for the purpose of upholding a legitimate public interest, and be necessary
to secure that interest. Additionally, the restriction must be proportionate
to the legitimate aim pursued, and the reasons given by the state to validate
the restriction must be reasonable and sufficient.
In the case of Thailand, the closing down of community radio stations was,
according to the government, for the pursuit of public safety, which
appears to be a legitimate aim.82 However, until an evident linkage is
established between these community radio stations and the separatist
activities, it is irrational for the government to allege that the community
radio stations are a threat to public safety. It seems that the closing down
of community radio stations is not proportionate to the aim pursued, and
thus cannot be deemed to be necessary for the purpose of safeguarding
public safety. The reason given by the government for its restriction is
unreasonable and insufficient and does not validate the restriction. Hence,
the closing down of community radio stations is a denial of the freedom of
expression of the Malay minority, amounting to a violation of Article 19 of
the ICCPR.
5. Conclusion
This article has examined the importance of language rights and how
tensions and conflicts may result if they are repressed or disregarded.
Thailand, as a party to international human rights treaties such as the
ICCPR and the ICERD, has failed to comply with some aspects of
language rights provided by these treaties.
Thailand’s linguistic policies that are implemented in education and
employment have resulted in the Malay minority being severely
disadvantaged. The Malay minority suffers from a high rate of low
educational attainment, unemployment in the public sectors, and poverty.
The application of the ‘reasonableness test’ to Thailand’s linguistic
policies warrants the conclusion that the state’s policies are discriminatory,
and thus in violation of the ICERD and Article 26 of the ICCPR. Based on
the substantial number of Malays in the southernmost provinces, Thailand
needs to start considering implementing the use of the Malay language as
the medium of instruction in the early stages of public schooling, or a
bilingual educational system in the affected region. It also needs to provide
the Malay inhabitants with public officials who are fluent in Malay or
bilingual.