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The Rohingya Crisis

By Christian Scott Smith


Important Terms

• Rohingya: An ethnic Muslim Minority, they practice a sufi-inflected variation of Sunni


Islam. The majority of around 1,000,000 live inside the Rakhine state, and differ from
Myanmar’s dominant Buddhist groups ethnically, linguistically, and religiously.
• Rakhine: A province in western Myanmar where much of the Rohingya live. It lies on the
border of Bangladesh, a majority Muslim nation that is between Myanmar and India.
• Burma: The previous name for the Republic of the Union of Myanmar
• Burma Citizenship Law: The law passed in 1982, often claimed to be the start of this
particular trend of discrimination and even violence against the Rohingya. The law
requires all to have their births registered by a parent or guardian, but the state has
neglected the Rohingya here.
• Ma Ba Tha: Also known as the Patriotic Association of Myanmar, they are a group of
hardline Buddhist monks with ties to the military, that put forth various “protection of
Race and Religion” bills which are highly discriminatory against ethnic and religious
minorities, as well as women.
Why

• The Rohingya are brutally


oppressed in Myanmar.
• It’s been referred to as a
crisis, and even as genocide.
• Many are forced to leave and
unable to return.
• This paper seeks to find out
the justification for these
actions.
Research Methods

• The research I have undertaken has mostly been regarding finding academic sources
and news articles regarding the crisis of the Rohingya.
• Primary sources have been more varied, taking the form of news stories and
interviews, as well as official documents, such as the Burma Citizenship Law.
• While academic papers can more or less trustworthy for providing context to the
situation, the primary sources were a different matter. Interviews with the Ma Ba
Tha cannot be taken at face value as simply the way things are, one must first
consider who is the primary source, what their view is, and why they are writing it.
One must view it with a skeptical eye, and read in between the outside statements.
In this particular case, I did not read a primary source as for information, but rather
to analyze their rhetoric, including what was not said at other points, such as with
the story about trade between Myanmar and Bengladesh.
The history of the Rohingya

• The Rohingya’s historical origins trace back to the 15 th century, when


thousands of Muslims came to the Arakan Kingdom in the present day
Rakhine state.
• Many more came over during the colonial period, encouraged by the
British to migrate from East Bengal (Bangladesh) to the Rakhine state
in Burma
• The Myanmarese government does not acknowledge their historical
claims, and says they are migrants from Bangladesh.
• Their property has been confiscated, and in 1994 forced labor policies
for children and parents of the Rohingya were imposed.
The Rohingya’s current situation.

The Rohingya face a health


emergency, with poor infant and child
health, malnutrition, waterborne
illness, and more.
Few of the 650,000 Rohingya who fled
to Bangladesh have documents that
prove their prior residency.
The UNHCR has stated that the
Rohingya refugees are unable to return
to the Rakhine state in safety and
dignity.
Pictured is a Rohingya village, before
and after the Military burn it. At least
354 villages were burned, and
thousands were killed.
The Myanmarese Parliament

• The country is now a democracy,


but for much of its history was a
military dictatorship.
• The citizen government has no
power over the military
• The military also holds a fourth of
all seats in the assembly of the
Union.
• The constitution requires more than
three fourths of the seats to change
the constitution.
Controversy

• Adding to complications, is the


divided nature of the country
on this matter.
• Some find it abhorrent, but
others support it.
• In particular, the Ma Ba Tha.
Why Hatred?

Anti-colonial
Ethnic purity Anti-Muslim Rhetoric Political Tools
The 1982 Citizenship law is very clearly More recently, there has been Despite the rhetoric in both these
written among ethnic lines. Much increased panic regarding the explanations being present, particularly
regarding citizenship of Myanmar has to Muslim population, often regarding the Rohingya being “Bengali,”
do with being able to claim some this has not affected relations with
considering them the same as
ancestry in the country, especially with Bangladesh. They are in fact still
this particular law requiring you to groups such as ISIS. building trading ports with them despite
register your children for birth, and such hostile rhetoric towards who they
Ma Ba Tha’s rhetoric towards it has
certain kinds of citizenships needing refer to as “Bengalis.”
certain passes to be considered citizens. also mirrored right wing and even
white nationalist rhetoric towards The Muslims make up less than 5% of the
Many Rohingya have been here since the it, including claims that that population, the Rohingya are less than
Arakan Kingdom, but many have also Muslims will out breed the half of that.
come over relatively recently, though
before Bangladesh or Myanmar were
Buddhists, plot terror attacks, and This suggests that the Rohingya are a
independent countries. will even steal Buddhist women scape goat for problems the country
from them. already faces, as well as a method to
unify them against a faux outside
threat.
Pictures

How the Rohingya Escaped. (n.d.). Retrieved from New York Times: https://
www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/21/world/asia/how-the-rohingya-es
caped.html
Hunt, K. (2017, September 25). Rohingya Crisis: 'It's not genocide,' say
Myanmar's Hardline Monks. Retrieved from CNN: https://
www.cnn.com/2017/11/25/asia/myanmar-buddhist-nationalism-mabatha/in
dex.htm

Linn, N. Z. (2018, August 16). Restrictions imposed on reporters covering the


parliament. Retrieved from Myanmar Times: https://
www.mmtimes.com/news/restrictions-imposed-reporters-covering-parliamen
t.html
Research References

Albert, E., & Chatzky, A. (2018, December 5). The Rohingya Crisis. Retrieved from Council on Foreign Relations: https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/rohingya-crisis
Arraiza, J. M., & Vonk, O. (2017, October). Report on Citizenship Law: Myanmar. Retrieved from Cadmus European University Institute: http://
cadmus.eui.eu/bitstream/handle/1814/48284/RSCAS_GLOBALCIT_CR_2017_14.pdf?sequence=1
Barany, Z. (2018). Where Myanmar Went Wrong. Retrieved from Salt Lake Community College Library: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f6h&AN=128950341&site=eds-live.
Bi, K. (2018). THE POLITICS OF SLAUGHTER: WHY MYANMAR'S MILITARY TARGETS THE ROHINGYA. Harvard International Review, 14-15.
France Diplomatie. (n.d.). Myanmar/Burma - Situation of the Rohingya. Retrieved from France Diplomatie: https://
www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/country-files/myanmar/events/article/myanmar-burma-situation-of-the-rohingya
Ives, M. (2017, May 26). Ultranationalist Monks in Myanmar, Facing Crackdown, Say They’re Unrepentant. Retrieved from New York Times: https://
www.nytimes.com/2017/05/26/world/asia/myanmar-buddhist-yangon.html
Mahmood, S. S., Wroe, E., Fuller, A., & Leaning, J. (2017, May 6-12). The Rohingya people of Myanmar: health, human rights, and identity. Retrieved from The Lancet: https://
www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(16)00646-2/fulltext
McPherson, P. (2017, May 8). ‘We must protect our country’: extremist Buddhists target Mandalay’s Muslims. Retrieved from The Guardian: https://
www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/may/08/buddhist-extremists-anti-muslim-mandalay-ma-ba-tha
Motlagh, J. (2018). Myanmar's Imagined Jihadis. New Republic, 24-31. Retrieved from Salt Lake Community College Library.
Mya Htwe, C. (2018, August 29). New Sittwe port proposed to facilitate Myanmar-Bangladesh trade. Retrieved from Myanmar Times: https://
www.mmtimes.com/news/new-sittwe-port-proposed-facilitate-myanmar-bangladesh-trade.html
New Burma constitution published. (2008, April 9). Retrieved from BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7338815.stm
Nyi Nyi, U. (2014, February 9). The case against Rohingya citizenship. Retrieved from Myanmar Times: https://
www.mmtimes.com/opinion/9519-why-the-government-is-right-to-deny-rohingya-citizenship.html
Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma. (1982, October 15). Burma Citizenship Law. Retrieved from Refworld: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6b4f71b.html
United Nations Comission of Human Rights. (2015, May 27). Myanmar: UN rights experts express alarm at adoption of first of four ‘protection of race and religion’ bills. Retrieved from United
Nations Human Rights Office of the High Comissioner: https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=16015&LangID=E
United Nations High Comissioner for Refugees. (2018, November 11). Statement by UN High Commissioner for Refugees on the repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar. Retrieved from United
Nations High Comissioner for Refugees The UN Refugee Agency: https://
www.unhcr.org/news/press/2018/11/5be7c4b64/statement-un-high-commissioner-refugees-repatriation-rohingya-refugees.html
Wekke, I. S., Hasbi, Mawardin, M., Ladiqi, S., & Salleh, M. A. (2017). Muslim Minority in Myanmar: A Case Study of Myanmar Government and Rohingya Muslims. Walisongo: Jurnal Penelitian Sosial
Keagamaan, Vol. 25 Issue 2, 22, 303-324.

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