The report “Rules and Challenges for Malay Muslim Women in the Restive Southern Border Provinces of Thailand” was first presented at the Conference on Religious Activism & Women’s Development in Southeast Asia: Highlighting Impediments, Exploring Opportunities, organized by Centre for Research on Islamic and Malay Affairs (RIMA), Singapore National University, on 20 November 2009. This report focuses on the roles of Malay Muslim women in the Southern Border Provinces of Thailand who have to face life amidst problems, obstacles and difficulties in bringing up their families in a time when violence forces them to stand forward as leaders.

Angkhana Neelapaijit has written this report with the objective to draw a picture of the problems of women in various dimensions, including women affected by violence from governmental officials or by unidentified armed groups, women in families that have experienced enforced disappearance, and
women who are in groups who use violence.