The Young Liberators of Pattani (abbreviated PMP in the Thai press) was a previously unknown separatist group in southern Thailand that claimed responsibility for an arson attack on a government school in December 2002. <P><br /><br />PMP was reportedly responsible for burning down the Wat Tantikaram School, a Buddhist government school in the largely Muslim Narathiwat province.  Thai officials said they had received several letters from PMP before the incident, warning of the impending arson and threatening further attacks on schools and other government targets.  No further attacks have been claimed by the group. <P><br /><br />Although the group gave no reason for the attack, school arson is a common tactic of Muslim separatists in Thailand's troubled southern provinces.  Muslims make up 4% of Thailand's population, making them the largest religious minority in an overwhelmingly Buddhist country.  Most of these Muslims live in the four provinces of Narathiwat, Pattani, Songhkla and Yala, relatively poor lands with a history of resistance to Thai federal rule.  There are numerous separatist groups operating in these provinces, with most of them demanding a separate state for Thai Muslims.  <P><br /><br />These groups often attack schools and teachers as they are easy targets and symbols of the Thai government.  Both Buddhist and Muslims teachers have been targeted in such attacks.  As of 2005, the security situation for schools was so bad that all teachers in the Muslim provinces were provided armed escorts, and a program was implemented that allowed school staff to buy guns and bullet-proof vests for protection.   <P><br /><br />Although attacks such as these are common, most of these incidents are not claimed by any particular group.  Furthermore, it is extremely odd that PMP gave advanced warning of the attack, suggesting a lack of professionalism, daring, or a combination of the two.  <P><br /><br />As they were responsible for only one attack, PMP can be considered a small fish relative to other larger Muslim separatist outfits such as Pattani United Liberation Organization and Bersatu.  Nevertheless, it is likely PMP shares a similar ideology with these groups.  It is important to note that although these are Muslim separatists, their organizations should not be considered Islamist.  Most of the Muslims in Thailand, including those in terrorist outfits, are moderate Muslims and do not seek a state ruled by Islamic precepts and law. <br />