December 7, 2004
Symbols of peace swapped for goods
POST REPORTERS
The streets of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat have been
cleared of paper cranes, which locals flocked to collect in expectation of
swapping them for government gifts.
Officials said people throughout Thailand folded 120 million peace birds, of
which 90 million were airdropped over the three southernmost states on
Sunday, his Majesty the King's 77th birthday.
The remaining 30 million cranes would be delivered by train, the director of
the Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command, Gen Sirichai Tunyasiri,
said yesteryday.
Many of the paper birds reportedly drifted into remote forests and mountains
and many gifts have yet to be redeemed.
Muslim religious leaders said paper birds were nothing but litter and would
not bring peace.
Abdulrohman Abdulsamad, chairman of Songkhla central Islamic committee said
that in Islam, birds could be viewed as both good and evil.
Very few Muslims knew the birds signified peace.
``I would like to see concrete solution worked out instead of a
window-dressing act,'' he said.
The champion collector in Pattani seems to be a wealthy woman who had
garnered more than 3,000 paper cranes and was gathering still more.
Many villagers, mostly youngsters, showed up at district offices yesterday
morning to trade 20 paper cranes for a packet of UHT milk. The Agriculture
and Cooperatives Ministry provided 300,000 packets of milk each for Pattani
and Yala and 400,000 for Narathiwat.
At Muang Narathiwat district office, three large baskets were filled with
paper cranes within a few hours.
Aranya Abdulloh, 32, said she and her two daughters received seven packets
of milk for 130 paper cranes they gathered from a clock tower in downtown
Narathiwat and from neighbours who cleaned the roofs of their houses. The
redemption offer helped ease the litter problem.
Sunee Ratanawong, 37, a rubber tappeer, said she and her two children combed
local roads and waded in waist-high water in ricefields to pick up 340 paper
birds which they exchanged for milk, saving them money.
In Pattani, Narissara Apichairak, who spent three decades in the United
States before returning to her hometown, proudly displayed more than 3,000
paper cranes in the 12-rai compound of her house in Muang district. She
intended to keep them as symbols of peace and happiness and would read all
the messages on them and call people who had included their telephone
numbers.
Narathiwat Governor Pracha Terat said the number of paper cranes collected
was lower than expected since the planes flew too high. That being so, he
had decided to distribute milk to those with 4-5 cranes instead, and would
give away all remaining milk to local schools.
Pattani Governor Cherdphan Na Songkhla said the province would collect as
many paper cranes as possible and display them in a tree in front of the
provincial hall starting from today.
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said he believed the majority of the
people of the three southernmost provinces were happy with the paper crane
campaign, but he would let the people themselves decide whether the
government should build a statue of peace in the deep South.