“THE MARGINAL ENEMY”: THE IMAGE OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF MALAYA FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE THAI STATE, 1948–1989

Abstract

The Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), also known colloquially among Thais as “the Chinese Communists” or “the Chinese Communist of Malaya,” was an anti-government paramilitary group that was active during the Cold War. In the context of the Cold War, successive Thai governments saw the CPM as an opposition group, but lesser in importance than the other threats it faced, such as the Communist Party of Thailand (CPT) and the separatist movements operating in the same area of operation as the CPM. At the same time, the CPM was the last communist group to disband (around 1989), despite the Thai government’s policy of amnesty, which began in 1981 under Order 66/23. This article argues that the Thai authorities viewed the CPM as a “marginal enemy” in terms of its geographical remoteness on the Thai-Malaysian border and security priority. As a result of this lower security priority, the Thai government approached the CPM as a threat that could be dealt with through negotiations and political means rather than military suppression. It was arguably this different perspective that led to the divergent strategies between the central governments of Thailand and Malaysia vis-à vis the CPM threat.