Fahlman 1

Claire Fahlman
TA Mathieu Dubeau
November 21, 2017
LSJ 320 A Section AL

Race, Religion and Rajuma: Human Rights and the Genocide in Myanmar

In the dead of night, Rajuma stood in the cold water of the river with hundreds of other village

women, clutching her infant son in her arms.1 She was approached by the Burmese soldiers holding the

women at gunpoint, who demanded that she come with them.2 In the blink of an eye, they ripped her

baby from her, hit her across the face hard enough to leave a gash, and threw her infant into a fire.3 She

was then gang raped as her family was executed only rooms away.4 Rajuma is a member of the Rohingya

ethnic group, a Burmese Muslim ethnic minority that has been persecuted for generations and is now at

the center of a rapidly-intensifying human rights crisis. Their oppression is so horrific that it has sent

hundreds of thousands of refugees, including Rajuma, pouring over the border into Bangladesh, a

poverty-stricken nation that is unable to fully care for them. Although Rajuma’s tale is disturbing, it is far

from unique. Numerous human rights of the Rohingya have been violated, including the right to

freedom of religion, the right to a nationality, and the right to life. To solve the human rights crisis faced

by the Rohingya, the international community must push for action, and the structure of the

government of Myanmar must be changed to reduce the unchecked power of the military.

The Rohingya are the victims of a genocide being perpetrated by Myanmar’s military, although

this is hardly the first time they have faced persecution. Pre-1784, they lived in the independent

kingdom of Arakan, which was later conquered by Burma and then the United Kingdom, making the

1 Gettleman, Jeffrey. “Rohingya Recount Atrocities: ‘They Threw My Baby Into a Fire.’” The New York
Times, The New York Times, 11 Oct. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/10/11/world/asia/rohingya-myanmar-
atrocities.html.
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Rohingya subjects of the much larger British Empire.5 During World War Two, as Burma was taken by

Japan, ethnically Burmese groups began attacking Muslim minorities, including the Rohingya.6 These

anti-Muslim sentiments persisted after independence, as a succession of political groups continued to

ostracize the Rohingya and strip them of any power they possessed.7 In 1982, an immigration law was

passed that defined all those who migrated during British rule as illegal immigrants, stripping them of

their citizenship.8 As it was commonly believed that the Rohingya were ethnically Bangladeshi, rather

than Burmese, they were included under the oppressive law and denied the same rights as full citizens

of Myanmar.9 In 2012, Rakhine Buddhists began rioting and forcing the Rohingya into camps within

Rakhine state, further ostracizing them from mainstream Myanmar.10 Perhaps in retaliation for the

squalid conditions they were forced to live in, an insurgency by an ethnically Rohingya militant group in

2016 precipitated the current crisis.11 Throughout their long history of exclusion, the Rohingya have

been the victims of many human rights abuses, but

their most recent experiences cannot be dismissed as simply more of the same and demand action from

the international community.

The modern genocide of the Rohingya began with a military crackdown in response to instability

in the region. In 2014, Myanmar held the first census in 30 years.12 Originally, the Rohingya were

allowed to identify themselves as a racial group on the census, but a threatened boycott by Burmese

Buddhists caused the government to force the Rohingya to classify themselves as “Bengali.”13

5
Al-Mahmood, Syed Zain. “Timeline: A Short History of Myanmar's Rohingya Minority.” The Wall Street
Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 23 Dec. 2016, blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2016/12/23/timeline-a-short-
history-of-myanmars-rohingya-minority/.
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12 Albert, Eleanor. “What Forces Are Fueling Myanmar's Rohingya Crisis?” Council on Foreign Relations,

Council on Foreign Relations, 4 Oct. 2017, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/rohingya-crisis.

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Symbolically, this associates the Rohingya with neighboring Bangladesh rather than Myanmar. Following

the census, the Rohingya’s identification cards were revoked. Due to national sentiment and the 1982

immigration law, the Rohingya are seen as illegal immigrants, but the cards granted them some rights

and the ability to stay temporarily in Myanmar as legal residents.14 The fact that the Rohingya were able

to vote angered Buddhists, so in 2015, the government caved to pressure and revoked the cards, taking

away both the right to vote and any legal protections they had enjoyed.15 In the spring of 2017, a

Rohingya militant group, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), claimed responsibility for attacks

on police stations and military posts in Rakhine State.16 The government declared the ARSA a terrorist

organization, and has been destroying villages and committing human rights atrocities in the name of

rooting out the group ever since.17 Rajuma was the victim of one such sweep, which clearly went beyond

simply rooting out terrorists and instead rapidly became a mass killing of unarmed noncombatant

villagers. Her experience begs the question of whether the military crackdown on the Rohingya is truly in

the interest of national security or simply a government excuse to drive out a hated minority group.

The structure of the government of Myanmar has hindered oversight of the military, worsening

the plight of the Rohingya. The position of the military within the government is unique in that the

military is completely autonomous, with the 2008 constitution granting it freedom from oversight and

guaranteeing it political authority: “The Union’s consistent objectives are: … enabling the Defense

Services to be able to participate in the National political leadership role of the state.”18 Besides its

autonomy, the military is guaranteed 25 seats in the parliament and is able to retain immense control

14
Albert, Eleanor. “What Forces Are Fueling Myanmar's Rohingya Crisis?” Council on Foreign Relations,
Council on Foreign Relations, 4 Oct. 2017, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/rohingya-crisis.
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18“Constitution of Myanmar.” Constitute, Constitute,

www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Myanmar_2008?lang=en.
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over politics and whatever it deems to fall under the wide umbrella of “national security.”19 Because the

military is so powerful and has so little regulation, it is able to do more or less anything it wants with no

repercussions. The genocide being perpetrated against the Rohingya is being committed in the name of

national security, granting the military justification for its actions. No one has political power to say

otherwise inside of Myanmar, as the military reports to no one.

The human rights being violated in this case are numerous, and include the right to freedom of

religion, the right to life and the right to a nationality. Indeed, rights guaranteed by the very constitution

of Myanmar have been denied to the Rohingya people. In the preamble, the 2008 constitution describes

a dedication to the principles of justice, liberty, equality, and perpetuation of peace and prosperity.20 For

Rajuma, who was raped as her son and other family members were killed around her, there would be no

justice, no liberty, no equality for her or other Rohingya, and certainly no peace. The preamble also

asserts a commitment to racial equality, which is especially comical considering the fact that Rajuma and

her family were targeted specifically because of their race, and the Rohingya haven’t been granted full

citizenship in decades.21 In Article 32, the constitution declares a commitment to “care for mothers and

children,” although Rajuma and her child were denied this right, as the military did the opposite by

killing her child and subjecting her to rape.22 In Article 34, the constitution promises freedom of religion,

though the current genocide proves that this right is clearly not universal among all groups.23 Instead,

the Rohingya are persecuted for their beliefs. Were Rajuma not a Muslim, she would still have her son

and her family.

19
“Burma.” Human Rights Watch, 12 Sept. 2017, www.hrw.org/world-report/2017/country-chapters/burma.
20“Constitution
of Myanmar.” Constitute, Constitute,
www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Myanmar_2008?lang=en.
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Many of the protections and freedoms in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)

have been violated by the military persecution of the Rohingya. In Articles Two and Seven, the UDHR

states that one can’t be discriminated against on the basis of their race or ethnicity.24 The Rohingya,

however, are openly discriminated against both because of both factors. Article Three guarantees the

right to life, to liberty, and the security of person, none of which Rajuma was able to enjoy as she was

raped and her child was killed by the military of the country she calls home.25 In Article Nine, the UDHR

grants protection against forced exile, which Rajuma along with hundreds of thousands of other

Rohingya are experiencing, and the right to a nationality guaranteed in Article 15 hasn’t been enjoyed by

the Rohingya for decades.26 The freedom of religion granted by Article 18 of the UDHR is clearly not

respected by the military, as Rajuma was persecuted because of her Muslim faith.27

Interestingly, Myanmar has ratified the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the

Crime of Genocide, although it continues to violate its protections. Under Article Two of the Convention

on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, four criteria must be met in order to

classify a human rights crisis as a genocide, and Rajuma’s experience fits all four criteria.28 The first act

that must be committed is the killing of members of the group.29 Not only was Rajuma’s infant son

killed, but so was her entire family along with countless other villagers. The perpetrators must cause

serious bodily or mental harm to members of the persecuted group, which was satisfied by Rajuma’s

rape and the trauma she faced after the fact.30 Next, the perpetrators must deliberately “inflict on the

group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.”31 By

24
“Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations, United Nations, www.un.org/en/universal-
declaration-human-rights/.
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28 “United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect.” United Nations, United

Nations, www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/genocide.html.
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destroying Rajuma’s village, forcing her into exile and killing her people, the Burmese military fulfilled

this criterion. Finally, to have committed genocide, the government must impose “measures intended to

prevent births within the group; forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”32 Not only

was Rajuma’s baby killed, but she, along with all other Rohingya, was subject to intense governmental

regulation of Rohigya marriage and births. There is a limit of two children per Rohingya couple, and to

be legally married Rohingya must obtain a special permit from the government.33

The meaning of the term “group” as used in the definition of the Convention on the Prevention

and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide is debated, but the International Criminal Tribunal for the

former Yugoslavia (ICTY) overruled an appeal by General Radislav Kristic against his conviction, who

argued that his role in killing 7,000 people did not constitute a genocide.34 Although the government

estimates the death toll of their crackdown at only 400, the UN places it around 1,000, and other

estimates range as high as 3,000.35 Because of the difficulty in measuring the deaths attributable to the

crisis, it is likely that the casualties are much higher. As the atrocities committed by the military fit all the

criteria of genocide, and the high death toll of this ongoing crisis is rapidly approaching a figure ruled by

the ICTY to constitute genocide, the military can be concluded to be committing a genocide against the

Rohingya and should be held accountable. Those committing genocide under the Convention are

supposed to be tried by the International Court of Justice, but as of now, no case regarding the genocide

in Myanmar has been brought to the Court.36

32
“United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect.” United Nations, United
Nations, www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/genocide.html.
33 “Burma: Revoke 'Two-Child Policy' For Rohingya.” Human Rights Watch, 12 Sept. 2017,

www.hrw.org/news/2013/05/28/burma-revoke-two-child-policy-rohingya.
34 “How Do You Define Genocide?” BBC News, BBC, 17 Mar. 2016, www.bbc.com/news/world-11108059.
35 Ratcliffe, Rebecca. “Who Are the Rohingya and What Is Happening in Myanmar?” The Guardian, Guardian

News and Media, 5 Sept. 2017, www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/sep/06/who-are-the-

rohingya-and-what-is-happening-in-myanmar.
36 OHCHR | Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide,

www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CrimeOfGenocide.aspx.
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Although there is no easy solution to resolve the many human rights violations currently at play,

the structure of the government of Myanmar must be changed, and the international community must

take a more active role in addressing the plight of the Rohingya. The structure of the government must

be altered to increase oversight of the military. Myanmar has only recently emerged from a military

dictatorship, but the current government structure is hardly democratic.37 The fact that the military

holds so many seats in parliament and has no accountability to the rest of the government is shocking

and implies that although the country may no longer be ruled solely by the military, it still retains far too

much power. The military must report to elected officials in some way, allowing civilians oversight via

their representatives. With too much power, the military is able to do whatever it desires in the name of

national security, the same ruse it is using to commit atrocities against the Rohingya in the current crisis.

Next, the international community should acknowledge the genocide being perpetrated in

Myanmar. The UN didn’t take heed of many warnings about what was happening to the Rohingya,

allowing the situation to accelerate.38 The thought was that by admonishing Myanmar for its many

human rights abuses, the nation would become more resistant to assistance from the UN during its

transition to democracy.39 This silence, however, made it easier for Myanmar to harm the Rohingya.40

Were international attention drawn to the genocide, Myanmar would have been forced to stop the

atrocities or risk being ostracized.

In addition, the international community should pass sanctions against Myanmar. The United

States has condemned the human rights crisis and passed sanctions against Myanmar, but to truly cause

37
“Myanmar Country Profile.” BBC News, BBC, 31 Oct. 2017, www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-
12990563.
38 Lynch, Colum. “For Years, U.N. Was Warned of Threat to Rohingya in Myanmar.” Foreign Policy, Foreign

Policy, 16 Oct. 2017, foreignpolicy.com/2017/10/16/for-years-u-n-was-warned-of-threat-to-rohingya-in-

myanmar/.
39 Lynch, Colum. “For Years, U.N. Was Warned of Threat to Rohingya in Myanmar.” Foreign Policy, Foreign

Policy, 16 Oct. 2017, foreignpolicy.com/2017/10/16/for-years-u-n-was-warned-of-threat-to-rohingya-in-

myanmar/.
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change, the rest of the international community should follow suit.41 The United States could pass more

severe sanctions, along with the allies and trade partners of Myanmar in the region. Although the

destitution of their minority groups may not matter to the Burmese government, were their treatment

of the Rohingya to result in economic consequences for the mainstream population, they may take

action. However, it is important to note that the United States had sanctions against Myanmar until very

recently.42 These sanctions were targeted specifically against companies and individuals related to the

military to prevent it from gaining too much power.43 After tepid success, they were removed to show

trust and allow Myanmar to demonstrate that the military was no longer exerting too much power over

the rest of the government.44 Clearly, that did not work. It must be pointed out that by putting back the

sanctions, the human rights crisis will not be completely solved, but the U.S. will have shown that it will

not stand for these kinds of violations.

As a symbol of commitment to international human rights, the Nobel Peace Prize should be

stripped from Aaung San Suu Kyi. The Prime Minister received the prize in 1991 because of her political

resistance and leadership of the Burmese movement for democracy.45 The state of her nation in the

present day clearly demonstrates that she no longer deserves this Prize. She has been largely silent on

the issue, and while hundreds of thousands of Rohingya are fleeing, she seems nowhere near concrete

action.46 By taking the step to remove her Nobel Prize, Suu Kyi would be disgraced and more likely to

take action in an attempt to save face. Once again, however, her options for action would be limited due

to the structure of the Burmese government. In any case, this is important especially given the

41
Koutsoukis, Jason, and Kyaw Thu. “U.S. Condemns `Atrocities' in Myanmar as New Sanctions
Weighed.” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 23 Oct. 2017, www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-24/u-s-
weighs-sanctions-against-myanmar-as-rohingya-crisis-worsens.
42 Fisher, Jonah. “Surprise as US Ends Myanmar Economic Sanctions.” BBC News, BBC, 16 Sept. 2016,

www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-37375829.
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45 Fisher, Amanda Taub And Max. “Did the World Get Aung San Suu Kyi Wrong?” The New York Times, The

New York Times, 31 Oct. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/10/31/world/asia/aung-san-suu-kyi-myanmar.html.

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symbolism of the Nobel Peace prize. By revoking Suu Kyi’s prize, the international commitment to

human rights and intolerance of the persecution of minorities would be clear.

There is no immediate solution to the genocide of the Rohingya, but there are steps that could

pressure the Burmese military to change its ways. The international community should take notice of

the crisis, and pass sanctions in response. The Nobel Peace Prize should be stripped from Prime Minister

Aaung San Suu Kyi, who is undeserving of the honor. It is essential that the military no longer be

autonomous, and instead should answer to civilian oversight. The long history of oppression against the

Rohingya should also be acknowledged in whatever actions are taken. Without such perspective, it is

easy to forget the people being affected by such crises. At the heart of it all, there are thousands just like

Rajuma, desperate for justice but without any opportunity to access it.

Works Cited
Albert, Eleanor. “What Forces Are Fueling Myanmar's Rohingya Crisis?” Council on Foreign Relations,
Council on Foreign Relations, 4 Oct. 2017, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/rohingya-crisis.
Al-Mahmood, Syed Zain. “Timeline: A Short History of Myanmar's Rohingya Minority.” The Wall Street
Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 23 Dec. 2016, blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2016/12/23/timeline-a-
short-history-of-myanmars-rohingya-minority/.
“Burma.” Human Rights Watch, 12 Sept. 2017, www.hrw.org/world-report/2017/country-chapters/burma.
“Burma: Revoke 'Two-Child Policy' For Rohingya.” Human Rights Watch, 12 Sept. 2017,
www.hrw.org/news/2013/05/28/burma-revoke-two-child-policy-rohingya.
“Constitution of Myanmar.” Constitute, Constitute,
www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Myanmar_2008?lang=en.
Fisher, Amanda Taub And Max. “Did the World Get Aung San Suu Kyi Wrong?” The New York Times, The
New York Times, 31 Oct. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/10/31/world/asia/aung-san-suu-kyi-
myanmar.html.
Fisher, Jonah. “Surprise as US Ends Myanmar Economic Sanctions.” BBC News, BBC, 16 Sept. 2016,
www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-37375829.
Gettleman, Jeffrey. “Rohingya Recount Atrocities: ‘They Threw My Baby Into a Fire.’” The New York Times,
The New York Times, 11 Oct. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/10/11/world/asia/rohingya-myanmar-
atrocities.html.
“How Do You Define Genocide?” BBC News, BBC, 17 Mar. 2016, www.bbc.com/news/world-11108059.
Koutsoukis, Jason, and Kyaw Thu. “U.S. Condemns `Atrocities' in Myanmar as New Sanctions
Weighed.” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 23 Oct. 2017, www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-24/u-
s-weighs-sanctions-against-myanmar-as-rohingya-crisis-worsens.
Lynch, Colum. “For Years, U.N. Was Warned of Threat to Rohingya in Myanmar.” Foreign Policy, Foreign
Policy, 16 Oct. 2017, foreignpolicy.com/2017/10/16/for-years-u-n-was-warned-of-threat-to-rohingya-in-
myanmar/.
“Myanmar Country Profile.” BBC News, BBC, 31 Oct. 2017, www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-12990563.
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OHCHR | Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide,

www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CrimeOfGenocide.aspx.
Ratcliffe, Rebecca. “Who Are the Rohingya and What Is Happening in Myanmar?” The Guardian, Guardian
News and Media, 5 Sept. 2017, www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/sep/06/who-are-the-
rohingya-and-what-is-happening-in-myanmar.
“United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect.” United Nations, United
Nations, www.un.org/en/genocideprevention/genocide.html.
“Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations, United Nations, www.un.org/en/universal-
declaration-human-rights/.