Conflict OverviewBased off the precedent of laws ruled against the Rohingyas, Myanmar has put new laws into place oppressing the Rohingyas even further than they are already. Laws include marriage restriction, limitation of movement, and even a two child limit as an attempt to control the Rohingya population. These laws that have been passed by the Council of State of Myanmar are directly enforced against the Rohingya Muslim Population by the Burmese military. This can be seen from the reports of constant abuse and rape, such as what happened a few weeks ago. The Burmese military attacked and killed children of Rohingyas for this exact reason(Independent.co.uk news) . In the documentary that was used as one of the sources for this project, a Rohingya that was interviewed begged the reporter for them to “Stop killing our children”.(On the Bengali border). (US holocaust museum)
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Government Role play
For years on end, the government of Myanmar has treated its an impoverished minority Rohingya Muslim as intruders, those among a Buddhist majority. They are considered illegal immigrants, and they are restricted in where they can live and work. The UN considers them to be one of the most persecuted groups in the world. Even as Myanmar has changed its political authority, moving from military power to democracy. The persecution of the Rohingyas includes constant discrimination, and ignorance of the violence committed against them. The Burmese courts are not willing to protect the Rohingyas, because of the reason that they have no rights. How could the courts defend these people even if they attempted to? They simply can not. There is no stopping the everlasting hatred and discrimination towards this minority.
(LA Times)
(LA Times)
Treatment
The Rohingya are a Muslim minority in Rakhine (Arakan) State which is bordering Bangladesh and they continue to get discriminated, abused, and face escalating violence. Now, they are also restricted from goods and services The Rohingya are isolated and deprived of goods and services of citizens. Children who are violations, (60,000) are deprived of basic human rights. (US Holocaust Museum)
All Rohingya Public officers were removed from their jobs and were executed by the government, and they are not allowed to hold public office again. The Rohingya are also required to get permission to marry and they are prohibited from having over two children. The conditions are those that the UN’s emergency relief coordinator has claimed among the worst she has ever seen. Children do this labor required of exclusively the Rohingya in Rakhine State. (Adawy, Persecution of the Rohingya...) (Berlatsky, Genocide and persecution...) (Saha, Learning from the Rohingya)
The Rohingya are barred from the teaching, medical, and engineering. Also, many healthcare facilities will not treat them and seldom businesses will hire them for other than manual labor, making Rakhine State is one of Burma’s poorest states. (U.S. Holocaust Museum)
All Rohingya Public officers were removed from their jobs and were executed by the government, and they are not allowed to hold public office again. The Rohingya are also required to get permission to marry and they are prohibited from having over two children. The conditions are those that the UN’s emergency relief coordinator has claimed among the worst she has ever seen. Children do this labor required of exclusively the Rohingya in Rakhine State. (Adawy, Persecution of the Rohingya...) (Berlatsky, Genocide and persecution...) (Saha, Learning from the Rohingya)
The Rohingya are barred from the teaching, medical, and engineering. Also, many healthcare facilities will not treat them and seldom businesses will hire them for other than manual labor, making Rakhine State is one of Burma’s poorest states. (U.S. Holocaust Museum)
Geography
The Rohingyas were pushed to the border between Bangladesh and Myanmar, and are currently settled there. The reason they moved was due to the mass persecution they had to deal with in the main cities of Myanmar. Living in the far corner of the country separated them from the rest of the population, which was exactly what the Burmese government wanted. By keeping the Rohingya separate from the rest of the country, Myanmar could isolate them and make them completely separate.
Identity
The citizenship law lists the ethnic groups which can be considered citizens as follows. “Nationals such as the Kachin, Kayah, Karen, Chin, Burman, Mon, Rakhine or Shan and ethnic groups as having settled in any of the territories included within the State as their permanent home from a period anterior to 1185 B.E., 1823 A.D. are Burma citizens.” “The Council of State may decide whether any ethnic group is national or not.” (Burma Citizenship Law of 1982)
Now, the Rohingya are not eligible for full citizenship unless they can meet the near impossible requirements of the country's 1982 Citizenship Law. This includes tracing their family history in Myanmar back to the days before British colonization in 1823. Few Rohingya have the necessary documents to do so, meaning few have citizenship. As a result, many of Rohingya are “stateless” being citizens of zero countries. Stateless people have no nationality, as no country recognizes their citizenship, not even their place of birth. They are stateless because Myanmar refuses to let the group secede from Myanmar. The effect is the Rohingya cannot even identify as Bengali, a race many Burmese recognise the Rohingya a part of. Even Myanmar considers the Rohingya to be immigrants from Bangladesh and West Bengal, despite most Rohingya have not recently arrived in Myanmar. Since the Rohingya cannot leave or secede, most of Rohingyas are internally displaced people. (L.A. times)
The government's poor new plan would require all Rohingya to declare themselves Bengali (which they say they are not) and then try to prove they're eligible for citizenship by the standards of the 1982 law. Those who fail to meet the standards would be put into what Myanmar calls "a resettlement zone." Those who refuse to go through the process would be assigned to a displacement camp. (LA Times)
Now, the Rohingya are not eligible for full citizenship unless they can meet the near impossible requirements of the country's 1982 Citizenship Law. This includes tracing their family history in Myanmar back to the days before British colonization in 1823. Few Rohingya have the necessary documents to do so, meaning few have citizenship. As a result, many of Rohingya are “stateless” being citizens of zero countries. Stateless people have no nationality, as no country recognizes their citizenship, not even their place of birth. They are stateless because Myanmar refuses to let the group secede from Myanmar. The effect is the Rohingya cannot even identify as Bengali, a race many Burmese recognise the Rohingya a part of. Even Myanmar considers the Rohingya to be immigrants from Bangladesh and West Bengal, despite most Rohingya have not recently arrived in Myanmar. Since the Rohingya cannot leave or secede, most of Rohingyas are internally displaced people. (L.A. times)
The government's poor new plan would require all Rohingya to declare themselves Bengali (which they say they are not) and then try to prove they're eligible for citizenship by the standards of the 1982 law. Those who fail to meet the standards would be put into what Myanmar calls "a resettlement zone." Those who refuse to go through the process would be assigned to a displacement camp. (LA Times)
Civil Rights & Liberties
Marriage restriction:
The Muslim Rohingya are, by Burmese law, not allowed to be married. Some would wonder how this law would be so terrible. Two people can still love eachother and have children without being married legally. This law is a direct blow against the Rohingya Muslims for the reason that in Islam, pre-marital sex is outlawed and is seen as a terrible thing. Without the ability to get married, many Rohingya have been prevented from having children due to religion.
No freedom of movement:
Once the Rohingya Muslims moved to the border of Myanmar and Bangladesh, the Burmese government prohibited the Rohingya from moving back in towards the center of the country. These people are stuck in the small areas they settled. Expansion of land is out of the question.
Two child limit:
The law preventing two Rohingyas to have more than two children is another one of these oppressive laws that is constantly enforced. Rohingya are now forced to have children without being married. The few Rohingya that do have children are limited to having a maximum of two. Having a single child is a lot of work in the world that the Rohingyas live in. Barely being able to feed themselves, the Rohingyas can barely afford to have one child, let alone two. Some of the wealthier Rohingya families are affected by this law, and many third, fourth, fifth, and sixth children are killed by the Burmese government. Infact, last week, there was a new release of attacks on children reported.
The Muslim Rohingya are, by Burmese law, not allowed to be married. Some would wonder how this law would be so terrible. Two people can still love eachother and have children without being married legally. This law is a direct blow against the Rohingya Muslims for the reason that in Islam, pre-marital sex is outlawed and is seen as a terrible thing. Without the ability to get married, many Rohingya have been prevented from having children due to religion.
No freedom of movement:
Once the Rohingya Muslims moved to the border of Myanmar and Bangladesh, the Burmese government prohibited the Rohingya from moving back in towards the center of the country. These people are stuck in the small areas they settled. Expansion of land is out of the question.
Two child limit:
The law preventing two Rohingyas to have more than two children is another one of these oppressive laws that is constantly enforced. Rohingya are now forced to have children without being married. The few Rohingya that do have children are limited to having a maximum of two. Having a single child is a lot of work in the world that the Rohingyas live in. Barely being able to feed themselves, the Rohingyas can barely afford to have one child, let alone two. Some of the wealthier Rohingya families are affected by this law, and many third, fourth, fifth, and sixth children are killed by the Burmese government. Infact, last week, there was a new release of attacks on children reported.
"Ethnic Cleansing"
The term used for the oppression against the Rohingyas. This mass oppression against these people includes murder, rape, and genocide, all fueled by the extreme Buddhist movement. “Ethnic Cleansing” is the mission of the Theravada Buddhists. Ridding the country of the Rohingya Muslims, without being persecuted by the UN, is the main goal of these people. Rohingyas are robbed, beaten, Raped, and Murdered. This “Ethnic Cleansing” is known as the world’s “silent genocide”.
Trafficking & Forced Labor
Trafficking and forced labor happens very often in Myanmar, and the Rohingyas are exploited due to their civil rights being non existent. Rohingyas are subject to forced labor, extremely low wages, and human trafficking. With the low income they receive from farming and fishing, some rohingya choose the terribly low wages from the Burmese manufacturing industry. In these low paying jobs, abuse is not uncommon, and the safety and well being of workers is generally overlooked.
Manual forced labor
Many Rohingya are forced into free labor. It was found out of a survey of 600 Rohingya households, 92% have at least one household member being subject to forced labor. There is no way to prevent the abuse of the Rohingya muslims, and the Burmese government is taking advantage of that situation to fully exploit manual labor.
Extremely low wages for Rohingyas for manufacturing(natural gas and fabrics)
Manufacturing is crucial to the Burmese economy(both manufacturing natural gas and fabric clothing). Hundreds of millions of dollars worth of these products are sold to China, Sweden, and other major importers of Burmese goods. Since manufactured goods generate so much revenue for Myanmar, one would expect the wages to be decent, or at least better than those of Chinese workers. It is in fact worse. Burmese wages are one sixth of those for the same labor jobs in China, earning the average female worker a measly $00.50 a day.(Thats barely enough for a cup noodles($00.35- according to Costco)also not even including the spoon(or the microwave))
Human Trafficking
Human trafficking is a major problem in Myanmar. With all the abuse, killings, and rapes(and other oppressive commodities that come along in the wonderful package of being a Rohingya) many Rohingyas attempt to flee to Bangladesh. Since Bangladesh sends the Rohingyas back to Myanmar to face more persecution, many Rohingyas have attempted to take the alternate route to Oceania via the small rubber dinghies smugglers use. Almost all of these people end up in forced manual labor or sex trafficking. Most of 140,000 Rohingya refugees ended up in the hands of either manual labor or sex traffickers in 2012(according to the UN refugee agency)
Manual forced labor
Many Rohingya are forced into free labor. It was found out of a survey of 600 Rohingya households, 92% have at least one household member being subject to forced labor. There is no way to prevent the abuse of the Rohingya muslims, and the Burmese government is taking advantage of that situation to fully exploit manual labor.
Extremely low wages for Rohingyas for manufacturing(natural gas and fabrics)
Manufacturing is crucial to the Burmese economy(both manufacturing natural gas and fabric clothing). Hundreds of millions of dollars worth of these products are sold to China, Sweden, and other major importers of Burmese goods. Since manufactured goods generate so much revenue for Myanmar, one would expect the wages to be decent, or at least better than those of Chinese workers. It is in fact worse. Burmese wages are one sixth of those for the same labor jobs in China, earning the average female worker a measly $00.50 a day.(Thats barely enough for a cup noodles($00.35- according to Costco)also not even including the spoon(or the microwave))
Human Trafficking
Human trafficking is a major problem in Myanmar. With all the abuse, killings, and rapes(and other oppressive commodities that come along in the wonderful package of being a Rohingya) many Rohingyas attempt to flee to Bangladesh. Since Bangladesh sends the Rohingyas back to Myanmar to face more persecution, many Rohingyas have attempted to take the alternate route to Oceania via the small rubber dinghies smugglers use. Almost all of these people end up in forced manual labor or sex trafficking. Most of 140,000 Rohingya refugees ended up in the hands of either manual labor or sex traffickers in 2012(according to the UN refugee agency)
Propaganda
Burmese government uses propaganda and media to support this ethnic cleansing. The Buddhist group has as much influence over schools as it does the government. From a young age, Burmese children are brainwashed by propaganda posters, hate speeches, and things they learn in school, and are taught that the Rohingyas are savages. They are brought up in an environment that de-humanizes the Muslims in Myanmar.
Propaganda posters
On every street corner, there are posters put up by the Buddhists that paint the Rohingya Muslims in a terrible light. The Muslims are portrayed as murderers, savages, thieves, terrorists, militants, and people that would want to destroy the state of Myanmar. Naturally the Burmese would hate these people, as that is their only understanding of Muslims.
Hate speeches
Many buddhists give public hate speeches, directed at the Rohingya. These hate speeches are broadcasted across the Burmese media, and are encouraged to be watched everywhere. Being widely viewed, and very much taken to heart by many of the Burmese, the people of Myanmar believe that the Rohingya muslims are everything they are being told about them. To them, these hate speeches are credible sources, and they listen to every bit of them.
Propaganda posters
On every street corner, there are posters put up by the Buddhists that paint the Rohingya Muslims in a terrible light. The Muslims are portrayed as murderers, savages, thieves, terrorists, militants, and people that would want to destroy the state of Myanmar. Naturally the Burmese would hate these people, as that is their only understanding of Muslims.
Hate speeches
Many buddhists give public hate speeches, directed at the Rohingya. These hate speeches are broadcasted across the Burmese media, and are encouraged to be watched everywhere. Being widely viewed, and very much taken to heart by many of the Burmese, the people of Myanmar believe that the Rohingya muslims are everything they are being told about them. To them, these hate speeches are credible sources, and they listen to every bit of them.