The Spark

the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist

“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx

Massacre of Rohingya People

Sep 17, 2018

It has been a year since the Rohingya people fled Burma, now called Myanmar, after massacres, torture and murder by the Burmese army. They are protesting their treatment by the Myanmar government while living in refugee camps in Bangladesh.

One year ago, the Burmese army led an enormous attack against these people, who have lived in the northwest of the country going back a thousand years. They are predominantly Muslim, in a country that is mainly Buddhist. Since 1982 they have been discriminated against by nationalist Burmese, denied access to jobs, public schools and health care.

On August 25, 2017, the army entered their villages, burning them down, murdering at least 3,000 Rohingya, causing them to flee across the border. At least 700,000 now live in makeshift camps in one district of Bangladesh.

Shortly thereafter, a U.N. report accused non-commissioned officers and a Burmese general of following a policy of genocide. The report also criticized Nobel Peace Prize recipient and prime minister Aung San Suu Kyi, for failing to use her position as head of the government or her moral authority to prevent these events.

The Rohingyas want justice, which they won’t get from the U.N. This international institution represents the great powers, who pretend today to fault the Myanmar government, while they actually support the interests of international corporations, like Chevron and Total, exploiting the resources of Myanmar.