“It had been coming for a long time. I cannot imagine the persecution that my brothers and sisters only miles away are facing. At the same time, I pray to Allah (swt) that it never comes upon us.” These were the first words of a Burmese Muslim when asked about the situation in Rohingya.
Burma, a small country with an area of 676,578 km², has always been home to Muslim, Chinese and Bengali refugees. Despite their differences, these nations always managed to coexist in peace and harmony. However, this was never the case with the local Burmese people, especially the Buddhists, who are thought to belong to the most peaceful religion.
In order to understand the true picture of the ongoing massacre in Burma, it is a must that one peeks into the past.
Hiba arranged a meeting with a few migrants who had come from Burma nearly three decades ago. They shared their perception of the present situation and contextual past as well as talked about the problems they faced during migration.
Rohingyan nation is known by many names: Kabiyaa, Yakhaeen and Arkhaen are few of those. These people majorly consist of the Bengali refugees, who fled Bangladesh and dwelled here many years ago during the war. The religious monks didn’t get along with the Muslims, and wanted them to return to where they belonged. However, due to persecutions in their homeland, these Muslims had nowhere to go and wanted to stay whatever the circumstances may be.
This was Rohingya we speak of. The situation was entirely different in the main city Yangoon.
Muslims who dwelled in Yangoon brought their culture, education and business wits with them. They became the unstated masters of the country by controlling its economy. Muslims busied themselves with establishment of business centres, markets and shops. They owned property and gold. Some Buddhist monks used to respect Islam and, hence, the Muslims. Peace prevailed in Yangoon. Seeking education, and in particular Islamic education, was easy. Healthcare services were easy and cheap to avail. There was no fear in the streets.
Back then, the Buddhists were a nation confined to the countryside. Most of them, who came to the mainstream metro area, lived a life below poverty line. They usually took vendor, cobbler, and other odd jobs and lived in dirty shacks.
As times changed, the new generations were not naïve to repeat the mistakes of their ancestors. They grew up seeing their devastated condition. Muslims’ prosperity was not acceptable to them in any way. Envy hearts began plotting. They upgraded themselves with education and modern living standards. The ancient slogan of Buddhism ‘simplicity’ was limited to monks of the temple only. They soon became a vital part of the business community. With the growing economy, something else grew fast, too – it was their sheer hatred towards the Muslims.
Slowly and gradually things began to change. Muslim youngsters were no longer supposed to stay up late at nights and summon a meeting or a casual gathering at the corner of a street. Streets became perilous for Muslim women. All this was intolerable and enough to spread fear among the Muslim masses.
Then the massacre began. “Ko Pi Kophyan” (“Go Back to Your Country”) was the slogan of the day.
Amid all, the nationalization of property was a step that proved to be the nail in the coffin. Most Muslim families were deprived off their shops, business centres and huge trading ships within a night. Back then, one’s shop was considered as a safe deposit in bank! People used to hide all their gold and valuables in their shops. So when nationalization took place, the richest became the poorest of all. The only property left was the house one used to live in. It remained as the last hope of survival and a ticket to flee the country.
But the government made sure that this would not happen. It became extremely difficult to sell one’s property. Thus, property worth of a million would be sold with great troubles for a fraction of its value. Those who had fortunately kept their valuables with them had to abandon it, while leaving the country – this was ensured by the authorities at the airports. Heavy taxes were imposed on such professionals as scientists, engineers and doctors, who wanted to migrate.
Soon the Muslim community in Burma consisted only from those living in small rural villages, such a Rohingya, or those, who went from riches to rags in Yangoon.
Nearly two decades or so passed, before the government returned properties back to their rightful owners. A civil war had already been fought between the Chinese and the Buddhists, and the government was not willing to take the chances on any further destruction. Peace was restored, and Muslims were allowed to practice their religion to some extent.
But this peace was only the quiet and calm before the storm. With the death of Aung San, things changed again. Buddhists were sanctioned by the authorities to loot, rob and kill poor Muslims. Thus started an era where humanity was humiliated the way history has never seen before.
Surprisingly, the devastation in the name of ethnic cleansing is confined only to the Rohingya and the surrounding villages. The Muslim community in Yangoon considers itself safe. They believe that Buddhists fear the economic and social power that resides with the Muslims. This influence is only enough to save themselves and is useless against the forces acting in Rohingya. “Even if they come for us, we shall not leave,” said one such resident of Yangoon. “Living here with comfort amid restrictions is our life. This way we feel satisfied that we are close to our brothers and sisters and sooner or later we will be able to help them up. Many among us gather within organizations, collect resources and secretly sneak out towards Rohingya. The military regime supports these extremist Buddhists – they are systematically executing genocide and have blocked all passages for us to reach out to those in distress. Death is the inevitable fact, and it will follow us whether we stay here or migrate. But migration is humiliating. We know the terrible state of refugees around the world, and we are not ready to be a part of it. We believe in keeping our heads high and stay here in the hope of better days, as we always have. Brothers and sisters all around the world should remember us in their prayers,” continued this citizen of Burma in a firm voice.
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