According to statements issued by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), two boats carrying more than 500 Rohingya sank in June and July, and it is understood that many of those on board are unlikely to have survived.
It is indeed distressing that an article like this has to be written only when tragedies such as these occur. For decades, the Rohingya who were displaced to refugee camps in Bangladesh have had to struggle for survival every day under numerous restrictions on their movement and employment, and in their efforts to obtain human dignity and freedom. Resulting in some Rohingya risking their lives on extremely dangerous sea journeys in search of a new future.
A lack of empathy has been conditioned by fears promulgated by some groups within Myanmar, most prominently among Burman and Rakhine ethnicity. Those fears are stocked by emphasis on difference. Differences in skin color, religion, culture and language; the view that they are not indigenous ethnic people; and the belief that the high birthrate among the Rohingya could overwhelm Myanmar society. Whereas the Chin have the highest recorded birthrate in Myanmar, almost twice the national average for all ethnicities within the country, no such fear is projected at the Chin. The Rohingya have traditionally resided primarily in 3 townships of Rakhine State – Buthidaung, Rathidaung and Maungdaw. These three townships combined geographically comprise less than 1% of all of Myanmar territory, hardly a springboard for dominance.
A focus on difference diminishes or eliminates the social space necessary for the development of empathy and understanding. In its place some groups have perpetuated the wrong view of “others who are not us” and ideas that “problems should be handled and resolved through violence or coercive armed force” to take firm root. Judging from the fact that even now there are sadly some people who rejoice at news of Rohingya deaths, it will remain difficult for Myanmar society to find a path toward living peacefully amid differences.
According to the Buddha’s core teaching of Karma, the lack of peace within Myanmar society is not a curse or punishment imposed by an unseen powerful being. Rather, the collective actions of the individual members of Myanmar society have resulted in collective consequences. Whether unknowingly or knowingly, the people in Myanmar who supported and encouraged the unlawful killings and forced displacement of the Rohingya in 2017, failed to understand and sympathize with their pain and decades of ostracization. Militarism and “us and them” thinking did not affect only the Rohingya. As our society is an interconnected being, it is not possible to limit such drastic action to only one group. The view that Rohingya are different from us and are less than human, and the belief that it is appropriate to suppress and deal with them through violent means, have now spread to every part of Myanmar.
Rejoicing in the downfall of others is being cultivated by the ongoing war in Myanmar. This ,however, is the exact opposite of the Buddhist understanding of the Four Brahmavihāra Practice (Metta, Karuna, Mudita and Upekkha). Supporters on the revolutionary side may not be able to understand why military supporters rejoice over the deaths of civilians, children, young people, women, mothers and fathers. They may easily think of them only as beings without humanity , as who are different from ‘us’. On the other hand, some supporters of the revolution, when they suspect someone of supporting the military, have enthusiastically supported subjecting that person’s entire family to collective mob justice and punishment.
On both sides there are people who have shared the idea that the Rohingya should be dealt with harshly and rejoice over Rohingya deaths. Although the two sides may differ in how they define who belongs to their own group, both share a lack of sympathy and understanding toward groups they define as different from themselves, and that they tend to think of them as less than human.
Sharing Pain Is Directly Proportional to Building Peace
At present, all communities of Myanmar society are experiencing pain. Nearly four million people have had to leave their homes and become displaced because of war—in other words, because of violence. It is estimated that between four and five million young people have had their basic education interrupted. People living in rural areas are suffering from forced recruitment by various sides, and are losing their security and human freedoms because of war and violence. People living in urban areas are also struggling with great difficulty amid high commodity prices, and physical and psychological insecurity. Migrants living abroad are also experiencing exploitation, a lack of protection and degrading treatment in other countries. Over the past five years, the leaders of the revolution have appeared to assume every problem could easily be blamed on the opposing group and that everything would become all right once they came to power.
Success within the Spring Revolution is being measured through the seizure of territory and the infliction of harm and pain upon members of the military. Without recognition and sharing in the pain of all people and different groups, various armed organizations have already adopted the idea that, because of their own pain and sacrifices, only they should have the right to govern. This has resulted in a diminishing of the foundations for dialogue, negotiation and the building of understanding among different groups and fed a culture of coercion through armed force to take root.
In reality, sharing in pain is not merely a moral standard; it is also an objective necessity for resolving conflicts among different groups and finding a future path in which everyone can participate. Therefore, without such a change in social norms, statements calling on partners to discuss matters and seek solutions together amount only to rubbing camphor oil on a chronic disease.
As long as people compete over their pain as though it were a contest in which each side tries to outdo the other, they will not be able to build understanding with one another. Without such understanding, there will continue to be no future in which people can live together, and peace will remain far away. Therefore, for the people of Myanmar to share in one another’s pain, it is essential to cultivate the moral and emotional capacity of the whole society, beginning with each individual and practising it through everyday speech and conduct. It is necessary to reflect on fear, hatred and anxiety toward those who are different, and to begin changing oneself. Empathy with the experience of others does not come easily, especially when we ourselves are in pain. We must consciously practise recognising and sympathising with the experiences and pain of those who are different, which can lead to genuine compassion. Rather than merely reciting loving-kindness, every group must participate in making it spread and come alive within society. At the same time, the entire conception of citizenship rights and of who is included in “us” must be transformed broadly. In particular, it is essential to go beyond classifications based on inborn factors such as belonging to an indigenous group or sharing the same ethnicity or religion, as well as political labels of “us and them,” and to create an inclusive national identity that embraces all those who desire the common good of Myanmar society.