Political Buddhism and the Exclusion of Rohingya in Myanmar : Exploring targeted religious nationalism using Myanmar's Muslim Rohingya minority as a case study

Abstract: The Rohingya Muslim minority, originally living in Rakhine state in western Myanmar, has been marginalized and harassed for decades. The Rohingya minority has been stateless since 1982 and they strive to become Burmese citizens. Many Rohingya have been displaced and live in refugee camps in Bangladesh with UNHCR calling them one of the most vulnerable refugee groups in the world. The military junta in Myanmar did not look kindly at rebellious minority groups in the country, brutally beating down all minority opposition. Despite Myanmar is now in a process of democratization, the State-Councilor and President in all but name, Aung San Suu Kyi has refused to address the ongoing violence suffered by Rohingya. Although Myanmar has 135 recognized minority groups, the country is far from being a pluralistic society. Ethnicity and religion have played an important role in creating a national identity in Myanmar; a national identity which systematically excludes Rohingya. This thesis argues that the reason for Rohingya’s exclusion is the so called political Buddhism in Myanmar. Political Buddhism is when excluding Buddhism, the Burmese ethnicity and aggressive nationalism are used to exclude and persecute minority groups perceived as non-Burman. This thesis explores, through an ideology analysis, how political Buddhism can be used to understand the exclusion of Rohingya in Myanmar. Finally, the conclusion is that political Buddhism has been an important element to Rohingya’s exclusion in Myanmar. However, it is not the sole explanation and other factors such as poverty and underdevelopment are also considerable aspects.