled Prachachart a “Party of Thugs”.

While a deep dive into the longstanding conflict in Thailand’s South is beyond the scope of this commentary, the conflict in part derives from the 2004 Narathiwat military camp rampage. When the state authorities alleged that Wan Nor’s team members were the masterminds behind the violence, Wan Nor took no action. Later that year, a clash between Malay-Muslims and the Thai state authorities at Kruesae Mosque and Takbai claimed nearly 120 Malay-Muslim lives. Again, Wan Nor remained silent. In retaliation, the southernmost constituencies punished Wan Nor in the 2005 general election: he and all his team members failed to be re-elected.

After a time in the political wilderness, Wan Nor sprang back into politics in 2018 with the help of Police Colonel Tawee Sodsong, the former director of the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre. Together they formed a new political party, Prachachart (which means “Ummah” or Muslim community in Thai). Speculation exists that Tawee and Wan Nor still have close ties with Thaksin Shinawatra, though both men have denied this.

Whatever the case, the catastrophic incidents of Kruesae and Takbai during Thaksin’s premiership caused Thaksin’s party to lose its popularity in the deep south. Wan Nor’s Prachachart is thus seen as a rebranded party. Now, people are curious whether Wan Nor will steer Prachachart closer towards Pheu Thai’s lead or continue to protect Malay-Muslims’ interest.

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