Extremism in Bangladesh
11 Oct 2012 2:30 AM IST
With anti-Muslim demonstrations now erupting in Sri Lanka, a major part of the South Asia region is currently embroiled in the murky aftermath of the recent anti-Rohingya attacks occurring in the Rakhine province of Myanmar.
Bangladesh has seen one of the worst mob attacks against minority Buddhists and Hindus some days ago. India is just recovering from a major panic exodus of students from the northeast states from its southern and western states, following a violent Muslim demonstration in Mumbai.
Bangladesh-based minority communities, comprising less than 10 per cent of the aggregate population, have drawn the attention of the international community towards the fierce attacks on their homes, property and temples, by armed aggressive mobs that ran riot on 29 and 30 September, in Cox’s Bazar and adjacent areas. The alleged provocation: the appearance on Facebook of matter that Muslims consider derogatory to Prophet Muhammad.
Kolkata-based analysts point out that the area is now unusually tense as the greatest concentration of the Rohingiya Muslims displaced from Myanmar has been settled there. Most had been driven out of their native Buddhist majority Rakhine province, some years ago.
They have little hope of returning, and the international community, after helping initially, has forgotten them. As neither Bangladesh nor Myanmar recognise them as citizens, Rohingiya Muslims are a stateless lot, listed as the ‘worst’ persecuted minority.
Recent reports of fresh violence against the community in the Rakhine province, where at least 70 people were killed, naturally exacerbated tensions in the Cox’s Bazar area, where new arrivals desperately tried to find shelter, as Bangladesh stopped them coming.
Following the appearance of the ‘offending’ item on Facebook and fresh rumours that began circulating, an angry mob, consisting mostly of displaced Rohingiyas, according to available reports, attacked Buddhist homes, shops and temples, looting and ransacking them, in the Ramu upazila [sub district] area. Worse, the mayhem continued the following day, 30 September as well, as attackers targeted Buddhists as well as Hindus now, running amuck in Ukhia, Teknaf and Patia areas in Chittagong, which has a sizeable Buddhist population. Here, several houses and shops were set on fire. The reason for the attack on local Hindus could not be ascertained. Observers pointed out that Muslim organisations in India as well as circles in Bangladesh had suggested that India should have offered relief and rehab for the Rohingiyas in the present situation.
Current media reports suggest there was a sharp, immediate reaction to incidents in Bangladesh, in the Buddhist majority Sri Lanka. As October began, several protests were made and a demonstration, where at least 900 Buddhist monks participated in Colombo, as they headed to the Bangladesh High Commission. Here they submitted a written protest to Bangladesh diplomats, but not before some pelted stones and water bottles at the Commission premises, breaking windowpanes and causing other minor damage. Senior monks controlled the situation and later issued an apology. Safiur Rahman, on behalf of the Commission, confirmed the details to Bangladesh-based media later.
It needs stressing that in Bangladesh, Hindus now account for only eight per cent of the population, down from over 30 per cent in 1947. Christians and Buddhists account for just one per cent or less of the population in Bangladesh, which is over 90 per cent Muslim majority.
The major opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party [BNP], naturally condemned what it alleged to be the ‘total failure of the Awami League Government’ to maintain communal harmony. Its leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir pointed out that during the BNP rule, the government always ensured that religious festivals like the Durga Puja and the Eid were observed peacefully. Alleging that Awami league elements were actively involved in the recent violence, he said that communal relations were at an all time low in Bangladesh. The BNP also started its independent probe into the disturbances.
With Sri Lanka also being drawn into the vortex of communal violence in the South Asia region, the wheel seems to have completed a full circle. Authorities in India and West Bengal however, still needed to remain on alert. Even on 5 October, state-based non-Bengali Muslim organisations planned to protest publicly against the ‘insult’ to Islam in the Western media, the attack on Rohingiyas and other issues. While the sharp reaction among Muslims over recent events in Myanmar and ‘reports’ in the Western media is understandable, there remains little doubt that some protests have been the product of considerable planning and preparation. Unsubstantiated rumours and false information had been used, along with dubious photography and SMS campaigns, to trigger the exodus of northeast students from Mumbai, Bangalore and other cities. [IPA]
Bangladesh has seen one of the worst mob attacks against minority Buddhists and Hindus some days ago. India is just recovering from a major panic exodus of students from the northeast states from its southern and western states, following a violent Muslim demonstration in Mumbai.
Bangladesh-based minority communities, comprising less than 10 per cent of the aggregate population, have drawn the attention of the international community towards the fierce attacks on their homes, property and temples, by armed aggressive mobs that ran riot on 29 and 30 September, in Cox’s Bazar and adjacent areas. The alleged provocation: the appearance on Facebook of matter that Muslims consider derogatory to Prophet Muhammad.
Kolkata-based analysts point out that the area is now unusually tense as the greatest concentration of the Rohingiya Muslims displaced from Myanmar has been settled there. Most had been driven out of their native Buddhist majority Rakhine province, some years ago.
They have little hope of returning, and the international community, after helping initially, has forgotten them. As neither Bangladesh nor Myanmar recognise them as citizens, Rohingiya Muslims are a stateless lot, listed as the ‘worst’ persecuted minority.
Recent reports of fresh violence against the community in the Rakhine province, where at least 70 people were killed, naturally exacerbated tensions in the Cox’s Bazar area, where new arrivals desperately tried to find shelter, as Bangladesh stopped them coming.
Following the appearance of the ‘offending’ item on Facebook and fresh rumours that began circulating, an angry mob, consisting mostly of displaced Rohingiyas, according to available reports, attacked Buddhist homes, shops and temples, looting and ransacking them, in the Ramu upazila [sub district] area. Worse, the mayhem continued the following day, 30 September as well, as attackers targeted Buddhists as well as Hindus now, running amuck in Ukhia, Teknaf and Patia areas in Chittagong, which has a sizeable Buddhist population. Here, several houses and shops were set on fire. The reason for the attack on local Hindus could not be ascertained. Observers pointed out that Muslim organisations in India as well as circles in Bangladesh had suggested that India should have offered relief and rehab for the Rohingiyas in the present situation.
Current media reports suggest there was a sharp, immediate reaction to incidents in Bangladesh, in the Buddhist majority Sri Lanka. As October began, several protests were made and a demonstration, where at least 900 Buddhist monks participated in Colombo, as they headed to the Bangladesh High Commission. Here they submitted a written protest to Bangladesh diplomats, but not before some pelted stones and water bottles at the Commission premises, breaking windowpanes and causing other minor damage. Senior monks controlled the situation and later issued an apology. Safiur Rahman, on behalf of the Commission, confirmed the details to Bangladesh-based media later.
It needs stressing that in Bangladesh, Hindus now account for only eight per cent of the population, down from over 30 per cent in 1947. Christians and Buddhists account for just one per cent or less of the population in Bangladesh, which is over 90 per cent Muslim majority.
The major opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party [BNP], naturally condemned what it alleged to be the ‘total failure of the Awami League Government’ to maintain communal harmony. Its leader Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir pointed out that during the BNP rule, the government always ensured that religious festivals like the Durga Puja and the Eid were observed peacefully. Alleging that Awami league elements were actively involved in the recent violence, he said that communal relations were at an all time low in Bangladesh. The BNP also started its independent probe into the disturbances.
With Sri Lanka also being drawn into the vortex of communal violence in the South Asia region, the wheel seems to have completed a full circle. Authorities in India and West Bengal however, still needed to remain on alert. Even on 5 October, state-based non-Bengali Muslim organisations planned to protest publicly against the ‘insult’ to Islam in the Western media, the attack on Rohingiyas and other issues. While the sharp reaction among Muslims over recent events in Myanmar and ‘reports’ in the Western media is understandable, there remains little doubt that some protests have been the product of considerable planning and preparation. Unsubstantiated rumours and false information had been used, along with dubious photography and SMS campaigns, to trigger the exodus of northeast students from Mumbai, Bangalore and other cities. [IPA]
Next Story
