Rohingya Muslims aren’t the only ones being persecuted by Myanmar’s military
Daniel Maxwell says the persecution of the Rohingya, which has outraged much of the international community, is just the latest episode in a pattern of violent behaviour against minorities in Myanmar, which the democratic transition has done nothing to halt
Abuses of impoverished Rohingya communities have shocked the world, but observers familiar with the Myanmar Army’s history of massacres, mass rape and destruction are unsurprised. The Rohingya are the latest in a long line of victims of one of the most brutal militaries of modern times.
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Kachin State, centre of the lucrative jade industry, has witnessed years of unrest as Myanmar’s armed forces battle rebels. Since June 2011, more than 120,000 civilians have been displaced, with most residing in makeshift camps across the remote mountains of the region.
As recently as June, clearance operations were launched in Tanai, known for high-quality jade. Army personnel dropped thousand of leaflets from helicopters warning villagers to leave the area, with individuals remaining beyond June 15 treated as enemy combatants. Nine villages in the Hugawng Valley region were abandoned within days.
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“It is clear that the Tatmadaw’s [the armed forces of Myanmar’s official name] current military offensive is aimed at seizing local lands to make way for Naypyidaw-approved mining companies, agricultural companies and so-called environmental conservation organisations, and preventing the thousands of local inhabitants from ever returning”, they said.