Sri Lanka's Muslims bear brunt of Buddhist extremism

[HiPointDem]

Sri Lanka has been rocked in recent weeks by a growing wave of anti-Muslim sentiment led by ultra-nationalist Buddhist monks. According to one expert, the small island nation is suffering a profound and worrying identity crisis.

On the evening of March 28, a Muslim clothes trader watched as his warehouse was ransacked by an angry crowd of some 500 Sri Lankans. Buddhist monks among the attackers were filmed throwing stones at the Fashion Bug outlet in capital Colombo. According to BBC reporter Charles Haviland, several people including a number of journalists recording the scenes were injured.

It was not an isolated incident. In the past few months, the number of attacks on the minority Muslim population (9 percent) in the Buddhist-dominated country has been growing. As well as targeting shops, Muslims have reported vandalism against mosques as well as calls for a boycott on their products and services.

The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, a junior coalition partner in the government of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, has denounced the “hate campaign” being waged against Muslims which the authorities are blaming on a hard core of extremist Buddhist monks. “These fanatical Buddhist monks consider Muslims to be invaders who are threatening Sri Lanka’s soul,” Liogier said. “They believe they need to resist it.”

The epicentre of that resistance is radical political movement “Bodu Bala Sena” (BBS).
Considered an “ethno-religious fascist” group by Sri Lankan diplomat and political scientist Dayan Jayatilleka, BBS was created ten months ago and is experiencing “worrying success”, according to Liogier.

“What worries me is that we are seeing the same tensions and the same violence towards Muslims in Burma,” said Longier. “I worry that the Buddhist identity crisis affecting both Sri Lanka and Burma is deepening and that it will become a phenomenon seen across Southeast Asia in the coming decades.”

http://www.france24.com/en/20130403-sri-lanka-muslims-bear-brunt-buddhist-extremism-religion-nationalism


Sri Lanka: also under neoliberal attack:

The main challenge facing sovereignty of developing countries such as Sri Lanka is neoliberalism. Neoliberal forces are waging a ruthless war on resource-rich countries the world under the pretext of combating terrorism and promoting democracy and human rights... The economic growth rate has declined... income disparities have grown significantly in the urban and estate sector and income has remained relatively static in the rural sector. The increase in consumption and service provision distribution is skewed in favour of the affluent...The burden of the current economic crisis is being placed on the shoulders of working people with public services being gradually cut down through privatisation policies following demands of the International Monetary Fund to reduce the budget deficit.

Recently, to avert the balance of payments crisis in Sri Lanka, the IMF released a loan instalment of about US$0.5 billion (as part of its $2.6 billion standby loan). As a result of the loan, there has been an 18% cap on credit growth, electricity and petroleum price hikes, devaluation of the rupee and a pledge to cut this year’s budget deficit to 6.2% of GDP. In addition to the recent tax increases made on alcohol, cigarettes and all imported vehicles, social services and jobs are expected to be axed, and fuel prices are to be raised once again.

It is in the best interests of the ruling elites for Lankan society to remain fragmented so that no united effort on the people’s part will threaten their power, control, interests and privileges of the regime...It is in this light that one can understand the process of autocratic militarisation of all sectors of the island, heavy-handed measures used against the working people and the rural poor, and the dogmatically chauvinist ideological campaign carried out against the non-Sinhala people...

http://www.srilankaguardian.org/2012/04/main-challenge-is-neoliberalism-bopage.html


Burma - anti-Muslim racism is sponsored by the state

What’s behind the bloody attacks on Burma’s Muslim Rohingya minority? More than 650 people were killed and 80,000 displaced from the state of Rakhine last June. There was more violence in October, and now a third wave of anti-Muslim rioting is building in Meiktila town, Mandalay.

This is not a result of some “natural” antagonism between communities...Different ethnic groups had co-existed peacefully in what is now Burma for centuries. But the British had perfected the tactic of divide and rule in their colonies. Fear of a cross-cultural revolt by the local people was uppermost in their minds.

The Burmese nationalist movement Dobama Asiayone was formed out of riots against Indians, Muslims and the Chinese. Its ideology was of extreme Buddhism and Burmese supremacy.
Its leader Aung San argued that of Burma’s ethnic groups “only Burmans and Shans could really be considered as having a nation”.

Today Burma’s ruling class uses racism to divert attention from the lack of democracy and the growing gap between rich and poor. In 1991 police mounted massive repression against Muslim Rohingyas in Arakan. In 1997 the military mobilised extremist Buddhist monks to attack Muslims in Bago. As Burma is opened up to outside investment and neoliberalism, Muslims are blamed for poverty for “controlling” businesses.

Progressive Buddhist monks played a prominent role in mass mobilisations against the military regime in 1988 and 2007. But the military supports far right Buddhist groups such as the “969” organisation that targets Muslims. This is run by a monk known as Wirathu, close to former general Khin Nyunt, who used to run Burma’s military intelligence.

Aung San’s daughter, Aung San Su Kyi, has sided with the military on the issue of violence against Muslims. She even claimed that the Rohingyas were not citizens of the country. She is a firm supporter of neoliberalism and the multinational firms. She was recently heckled by villagers who face the loss of their land to a big mining project.

http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id=31003


The ultimate goal of course is to effect regime change not only in Myanmar, but to create a united Southeast Asian front against China. The unqualified "progress" the US claims is now being made in Myanmar moves forward in tandem with Myanmar's opening to Western corporate-financier interests.

From SSI's 2006 "String of Pearls" report detailing a strategy of containment for China. While "democracy," "freedom," and "human rights" will mask the ascension of Aung San Suu Kyi and others into power, it is part of a region-wide campaign to overthrow nationalist elements and install client regimes in order to encircle and contain China.

http://landdestroyer.blogspot.com/2013/03/aung-san-suu-kyis-saffron-monks-stalk.html

[delrem]

1. This is a very important post.

It isn't at all easy to take in.
I strongly encourage HiPointDem to continue helping us to understand.