Buddhist Women’s Participation in Enhancing Peaceful Community In Southern Border Provinces: A Case Study of Bannok Community, Bannok Sub-district, Panare District, Pattani Province

Abstract

Abstract

The objectives of this research article are: 1) to study the problems from the impact of violence among the Buddhist women in southern-border provinces, 2) to take lesson learned on Buddhist women’s participation in enhancing peaceful community in southern-border provinces of Bannok community, Bannok sub-district, Panare district. It is a field-work qualitative research by the tools of documentary study and the in-depth interview given by 5 groups of key informants totaling 27 interviewees. 

From the research, it is found the followings: The context of problems from the occurred violent situations causes Buddhist women sadness, fear and distrust, and difficulties in earning a living and living lives, etc.  The consequent impact to the women is in 3 aspects: 1. Physical and mental health, 2. Economics, and 3. Society.  Buddhist women have participated in creating peace, i.e. 1) joining for restoring and remedying the women who are effected by the violence, 2) cooperating in creating confidence in peaceful means, 3) being united to improve lives by practicing Dhammas, 4) creatively gathering for forcing community activities, 5) cooperating to solve problems and transforming different opinions, 6) being united to preserve the ways of tradition and culture, and 7) mutually harmonizing by peaceful way of communications.  The new knowledge: The power of Buddhist women for making peace in the southern-border provinces is called ‘Buddhist Lady Power 4 Peace ’s Model’ comprising L-G-W-S: L= Live together with love: happily living together; G = Good economic community: creating various occupations to add up extra incomes; W = Worldwide for peace: having peacefully broad world views, searching knowledgeable information to catch up the changes of the present global-society;  S = Self-sufficient: self-dependency, the ability of the community, respectively.