Who are the Rohingyas?
With the recent discoveries of mass graves in the border area of Thailand and Malaysia, apparently involving Rohingya refugees, this minority group is once again in the news. Not for the first time, by the way, because the Rohingya history is a succession of persecution, oppression, discrimination, rape, murder and refugee camps. Who are the Rohingyas anyway?
The Rohingyas are a Muslim minority living mainly in the state of Arakan in Myanmar (Burma). About 800.000 Rohingyas still live there, the population of this people is between 1,4 and 3 million people worldwide. The majority of Rohingyas practice the Sunni form of Islam and also speak their own language.
There are two theories about the origin of this people:
- It is an indigenous people of the Burmese state of Rakhine (former Arakan)
- They are a migrant group that originally lived in Bangladesh and migrated to Burma during British rule.
The Burmese government favors the second theory and sees the Rohingyas as unwanted aliens who do not belong to the minorities of Burma or to the peoples living in Burma. According to the United Nations, the Rohingyas are one of the most persecuted minorities in the world. The racial and religious violence against this people has caused hundreds of thousands to flee to Bangladesh and other nearby countries, including Thailand.
History
The first Muslims to settle in Arakan came around 1430 with the Buddhist king Narameikhla (Min Saw Mun), who had lived in exile in Bengal (Bangladesh). The Muslims were welcomed in his capital as advisors and courtiers. This king and later Arakanese kings modeled the country on Islam, even using Islamic titles for their military and judicial officials. That group of Muslims naturally grew steadily, but how many there were is not known.
British India
In 1785, Arakan was conquered by Buddhist Burma. The conquerors expelled or killed all Muslim Rohingya men they could find; some of them, probably numbering some 35.000, fled to Bengal, then part of the British Raj in India.
In 1826, the British took control of Arakan after the First Anglo-Burmese War (1824-1826). Farmers from Bengal, both Rohingyas who had originally lived in the area and native Bengalis, were encouraged to move to largely depopulated Arakan. That sudden influx of immigrants from British India provoked a strong reaction from the mostly Buddhist Rakhine people living in Arakan at the time. It was sowing the seeds of the ethnic tensions that still prevail today.
WWII
When World War II broke out, Britain withdrew from Arakan in the face of a Japanese invasion. In the resulting chaos, tensions between the Muslim and Buddhist populations soared that many massacres were committed. Many Rohingya counted on protection from Britain and also served as spies behind Japanese lines for the Allies. When the Japanese discovered this connection, Rohingyas were tortured, raped and killed on a large scale by the Japanese. Tens of thousands of Arakanese Rohingyas again fled to Bengal.
Military junta in Burma
Between the end of World War II and General Ne Win's coup in 1962, Rohingyas advocated for a separate Rohingya state in Arakan. When the military junta took power in Yangon, the idea was completely cracked down and the Burmese citizenship of the Rohingyas was denied. The Rohingyas were defined as stateless Bengalis. The Rohingyas are a people without civil rights and are subjected to indiscriminate violence from time to time.
International community
Despite the atrocities systematically suffered by the Muslims of Arakan, the international community has so far done nothing to protect these people. The Muslim community in Burma, now called Myanmar, are refugees in their own country. The world became somewhat acquainted with these people after the violent attacks and acts of arson in 2012. No sanctions against Myanmar are expected from the major powers and member states of ASEAN. Myanmar, long a closed community, is slowly opening up to the outside world and criticism or sanctions against the current government against the Rohingyas could damage economic interests and still fragile commercial relations.
Finally
I have tried to paint a picture of the history of the Rohingyas on the basis of a number of websites. It is certainly not exhaustive and I will not discuss the current problems with boat people and the mass graves in the south of Thailand. It is certain that it is time for the world (United Nations?) to intervene, so that the horrific drama that the Rohingyas have endured over the centuries will come to an end.
About this blogger
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Bert Gringhuis (1945), born and raised in Almelo in the beautiful Twente. Later lived for many years in Amsterdam and Alkmaar, working in export for various companies. I first came to Thailand in 1980 and immediately fell in love with the country. Been back many times since then and moved to Thailand after my (early) retirement as a widower. I have been living there for 22 years now with my somewhat younger Thai lady Poopae.
My first experiences in Thailand as a kind of newsletter sent to family, friends and acquaintances, which later appeared under the name Gringo on Thailandblog. Many, many articles followed those first stories and that has grown into an almost daily hobby.
In the Netherlands still an avid footballer and football referee, but the years are starting to tell and in Thailand still avid, but the pool billiards is really of inferior quality, ha ha!
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Well documented article, thank you. It will be difficult to do anything about this, Myanmar is a patchwork of peoples.
Not fun to read, but interesting.
Had really never heard of Rohingyas.
The fact that there seems to be no end to the suffering of the Rohingyas in Myanmar is a given that the Buddhist community there must hold themselves accountable. After all, it was Buddha himself who put forward as a core message: “May all living beings be delivered from suffering and the causes of suffering.” He gave this as a message to all monks who wished to follow him. In practice, however, it turns out to be extremist Buddhist monks in Myanmar who incite hatred for this group of people.
In fact, they are the real reason why the front pages of the Bangkok Post have been filled in recent days with reports of mass graves in southern Thailand.
However bad and unjust their suffering may be, it must not be forgotten that they too are not averse to violence. Especially in the villages and communities where they form the majority. 1 of the reasons why Thailand is very reluctant to give them refugee status. Especially given the already precarious situation in the 4 southern provinces, where Rohinyas who have fled also play a role.
Thanks Gringo, very nice story. Ode to people like you who take the trouble to find something out, It's a pity that nothing can be done for those people. World leaders apparently are not interested in this.