Thai Muslims are reacting favourably to a cabinet decision last month
to establish a 24-hour satellite television network for broadcasting
Malay-language programming across the Deep South.
Government Public Relations Department Director General Apinan
Juntarungsri discussed relevant issues at an October meeting in Yala
with other officials, including
Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre
(SBPAC) Secretary General Tawee Sodsong, National Broadcasting and
Telecommunications Commissioner Peerapong Manakit, and local Muslim
leaders.
SBPAC will play the lead role in ensuring that the programming meets
local needs. The Yala office of the National Broadcasting Services of
Thailand (NBT) airs a
terrestrial television service in Malay, but only for eight hours daily and within a limited coverage area.
"The establishment of a 24-hour television station follows the
government's desires to provide around-the-clock services to local
residents of the southern border provinces, as well as to increase
understanding and disseminate a variety of information to local people,
including news entertainment, sports, religion and
cultural events," Apinan told Khabar Southeast Asia.
"After announcing this policy, the government assigned SBPAC and NBT
to work together with respected local leaders, academics and others with
specialised knowledge to work out the details of the project in such a
way that they bring maximum benefit to local residents."
Experts debated whether to use the standard version of Malay or the
local Pattani version, which developed in relative isolation and is hard
for Malaysian and Indonesian speakers to understand.
"It will be important that the station managers as well as the
reporters have a basic understanding first and work together on a
committee with Muslim religious leaders, discussing all matters in
detail to make sure the Malay language station develops in a stable
way," Confederation of Islamic Councils Chairman Abdulrahman Abdulsamad
said.
"If they can really manage to do that, many benefits will result
because Islamic teaching branches out into so many areas, such as law,
public administration, commerce and business, science, astronomy and
others," he added.
He said that real success would come only if news producers and
station managers provided high-quality shows and news reports with broad
appeal to potential viewers, 90% of whom will be Muslim.
"These television channels will open up new opportunities for local
people to be able to view problems from a broader perspective, whether
they are lifestyle, cultural or religious matters," Abdulrahman said.
He encouraged the use of some standard Malay in programming, "because everyone will hear it and
learn it, and the transmissions could be understood by those across the border".
Hamika Sooleng, of Manang Tayor subdistrict in Narathiwat's provincial capital district, said, "Nowadays everyone here uses
both Malay and Thai to communicate, so opening a Malay-language television station will be a real accomplishment for local people, so it should meet their needs.
"They should give local people a chance to have some input. After it
is in operation, they should have a review process put in place to deal
with any problems. I think it will be good if it is transparent and
gives the local community a say."
![Public Relations Department Director General Apinan Juntarungsri ahead of last month's meeting in Yala. Apinan and other officials resolved at the meeting to establish a 24-hour TV network entirely in Malay to serve Deep South viewers. [Photo courtesy SBPAC]](http://khabarsoutheastasia.com/shared/images/2013/11/22/131122_RAPEE_TH_MALAYTV.jpg)