Buddhist monks back President Thein Sein’s move to expel Rohingyas
Yangon (AsiaNews)
- The population is in "solidarity" with the monks and with President
Thein Sein, who launched a controversial proposal a few days ago to deport the
Rohingya Muslim minority outside of the borders of Myanmar. An
expert on Burmese politics tells AsiaNews,
that it was " a peaceful demonstration, however it emphasized a clear
concept: the monks and the people do not want the Rohingya" and do not
intend to adhere to the directives of the United Nations urging
the government to promote programs and initiatives to promote the integration
of the minority, leading to violent clashes in recent months with the Buddhist
majority in the State of Rakhine. "We
are faced with spontaneous demonstrations - adds the student speaking on the
guarantee of anonymity - that the monks could continue for the next 10 days, to
show solidarity with the president."
At
least 5 thousand Burmese Buddhist monks joined the protest march - authorized
by officials and police - which was held September 2 through the streets of Mandalay (pictured), the second largest city of Myanmar.
The
monks marched along with the population, to support Thein Sein's controversial
proposal to the UN Agency for Refugees (UNHCR), which calls for the
"deportation" of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to
reception centers in foreign countries, because "they are not part of the nation of
Burma. "
The
marches continued yesterday and today and are the largest street demonstrations
since the Saffron Revolution in September 2007, also led by Burmese monks -
which began as a protest against the rising price of fuel - and were violently
repressed by the military junta then in power. The
Buddhist leaders joining in the demonstrations has a huge political and social significance:
the Buddhist world supports the choice of the president and is close to popular
protest.
Despite
having lived for generations in Myanmar,
the Rohingya Muslim minority denounces an "intensification" of the
repressive policy of the central government and the risk of renewed sectarian
violence. As
reported by the Radio Free Asia (RFA)
website, among the most popular slogans by protesters in the square on
September 2, was "Let the world know that the Rohingya are not part of the
ethnic groups that make up Burma."
Speaking
to AsiaNews, an expert on Burmese policy explains that the Muslim minority is
frowned upon because it is considered "violent" and carries a
"culture and tradition, which does not promote integration." The
risk is that the State of Rakhine, the
scientist continues, will be "turned into a southern Thailand, the scene of attacks
motivated by violence and separatism." "The
Muslim children - he adds - will not learn the national language, demanding a
different curriculum and have rendering integration and communication"
with the Buddhist and Burmese world even more difficult. The
protests, warns the source, are set to continue and enjoy the support of the
majority of the population.
In
June, a district court in Kyaukphyu, Rakhine
State, sentenced
three Muslims to death from raping and killing in late May, Thida Htwe, a
young Arakenese Buddhist woman. This sparked
violent sectarian clashes between Muslims and Buddhists. After the
woman's death, mobs attacked Muslims unconnected to the incident, killing ten.
Further violence left a total of 29 people dead, 16 Muslims and 13 Buddhists.
In addition, official sources stated that 2,600 homes were torched and that
hundreds of Rohingya had fled abroad.
Myanmar is composed of more than 135 ethnic groups, and has always found coexistence difficult. In the past the military junta used an iron fist against the most recalcitrant. Myanmar Muslims constitute about 4% of a population of 60 million people. The UN says there are 750 thousand Rohingyas in the country, concentrated mainly in Rakhine State. Another million or more are scattered in other countries: Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia.
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19/11/2020 16:22
