Conflicts Between Muslims and Buddhist

Past Buddhism Conflicts

In Myanmar, there are conflicts between Buddhists and the Muslims since 1962, under the rule of General Nay Win. Muslims are expelled from the army. Muslim extremism from the other countries such as Indonesia and Afghanistan affected the Muslims in Myanmar. Religious freedom of Muslims is reduced in several ways.

The 1997 Anti-Muslims riot in Mandalay

The tension between Buddhists and Muslims started in March 1997 when the Mahar Myatmuni Buddha Statue was broken open. Many Anti-Muslims people attacked mosques and the properties of the Muslims. The report of a girl being raped by Muslim men added fuel to the fire. At least 3 people were killed and many people were arrested.

The Mahar Myat Muni Statue

The 2001 riots in Taung Goo

The roits were caused by the anti-Buddhist action of the Taliban in Afghanistan. The Taliban destroyed the Buddha of Bamiyan. It took play in May, 2001 and It was a chaos. The riot leads to the deaths of 400 Muslims and destruction of 11 mosques and over 400 houses. However, the violence stopped when the military stepped in after two days.

The Bigger Statue of Buddha of Bamiyan Before and After Destruction

Current Conflicts in Myanmar

The conflicts started again because of reports about a native girl was raped by Muslims in Arkan State in 2012 . 166 people were killed and this became the start of many other conflicts in Myanmar. The situation became more serious when the 969 movement began in 2013.

In July 2014, the conflicts started in Mandalay because of a Face book post that reports a rape case of a Buddhist girl. The security in Mandalay became very tight and strict. The order not to go outside from 9:00 PM came out. The news told us that two people died and some people say that the report was a fake report. In my opinion, the riots’ purpose is to make the government unstable and keep foreign Companies away from our country.

Muslims from...