Posted on 08/27/2013 8:24:42 PM PDT by TexGrill
BANGKOK - If Thai government leaders and statisticians are to be believed, the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan marked an improvement on the usual pattern of stepped up mayhem that accompanies the month in the conflict-wracked border provinces of southern Thailand.
There was, they concluded, a drop in ''violent incidents'' that suggested a much-touted ''ceasefire'' announced in Malaysia on July 12 was not a complete failure, or even that the ground situation might be improving.
But as Mark Twain famously commented, ''lies, damned lies and statistics'' are a perennial asset in massaging public perceptions. And when the statistics relate to what are generically termed ''violent incidents'' in the southernmost provinces of Pattani, Yala
and Narathiwat, good news can be deceptive. In the context of Ramadan this year, it can turn reality upside down.
According to the Prince of Songkhla University's Deep South Watch, a generally respected source of statistical data on the ebb and flow of the region's conflict, there were 86 incidents in the period between July 10 and August 7, a clear decline from the 99 recorded in the Ramadan period of 2012. The 29 fatalities dropped from the 34 figure recorded last year.
(Excerpt) Read more at atimes.com ...
Where?
Wait a second, I was assured that Muslims only get violent when unjustly provoked by intolerant White Westerners. Here they are fighting non-White Thais. What gives?
“Ramadan:” An arabic word translated as “replenish and upgrade your weapons stocks.”
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