Who is Burmese? Buddhist Nationalism and Buddhist-Muslim Conflict in Myanmar

• Main Authors: Ruo-Ning Lee, 李若寧
• Other Authors: Chen-Dong Tso
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2017
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/p2kx34

碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 政治學研究所 === 105 === 　Since the independence in 1948, the ethnic conflicts have remained critical in Myanmar, and after several decades of military dictatorship, the regimes have transformed gradually from authoritarianism towards liberalization and democratization. However, the nation is still not at peace. The hidden problems come to the surface, and among them, the increasing hatred between the Buddhists and Muslims calls the attention of the international community. During the political and economic transition, the main bloc led by monks that defends the Buddhist values and traditions targets the Muslims in the country as the primary enemy. The Buddhist monks and their followers claim that the Muslims – especially the Rohingyas – threaten the status of Buddhism and deteriorate the traditional social values within Myanmar. 　　Buddhism is a key element which can not be neglected in the deliberations of political development and socio-culture in Myanmar. Moreover, to understand the role of Buddhism and its influence in the Burmese national identity and political activities, this article sheds light on following aspects. First, the context of religious development and its impacts on the policies within the country. Second, the Communalism theory that takes the interactions between religion and national identity into concern to account for the potential causes and the essence of the conflict. Lastly, the further inference on how such intense mentality of religion affects the political policies, social relations, the Buddhist-Muslim relationship during the country’s democratization, and the potential fluctuations within Myanmar.