2012 Rakhine State riots
| 2012 Rakhine State riots | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Persecution of Muslims in Myanmar | |
| Location | Rakhine State, Myanmar |
| Date | 8 June 2012 (UTC+06:30) |
|
Attack type
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Religious |
| Deaths | June: 88 October: at least 80 100,000 displaced |
The 2012 Rakhine State riots were a series of conflicts primarily between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in northern Rakhine State, Myanmar, though by October Muslims of all ethnicities had begun to be targeted. The riots finally came after weeks of sectarian disputes including a gang rape and murder of a Rakhine woman by Rohingyas and killing of ten Burmese Muslims by Rakhines. 10 June 2012 Rohingyas started to burn Rakhine's Buddhist and other ethnic houses after returning from Friday's prayers in Maungdaw township, More than a dozen residents have been killed in a riot by Rohingya Muslims.State of emergency was declared in Rakhine, allowing military to participate in administration of the region. As of 22 August, officially there had been 88 casualties – 57 Muslims and 31 Buddhists. An estimated 90,000 people have been displaced by the violence. About 2,528 houses were burned, and of those, 1,336 belonged to Rohingyas and 1,192 belonged to Rakhines.
Rohingya NGOs have accused the Burmese army and police of playing a role in targeting Rohingya through mass arrests and arbitrary violence though an in-depth research by the International Crisis Group reported that members of both communities were grateful for the protection provided by the military. While the government response was praised by the United States and European Union, NGOs were more critical, citing discrimination of Rohingyas by the previous military government. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and several human rights groups rejected the President Thein Sein's proposal to resettle the Rohingya abroad.
Fighting broke out again in October, resulting in at least 80 deaths, the displacement of more than 20,000 people, and the burning of thousands of homes. Rohingyas are not allowed to leave their settlements, officially due to security concerns, and are the subject of a campaign of commercial boycott led by Buddhist monks.
Sectarian clashes occur sporadically in Rakhine State, often between the Buddhist Rakhine people who are majority in the southern part, and Rohingya Muslims who are majority in the north. Before the riots, there were widespread and strongly held fears circulating among Buddhist Rakhines that they would soon become a minority in their ancestral state, and not just the northern part, which has long become a Muslim majority. Rohingyas migrated to Burma from Bengal, today's Bangladesh primarily before and during the period of British rule,and to a lesser extent, after the Burmese independence in 1948 and Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. Rakhines believed that many immigrants arrived even after the 1980s. The Burmese government classifies the Rohingya as "immigrants" to Burma, and thus not eligible for citizenship. Due to their lack of citizenship, they were previously subject to restrictions on government education, officially recognised marriages, and along with ethnic Rakhines, endured forced labour under the military government.
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