Models of Human Rights and Counter-Terrorism: Disabling the Terror Franchise in Southern Thailand

This paper fills the gap in the literature through a conceptual analysis of the BRN Thai extremist group’s potential role in global terrorism and evaluating current counter-terrorism measures against the group. This article argues that the most effective causal approach to counter international jihadist terrorism is a bottom-up strategy applying causal solutions to domestic sub-state extremist groups to close down the local terror franchise, instead of a topdown strategy focusing causal efforts on already polarized global terrorist groups. This method has the manifold benefits of reducing networks of local extremism while also circumventing the reputational capitol on which international terrorist groups depend for recruitment purposes. Using this approach, this paper argues that Thailand is well situated for the application of causal solutions because of BRN’s history of cooperative efforts with the Thai government, BRN’s traditional reluctance to make common cause with global jihadist groups, and because calls for the reform of living conditions and against unfair treatment in the Deep South provide potential for non-violent and practical solutions to the insurgency between the Malay Muslims and the broader Thai polity to the north. Specifically, these opportunities in Thailand can be realized through myriad political solutions, economic and cultural sustainability, closing impunity gaps of past bad government actions and, most significantly, greater degrees of internal self-determination.