This archive report was first published on 22 November 2019.
On Wednesday, Pope Francis arrived in Bangkok for a four-day visit, marking the first papal trip to Thailand since 1984. As part of his visit, the Pope will attend a special performance by a Muslim choir from the southernmost provinces, where a long-standing conflict has claimed over 7,000 lives.
The 31-member Attarkia Islamiah Institute choir from Narathiwat, one of the three southernmost provinces, will perform alongside a group of ethnic Christian minorities and the resident concert choir at Chulalongkorn University on Friday.
For the students, the performance is about more than just hitting the right notes. It's an opportunity to show a different side of a region often plagued by conflict and to promote unity among people of different faiths.
"We're trying to say that we are not fundamentalists," said 15-year-old Furkon Tasa, the student leader of the choir. "With music, we can sing and communicate with anyone," he added, echoing the message of peace and unity that the choir aims to convey.
The Pope has made religious harmony a main theme of his visit to Thailand, and the joint performance is seen as a significant step towards promoting understanding and unity among people of different faiths.
