By Maung Zarni
Posted on Author's website 'Zarni's blog on Thursday, October 03, 2013
Once, Burma was known for ruthless brutality of its ruling Junta. Now it often draws the world's attention for a different but equally unwelcome reason: religious violence. While many responsible people and analysts in the west try to depict the eruption of violence in Burma as the consequence of the fluidity of the transitional period, many including Dr. Zarni have seen through the whole debacle to conclude that the root cause of the problem lies elsewhere. In a series of articles at his blog, Dr. Zarni has dissected the motive and modus operandi of the rioters and has crucially shed light on the often hidden aspect of intolerance that goes in name of Buddhism in Burma today. This is his second article in this blog.
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| The author |
Once, Burma was known for ruthless brutality of its ruling Junta. Now it often draws the world's attention for a different but equally unwelcome reason: religious violence. While many responsible people and analysts in the west try to depict the eruption of violence in Burma as the consequence of the fluidity of the transitional period, many including Dr. Zarni have seen through the whole debacle to conclude that the root cause of the problem lies elsewhere. In a series of articles at his blog, Dr. Zarni has dissected the motive and modus operandi of the rioters and has crucially shed light on the often hidden aspect of intolerance that goes in name of Buddhism in Burma today. This is his second article in this blog.
The country's political celebrity Aung San Suu Kyi will not say a word about it because it will ruin her presidential ambitions, it is argued. In addition, the Lady keeps telling international lawyers in her circle she wants 'reconciliation' - not retribution. Calling the unfolding campaign of terror genocide will not advance her goal of 'reconciliation' with her late Hpay Hpay's essentially neo-Fascist Army founded under Japanese Fascist patronage in Dec 1942. (Old habits die hard and the military leaders hold on to the Army's roots).
"We (Buddhist sons of the Land) are here to burn down the houses of all Muslim (Kalar or "niggers"), and remove these 'guests' from our soil.
You brothers, in our security forces, are invited to join us in this national defense, the defense of our Buddhist faith!"
A scene of "Buddhist" mob carrying an official tri-color government flag (adopted in 2010), marching to a targeted Muslim villages, being stopped by the local troops, who are NOT really empowered by Naypyidaw Thein Sein's government to use force, if necessary, to prevent any organized mass atrocities against the Muslims of all ethnic backgrounds.
This is definitely Hotel Rwanda.
It's in Rakhine State, western coastal province of Burma, and under the banner of "Buddhism" and the slogan of 'Defend Buddhist Faith and Buddhist 'race'" from the Kalar or Niggers (the Burmese equivalent)
Spend 2-minutes. And circulate this you-tube clip with my brief backgrounder here.
Here is what is happening in this video-clip, obviously shot by the Myanmar police itself on the scene.
A throng of Buddhists - Rakhine, Bama, what have you - which were stopped on their way, presumably to a target Muslim village outside Thandwe (or formerly Sandoway).
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| A Truck with Nazi and Hitler Signs is driving around Mrauk U Township to celebrate the coming Buddhist New year; April 16, 2012; Arakan state, Burma. (Photo courtesy: Sophie Ansel, France. Published with permission. For more pictures, click here.) |
What the organizers were shouting was "We are to defend our Buddhist faith", as far as the megaphoned voices were audible.
The Buddhist mob's INTENT was articulated, in no uncertain term:
"We (Buddhist sons of the Land) are here to burn down the houses of all Muslim (Kalar or "niggers"), and remove these 'guests' from our soil.
You brothers, in our security forces, are invited to join us in this national defense, the defense of our Buddhist faith!"
The local police, and I assume some army unit commanders as well, are shouting back, to stay calm, to no longer proceed, and to address any Buddhist grievances in accord with the law, and to stay on the paved road (as opposed to veering into the nearby agri-fields).
Not sure how it was resolved.
Watching this 2-minute-clips gave me chill down my spine.
This is the kind of mob that senselessly murdered a 94-year old Kaman Muslim woman a few days ago - not the elderly lady was a threat to the Buddhist society. But killing her in cold blood - by stabbing her multiply at her own home - the "Buddhists" are sending the message to all Myanmar Muslims the "Buddhist" acts of blood-letting will stop at nothing.
Are the Muslims of Myanmar a threat to Buddhism, Buddhist faith, Buddhist "race" and "Buddhist" government of President Thein Sein?
The Muslims of Burma make up less than 5 percent of the total population; there are five Muslim national organizations; there is NOT a single one that is armed and is calling for the destruction of Buddhism, Buddhist way of life, taking over the economy and political power, or seeking to establish a Muslim-only province or region, or secession, or pursuing a plan to turn Buddhist women whores or wives.
What is happening in Burma, Rakhine state in particular, today is nothing less than a genocide - the intent is to inflict harm on the Muslims - simply because they ARE Muslims.
Ninety percent of the people, including senior western diplomats who should know better, hold the mistaken view, or dishonestly argue, the term genocide does NOT apply in Myanmar's case. For, they argue falsely, there is no smoking-gun 'proof' or document that says either the Buddhist society or the State - non-state actors can be charged with genocide, according to the Genocide Conventions - has explicitly stated the intent to wipe out every single Muslim, Rohingya or otherwise, from the face of Burma's soil.
But it will not be called by its proper name because Western liberal democracies are equally immoral in their conduct of foreign policies - no different from China or Russia or the world's largest Islamic country of Indonesia.
The country's political celebrity Aung San Suu Kyi will not say a word about it because it will ruin her presidential ambitions, it is argued. In addition, the Lady keeps telling international lawyers in her circle she wants 'reconciliation' - not retribution. Calling the unfolding campaign of terror genocide will not advance her goal of 'reconciliation' with her late Hpay Hpay's essentially neo-Fascist Army founded under Japanese Fascist patronage in Dec 1942. (Old habits die hard and the military leaders hold on to the Army's roots).
The regime lies most blatantly; it says one thing in English language and to the UN and to the press. It disseminates, exploits and mobilizes anti-Muslim discourses once they are in public circulation.
G-E-N-O-C-I-D-E is not about slaughtering or mass-gassing 6 million or 700,000 or 2 million victims.
G-E-N-O-C-D-E does NOt have to be about wiping out the entire ethnic population.
Do YOU know that Pol Pot crimes have not been called, legally speaking, 'genocide' by the joint International Tribunals based in Phnom Penh on the compound of a Cambodian Armed Forces'?
Do you KNOW Pol Pot's mass atrocities ended not because of western liberal democracies with their ritual barking of human rights and humanism, but because Vietnamese Communists sent in their troops, drove Pol Pot and his mass murderers out of Phnom Penh, and occupied the country?
Do you also know that it was again not the UN Security Council or Western powers, but India of Indira Gandha that ended mass atrocities against the Bangla-speaking East Bengali Hindus and Muslims by the Muslim-controlled West Pakistan in 1971? (India used the entire might of its Armed Forces to intervene and stop the Pakistan's genocide of the Hindu from East Pakistan or now Bangladesh.)
Currently a visiting fellow (2011-13) with Civil Society and Human Security Research Unit, the London School of Economics and Political Science, Maung Zarni or Dr Zarni is a noted exile, commentator, and expert on Burmese affairs, staunch advocate of unconditional human rights, as well as ethnic and gender equality.
He is also co-founder of the Free Burma Coalition, one of the Internet's first and largest human rights movements, in 1995. He was educated at St Peter's Boys School in Mandalay and the universities of Mandalay, California, Washington and Wisconsin.This article first appeared in his website on October 03 and has been republished here with personal permission from the author.
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