UNSC I: Genocide in Myanmar

Letter from the Dais

My dearest delegates,

Congratulations on being selected to participate in the (irrefutably) best committee at YMUN Taiwan! It is my privilege to welcome you all to the most challenging, most influential, but above all, most rewarding committee of the conference. My name is Alina Glaubitz, and it is an honor to be serving as your Director for YMUNT V!

Please allow me to introduce myself to you. I am half German, half Russian by nationality and I currently live in the Netherlands. By circumstance, I speak 6 languages: English (of course), Russian, German, Dutch, as well as some Spanish and French. If we have any languages in common, let me know! A seasoned traveller, I visited Taiwan two years ago with my mother and became absolutely enchanted. I am beyond excited to be returning to this country. As an aspiring lawyer, I am interested in researching human rights abuses, particularly sexual and gender-based crimes (if this is a subject that intrigues you, please do approach me!), and volunteering at a local legal clinic. Aside from my professional interests, I love to ice-skate, dance (whenever, wherever), and eat gargantuan amounts of mango. From my travels in Taiwan, I have also grown particularly fond of bubble tea. All in all, please do approach me and talk to me before, during and after the conference. I not only want to serve as your Director, but I also want to be your friend.

As representatives of the nations that make up the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and observer states, it is your responsibility to direct and ultimately dictate global policy decisions in order to safeguard “international peace and security.” By working collaboratively with the P5 member states that hold veto-power (the United Kingdom, France, the United States of America, the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation), you decide whether to authorize peacekeeping operations, international sanctions or military actions. The UNSC alone has the power to create binding resolutions which all Member States of the United Nations are obligated to implement, a responsibility you should not take lightly. Peacekeeping operations being the primary means of the UNSC to assist in the resolution of crises, I look forward to our constructive debate on the zero-tolerance policy of UN Peacekeepers and the Myanmar genocide. I am certain you will come up with crucial policy solutions to these critical issues. You are, effectively, the leaders of tomorrow.

I hope that you embrace the competitive nature of debating the global issues that plaster the news, and the argumentativeness of representing a viewpoint that may not align with your own and, above all, defending it. I hope you transform this conference into a platform for researching, sharing, investigating, critically analyzing, and debating information that keeps you and us, as a community, eager to solve issues of global importance. I ask you to grasp the importance of the topics debated and develop a profound passion for either sharing this knowledge with others, or contributing your individual talents towards eradicating this issue “in the real world.” As your Director, I hope to facilitate fruitful (if not fiery) debate, complemented by an unforgettable intellectual adventure.

It is my privilege to welcome you, once again, to the UN Security Council of YMUNT V, and I look forward to meeting all of you in March. I encourage you to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns (or just wish to introduce yourself!). I am always available to you at ymunt.delegations@yira.org.

I wish you all the best with your preparations!

Yours sincerely,

Alina Glaubitz

Myanmar (also known as Burma) can be found in Southeast Asia, cradled between Bangladesh, India, China, Laos and Thailand. It borders the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, which flow out into the Indian Ocean.

Home to 54 million people, the Myanmar government recognizes 135 distinct ethnic groups.[1] The country has been gripped by widespread ethnic strife, insurgencies and religious clashes in one of the world's longest-running, ongoing civil wars. The Bamar ethnic group forms an estimated 68% of the population, which has led to efforts supporting the "Burmanization" of the country.[2] The Shan (9%), Kayin (7%) and Rohingya (4%) groups make up Myanmar's main ethnic minorities.[3]

1209 deaths per day, can be attributed to Myanmar's civil war.[4] It’s persecution of ethnic and religious minorities has resulted in a constant flow of emigrants out of the country . This has led to many refugee camps sprouting up across the East Asian region. Camps line the Indian, Bangladeshi and Thai borders with several thousand in mainland Malaysia. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that there are close to 300,000 minority refugees from Myanmar, with the majority being Rohingya, Karen, and Karenni inhabiting the Thai-Myanmar border.[5] Among these, 55,000 have fled to the United States.[6] Bangladesh, however, has received the largest influx of refugees with over 600,000 Rohingya alone.[7]

The UN Security Council of YMUNT V will be addressing the genocidal campaign against the Rohingya Muslims who live in the state of Rakhine. Because the state is partly Muslim it is referred to as "the underbelly of this Buddhist-dominated country".[8] As such, Rohingya Muslims are effectively outcasts in their own country. Following attacks on security posts by Rohingya Muslim militants in the western state of Rakhine in August 2017, the Myanmar military – who continue to wield significant political power within the state despite democratic governance – clamped down on the Rohingya.[9] The United Nations have accused Myanmar of ethnic cleansing, calling for the military to be held accountable for mass murder, rape and arson.

Burma: Republic in Southeast Asia, now officially known as Myanmar. The terms Myanmar and Burma will be used interchangeably throughout the guide.

Burmanization: the proliferation of the dominant Bamar culture over minority cultures.

Ethnic cleansing: a purposeful policy designed to remove an ethnic or religious group from a specific geographic area by murder, torture, arbitrary arrest and detention, extrajudicial executions, rape and sexual assault, severe physical injury to civilians, confinement of civilian population in ghetto areas, forcible removal, displacement and deportation of civilian population, destruction and robbery of property.

Genocide: the deliberate mass murder of a group of people, causing of serious bodily or mental harm, inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction, imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group, especially those of a particular national, religious or ethnic group.

The distinction between ethnic cleansing and genocide is the geographic element in ethnic cleansing, targeting only certain villages, cities or regions as opposed to the murder of the whole group of people, irrespective of their location.

Rakhine State: a coastal state in Myanmar.

Rohingya: a Muslim individual inhabiting western Burma/Myanmar.

For a brief period under the Toungoo Dynasty in the 16th century, Myanmar reigned as the largest empire in the history of Southeast Asia.[10] Following the three Anglo-Burmese Wars in the 19th century, the country became a British colony. The British had a particularly strong presence in the Rakhine state due to its strategic position along the coast for trade. The Rohingya, who predominantly inhabited (and still inhabit) the Rakhine, were assumed to have ties to the British and are thus historically associated with colonialism. This caused resentment towards the Rohingya because they were perceived to be supporting the British to advance their trade interests and exploit Myanmar. Myanmar became independent in 1948 as a democratic nation until it fell victim to a coup d'état in 1962. The country was then ruled by a military dictatorship.

The persecution of Burmese-Indians, Burmese-Chinese, Rohingya and other ethnic groups after the military coup led to the expulsion or emigration of over half a million people.[11] Fleeing racial discrimination and the extensive nationalization of almost all private enterprise, the remaining minorities either left the country or changed their names to blend in with the broader Burmese society. In the eyes of the Myanmar authorities and its majority Buddhist population, the Rohingya simply do not exist. "They are not Rohingya," Burmese are instructed by buddhist monks, "There is no such group in Myanmar such as Rohingya Muslims."[15] They are thus often labeled as illegal immigrants from neighboring countries.

The military's power in Myanmar is not new. After the coup d'état, Burma’s generals spent over 15 years drafting their Constitution, instituting an intricate governmental structure with many built-in political powers for the commander-in-chief.[12] The military not only controls civilian affairs through its authority over the Ministry of Home Affairs and the General Administration Department, but it also wields economic power with its ownership of Myanmar’s largest corporations: the Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited and Myanmar Economic Corporation. These two secretive companies operate in many sectors, including jade mining, energy, banking, insurance, telecommunications, transportation, tourism and information technology.[13]

The Rohingya crisis is not only ethnic in nature, but also religious. The Rohingya are a Sunni Muslim minority (members of the largest branch of Islam, often referred to as orthodox Muslims) in a Buddhist country. This "[o]pposition to Muslim migration became a key point in the mid-century Burmese National Movement, which coincided with a Buddhist religious revival."[14]

As such, Rohingya marginalization can be attributed to 3 sources:

1. Rohingya support of the British during colonization

2. Religious tensions between Buddhists and Muslims

3. Categorization of Rohingya as illegal immigrants (from Bangladesh)

Rohingya Muslims are denied education for their children, are barred from marrying, find it difficult to find employment, have their homes are burnt down and have their property robbed. They have their every movement controlled and restricted by Burmese officials because they are followers of Islam, and are consequently not considered to be legitimate citizens of Myanmar.

A 2-year Amnesty International investigation labelled the situation in Burma as a contemporary type of "apartheid", similar to that of South Africa that separated black people from white people before apartheid was abolished in favor of democracy in 1994.[16]

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called the actions of the Myanmar army a "textbook case of ethnic cleansing."[17] A further UN report also concluded that the "Myanmar security forces purposely destroyed the property of the Rohingyas [and] scorched their dwellings and entire villages in northern Rakhine State, not only to drive the population out in droves but also to prevent the fleeing Rohingya victims from returning to their homes."[18]

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, former political prisoner, and the country's de facto leader, has come under attack among human-rights advocates who accuse her of failing to do more to protect the Rohingya.[19] At the same time, under the Constitution, Suu Kyi has no authority over the armed forces.

An agreement signed on the 26th of November 2017 between Bangladesh and Myanmar facilitated the "voluntary" repatriation of more than 620,000 Rohingya civilians, returning them back to Myanmar. This served to exonerate Myanmar's military of any responsibility for their displacement.[20] Nevertheless, Rohingya refugees can now be found in almost every country in the region.

The leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, has travelled to Burma to meet the country’s President and begin talks with the military. He was, however, denied access to a camp where hundreds of Rohingya fear for their lives.[21]

Despite Myanmar’s establishment of the National Human Rights Commission, no positive action has yet been taken to resolve the crisis.[22] Presently, the situation has been briefly discussed in the UN Security Council (unsuccessfully) and referred to the International Criminal Court.

Rohingya Muslims (Myanmar civilians, refugees, and the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army [ARSA] rebel group)

Myanmar armed forces

Myanmar government under State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi

Bangladesh

India

China

As the U.S. and Europe grow increasingly concerned about the Rohingya refugee crisis in Myanmar, Asian businesses continue to invest in the country. Chinese companies in particular have spearheaded this process, investing $18.1 billion in aid to Myanmar since 2010.[23] India has also invested in humanitarian projects, but its initiative to deliver relief aid for displaced people in the Rakhine state is also tactical, with the hope of expanding relations with its neighbouring country at a time when China is seeking to extend its influence in the region.[24] India’s Kaladan project, its “dream connectivity project in the region” is central to these efforts. Very similar to Britain’s colonial interests in the Rakhine state, both India and China would profit from the coastal access the Rakhine grants them for business endeavours.

1531 - Toungoo dynasty, with Portuguese help, reunites country as Burma.

1948 - Burma becomes independent with U Nu as prime minister.

1962 - U Nu's faction ousted in military coup led by Gen Ne Win, who abolishes the federal system and inaugurates "the Burmese Way to Socialism".

1990 - Opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) wins landslide victory in general election, but the result is ignored by the military.

2007 January - China and Russia veto a draft US resolution at the UN Security Council urging Myanmar to stop persecuting minority and opposition groups.

2012 April - NLD candidates sweep the board in parliamentary by-elections, with Aung San Suu Kyi elected. The European Union suspends all non-military sanctions against Burma for a year.

2015 February - Government withdraws temporary voting rights from Muslim Rohingyas ahead of proposed constitutional referendum, following street protests by Buddhists.

2015 March - A draft ceasefire agreement is signed between the government and 16 rebel groups.

2015 May - Hundreds of Muslim Rohingyas migrants leave by sea in flimsy boats, along with migrants from Bangladesh. UN criticizes failure of south-east Asian states to rescue them.

2015 November - Opposition National League for Democracy - led by Aung San Suu Kyi - wins enough seats in parliamentary elections to form a government.

2017 October - The number of Rohingya Muslims who have fled military action in Rakhine state and sought refuge in Bangladesh is estimated at one million. [25]

The Myanmar government pledged to "encourage those who have left Myanmar to return voluntarily and safely to their households and original places of residence or to a safe and secure place nearest to it of their choice" and will not have to be "settled in temporary places for a long period of time".[26] And although the Myanmar government promised to construct new houses to replace the Rohingya villages which were burned down by the army, no timeline or date for completion has been set. In reality, returnees will likely end up in refugee camps living in perilous conditions.

The agreement additionally requires that the Rohingya legally prove that they are Myanmar residents with a list of documents that can be used as evidence of residency.

Amnesty International considers it "completely unrealistic to ask many of the fleeing Rohingya to prove residency" who will have "lost crucial documents during their flight in panic into Bangladesh".[27] This insistence on verification will deter many from returning.

Olof Blomqvist, a researcher with Amnesty International, poses the following dilemma: “With whole villages burned to the ground, where will the Rohingya live? Rohingya are still fleeing across the border into Bangladesh on a daily basis, and back in Myanmar, they are living under a system of state-sponsored discrimination and segregation that amounts to apartheid. While Rohingya refugees have the right to return to Myanmar, under international law, no one should be forced back to a situation where they could face persecution or serious rights violations”.[28]

The Rohingya form the largest stateless population in the world. Only by resolving historic ethnic and religious tensions, can this civil war and consequent humanitarian crisis be settled. In order to do so, delegates should consider:

What is the role of foreign journalists, international aid organizations and non-governmental organizations? Should they be given access to the Rakhine state and the Rohingya refugee camps to assist those in need?

How can Myanmar’s National Human Rights Commission become an effective, transparent oversight body for human rights abuses, holding both the government and the military accountable? Or alternatively, should a Truth and Reconciliation Commission be established?

How could the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, UN Human Rights Council and UN Security Council collaborate to safely redistribute, return and protect the rights of Rohingya refugees across the East Asian region?

What could the role of economic sanctions be to exert positive political pressure?

Is it necessary to deploy UN peacekeeping forces to Myanmar?

Should the International Criminal Court investigate, prosecute and bring to justice the war criminals that perpetrated the ethnic cleansing operation?

It is the responsibility of the UN Security Council to protect the Rohingya Muslims, to safeguard the most persecuted minority in the world.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_k9SSsuzcWc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZEjZR_sQxY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OB5kcKpcjY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0Dn0Udiau8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgVYWLgFtVk

EndNotes

[1] Embassy of the Union of Myanmar, "Composition of the Different Ethnic Groups in Myanmar," Embassy of the Union of Myanmar, last modified 2017, http://www.embassyofmyanmar.be/ABOUT/ethnicgroups.htm.

[2] "Background Note: Burma", Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, U.S. Department of State, last modified August 2005.

[3] Ibid.

[4] 2017 World Population by Country, "Myanmar Population," 2017 World Population by Country, last modified October 11, 2017, http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/myanmar-population/#.

[5] UNHCR, "Myanmar Refugees in South East Asia", last modified April 2006, http://www.unhcr.org/en-us/449676844.pdf.

[6] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "Office Of Refugee Resettlement: Data", last modified 2017, https://web.archive.org/web/20120914041135/http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/data/.

[7] UNHCR, "Myanmar Refugees in South East Asia".

[8] Alex Crawford, "Hidden: Rohingya Camp That the Pope Will Not See on Myanmar Visit," Sky News, last modified November 27, 2017, https://news.sky.com/story/hidden-rohingya-camp-that-the-pope-will-not-see-on-myanmar-visit-11147274.

[9] Simon Lewis, "Myanmar's Suu Kyi to Visit China Amid Western Criticism over Rohingya," Reuters, last modified November 27, 2017, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-myanmar/myanmars-suu-kyi-to-visit-china-amid-western-criticism-over-rohingya-exodus-idUSKBN1DR0AS.

[10] Lieberman, Victor B. (2003). Strange Parallels: Southeast Asia in Global Context, c. 800–1830, volume 1, Integration on the Mainland. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-80496-7.

[11] Smith, Martin (1991). Burma – Insurgency and the Politics of Ethnicity. London, New Jersey: Zed Books. pg 43–44, 98, 56–57, 176.

[12] Richard C. Paddock, "Myanmar General's Purge of Rohingya Lifts His Popular Support," The New York Times, last modified November 26, 2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/26/world/asia/myanmar-rohingya-min-aung-hlaing.html.

[13] Ibid.

[14] Harvard Divinity School, "The Rohingya," Religious Literacy Project, last modified 2017, https://rlp.hds.harvard.edu/faq/rohingya.

[15] Crawford, "Hidden: Rohingya Camp That the Pope Will Not See on Myanmar Visit".

[16] Ibid.

[17] David Bergman, "Rohingya Return to Myanmar 'puts them in Tiger's Grasp'," Al Jazeera, last modified November 27, 2017, http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/11/rohingya-return-myanmar-puts-tiger-grasp-171127155924889.html.

[18] Ibid,

[19] Supunnabul Suwannakij and Jason Koutsoukis, "Businesses Are Still Investing Billions in Refugee Crisis-Hit Myanmar," Bloomberg, last modified November 28, 2017, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-27/a-3-billion-project-shows-myanmar-s-pull-despite-refugee-crisis.

[20] Bergman, "Rohingya Return to Myanmar 'puts them in Tiger's Grasp'".

[21] BBC, "Pope Starts Myanmar Trip with Army Talks," BBC News, last modified November 27, 2017, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-42132594.

[22] Republic of the Union of Myanmar, "Myanmar National Human Rights Commission," Republic of the Union of Myanmar, last modified 2017, http://www.mnhrc.org.mm/en/.

[23] Suwannakij and Koutsoukis, "Businesses Are Still Investing Billions in Refugee Crisis-Hit Myanmar".

[24] Saibal Dasguptal, "China’s Huge Rakhine Investment Behind Its Tacit Backing of Myanmar on Rohingyas," The Times of India, last modified September 26, 2017, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/china-will-back-myanmar-on-rohingya-crisis-because-it-is-investing-in-rakhine/articleshow/60845089.cms.

[25] BBC, "Pope Starts Myanmar Trip with Army Talks".

[26] Bergman, "Rohingya Return to Myanmar 'puts them in Tiger's Grasp'".

[27] Ibid.

[28] Ibid.