Myanmar's Enemy Within: Buddhist Violence and the Making of a Muslim 'Other'

by Francis Wade, Paul French (Series Editor)

In 2017, Myanmar’s military launched a campaign of violence against the Rohingya minority that UN experts later said amounted to a genocide. More than seven hundred thousand civilians fled to Bangladesh in what became the most concentrated flight of refugees since the Rwanda genocide of 1994. The warning signs of impending catastrophe that had built over years were downplayed by Western backers of the political transition, and only when the exodus began did the world finally come to acknowledge a catastrophe that had been long in the making.
In this updated edition of the book that foreshadowed a genocide, Francis Wade explores how the manipulation of identities by an anxious ruling elite laid the foundations for mass violence. It asks: who gets to define a nation? How can democratic rights be weaponized against a minority? And why, at a time when the majority of citizens in Myanmar had begun to experience freedoms unseen for half a century, did much-lauded civilian leaders like Aung San Suu Kyi become complicit in the most heinous of crimes?

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Politics, Asia, Buddhism, War, Religion

456 pages, Paperback

Published September 15, 2019

About the author

Francis Wade is an innovator, content author and management consultant. He owns Framework Consulting, a firm headquartered in Hollywood, Florida and spends much of this time in Kingston, Jamaica, a place he's called home since 2005. Francis is a graduate of Cornell University in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering, where he earned Bachelors and Masters Degrees. Most of his attention is spent on Time Management 2.0 and turning new productivity research into practical ideas that leaders of companies can use. He has done marathons and several triathlons, including one Ironman-distance race.

Reviews

[Jaymee · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read, meant for the layperson interested in the ongoing Rohingya crisis. The whole book was repetitive however, and only a couple of chapters really went through. Felt like a journalistic article/travelogue/political essay, none of which gained enough merit to be called as such. What I feel most disappointed about was that the interviewees faded in the background. As soon as their stories were about to be heard, it seemed the author's voice/presence returns. Would have appreciated hearing their stories, and a shorter book would have made a stronger impact rather than lengthening one's argument. I'm wondering if this is a case of 'rush-publishing a book on a hot topic'; if so, that explains a lot of the missteps (at least for me) in the book. I'm not even going into the book's front cover, or the "template" ending (the metaphorical rainbow and the hand-holding, food-sharing resolution that neatly ties things together to counter the bleakness of the topic). I'd still recommend for background reading as it does try to look at the history (though it repeats in every chapter), plus chapters 9 & 10's (finally!) attempt at a look inside the everyday persecution these people face, and the fallacy of nation-building and its grand narratives.

[Basmaish · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about the crisis happening in Myanmar with the Rohingya. It details the conflict between the Buddhists and Muslims, how and why it all started, and discusses the historical aspect of how this rift has existed long before the 2012 incident that started all the chaos that is happing right now.

Fighting for religion with each part assuming they are righteous, more deserving and wanting to be the ruler at the very top of the pyramid seems to be pretty much the driving force in most of the wars happening right now. It's sad how human life is not really valuable when compared to someone's belief system and how humans/governments are desperate to preserve or to assert one's own belief over another. What's happening to the Rohingya is devastating. Prejudice over religion, class and ethnicity exists everywhere in the world and in some parts more prevalent than others causing a massive humanitarian crisis. Where can one go when one is kicked out from their home, becoming a refugee and knowing most countries are unwilling to help or are unwelcoming... Sigh....

I found this book informative, straightforward and satisfied the curiosity I had about this issue. However, certain parts felt like they could've been summarized instead of prolonging the discussion and many parts felt slightly repetitive and I found myself halfway through skipping paragraphs while reading.

[Around the world pick for Myanmar.]

[Hunter Marston · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an important and timely book. Wade's insider account documenting the origins of Myanmar's divisions and ongoing ethnic cleansing may lay out in the most accessible and moving format the ground of a potential genocide. A heroic and emotionally laden account.

[Zainab Abdul Aziz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let the book speak for itself.

“One of the great paradoxes of group violence is that, so often, a key driver, is the misplaced anger that results from disenfranchisement of one or both groups by the political leadership. During the rule of the military, all communities in Myanmar were denied the ability to negotiate their grievances through institutional channels. Those had been closed off entirely. For some, like the ethnic minority groups who rose up one by one in the decades after independence, violence towards the junta appeared the only viable alternative expression. But if that leadership could redirect the target of that anger away from itself and towards another group, framing it as a competitor for the scarce political and economic capital being sought by in the in-group, then the violence would play out on a more horizontal axis. That would deflect animosity away from the leadership and towards the more immediate threat: one’s neighbours.”


“Only a tiny fraction of Rohingya I spoke to in Bangladesh in the year after the violence had voiced a desire to cross back over anytime soon. Yet still, it was only those who would return almost at whatever cost that seemed able to leverage a degree of control over their future. Despite the periodic protests it felt at times that a sense not just of resignation, but of a deeper fatalism, had settled over many in the camp. They all wanted to go home, and they wanted justice and some kind of compensation - financial, perhaps or just the recognition of what had happened, this mustn't be forgotten. But as to what would come next, they felt it was no longer in their hands. The military in Myanmar had become a faraway monster, a brooding, malevolent presence that held the mountains and plains across the river. There was a darkness over there. But their present situation too was precarious. Who knew what the mercurial government in Bangladesh would do next? And so, they said, it would have to be Allah who now guided and protected them. So much had already been taken away, and their faith should no longer be placed in human hands.”

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Y entonces me pregunto ¿De verdad quiero hacer tesis?

Es libro que explica muy bien la situación Rohinyá tanto en Myanmar como en Bangladesh. Entre más avanzaba, más se me apachurraba el corazón.

Gracias británicos por nada, si no hubieran hecho su desmadre los Rohinyá no estarían sufriendo

[aneez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Timely, lucid, chronological, sympathetic to Rohingya but clearly (and correctly in my opinion) points out that the Rakhine people too as victims of the flawed nation building. This exercise that prioritizes uniformity over unity with Buddhism and Bamar people as the backbone of Myanmar slowly and steadily leads to 2017 "genocidal" violence against the Rohingya's. The pain, humiliation and everyday persecution that hides behind the word "stateless" is vividly and shockingly bought out by the author by citing examples such as expecting mothers being evicted from hospitals, left to die reducing family to poverty in the process. The author points to arbitrary "135 national races" officially recognized by Burmese government as the root cause of making 'others' out of Rohingya in specific and Muslims in general. This ideology actively drags down the rest of the Burmese Muslim community who previously were considered Burmese and equal citizens, now are treated with suspicion. My knowledge of Burma is very limited, but patterns of horizontal violence & subversion of democracy laid out by the book fits quite well with rest of modern world where nationalism and religiosity are build on the bodies of minorities.

[MT · Rating 3 out of 5]

Agreed with some reviewers here that:

(1) The book gives a solid general overview of the conflict;
(2) I would have wished for some of the repetitive explanations to be replaced by more direct perspective of interviewees, which I find more valuable;
(3) Overall, the book is a bit too much for a layperson who may not be as familiar with the Myanmar history, but I have a hunch, not academically sound to a sufficient degree to be taken seriously by academics;
(4) Disclaimer - I know that the author's close friend who published a positive review in a paper spoke in private against Bertil Linter's review in Irrawaddy, but I would take Linter's point that in a book about Muslim identity in Myanmar, Francis Wade has overlooked some notable relevant individuals prominent both today and in history.

I hear of another book deal on the topic, this time by a female author. I would be interested in reading that one once it gets published.

[Neil H · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incisive and terribly engaging book on the dichotomy between the religious Muslims and Buddhists and its claim to statehood, nationalism, legitimacy and curiously at the dawn of "democracy". I learnt a lot and true to form we should never jump to conclusions on what we perceive a transition from a militant autocratic regime towards that something else will be an easy and obvious solution. We should also question ourselves if the paradox of a nationalistic Buddhist nation is what is currently happening and has been happening in Myanmar.

I felt a special connection to this read as the writer seems truly engaged. And curiously to be engaged demands that you also must be objective.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Detailed account of how communal tension between Buddhists and Muslims in Myanmar developed and manipulated by ultranationalist monks and military forces. My only complaint is the writing style, sometimes he injects his analysis too much. Also, I may be biased, I have just read John Carreyrou’s Bad Blood and am a huge fan of Barbara Demick’s book on North Korea, Nothing to Envy. For me those two books are the real good stuff. In contrast, Wade’s writing can be tedious, repetitive, and meandering. That said, am still glad I read this book, although I feel like it could have been significantly shortened if the writing was tighter.

[Anthony Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even if you have been following the various crises in Myanmar's Rakhine state closely, this is a very worthwhile read, full of deeply personal interviews and observations. I remember feeling exactly the same way when encountering a rural game of chinlone with a mixed team of Rakhine and Rohingya when I was in Rakhine state in 2013. Ends on a hopeful note, which is dearly needed now.

[Sookie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A succinct summary of ongoing Rohingya crisis in Burma/Myanmar. The book presents the events chronologically and backs it up with examples.

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book. As a scholar and frequent visitor to Myanmar, I found there to be considerable merit to this book, which existed alongside problematic methods of conveyance. Overall, I felt that this book is important, but not as a book to introduce Myanmar to individuals not knowing much about the country or the context. It is for seasoned Burma-watchers, certainly, which is actually one of it's positive points in my opinion.

On that note, this is a book that takes a different angle to recounting Myanmar's history. I learned a great deal about Rakhine State and the trajectory of ethnic minorities in Myanmar from the early chapters and really appreciated that it didn't paraphrase the same history that most Myanmar books do. As someone who studies this country in depth, re-reading about Than Shwe's rise and Ne Win's policies can get a bit repetitive, but this took a new perspective and created a new angle for inspection. It is rather advanced in that respect. I also felt that this was a very well-researched account. It is evident that the author spent lots of time on the ground and has a good idea of the context. This is an important book and I am glad to have read it. Especially the middle section really presents some interesting ideas about the divide-and-conquer strategy employed by the military.

However, there are some problems with this book. First, the organization is messy. It is all over the place. Chronological organization would probably have been more effective, rather than jumping from thing to thing and then back to thing #1 approximately 50 pages later. It made it hard to conceptualize exactly what was happening when, and how the conflict has progressed. Similarly, there was a lot of conjecture and the author's opinion inserted into the book, which I understand is his right, but at the same time is rather frustrating because while some of it is fairly accurate approximations and really good points, it isn't backed up with much evidence (not that much can be found), but that is something that really bothers me in texts like this.

Finally, I would have liked to see some of the interview transcripts for this book, as I believe that it would have rounded out the book very nicely. Perhaps, that is something that can be done in future editions. That way, it would be clear that the author was not asking leading questions or prompting particular answers that conform to his self-proscribed tendency to side with the victims who are portrayed as innocents. Furthermore, I did find one aspect very troubling. The author very much exposed U Maung Soe's identity and described in detail both how he falsified his documents and his positions in military/government. In Myanmar, it is still not totally safe to be outed in this respect and I hope that U Maung Soe faced no repercussions as a result. There was nothing in the text that assured the safety of the individual, such as the assignation of a pseudonym or the prior approval of the individual being interviewed (who may not have known what he was getting into). As a researcher, this is a troubling detail that I wish had been resolved. Regardless of how one thinks of U Maung Soe or any of the individuals named in this text, it is important to think of how the military in Myanmar and nationalists at large may view such accounts in context of this book.

Again, I liked this text. Despite it's flaws, it is a good work and one that I feel is important for deepening an understanding of the context surrounding the Rakhine State conflicts.

[Raja Subramanian · Rating 5 out of 5]

The modern history of Myanmar has been extremely tragic, first having to bear the yoke of colonialism, then face a brutal occupation by the Japanese during World War II, a brief but tumultuous period of democracy post-independence, and followed by decades of hardships under a repressive military regime. Today, it is still saddled with a myriad of problems under a fledgling democracy. The ethnic strife in the Rakhine state has attracted tremendous international attention in recent times. The book “Myanmar’s Enemy Within” by Francis Wade is an extremely well-researched book that goes beyond a surface level simplicity of narration, to deeply probe the various aspects of the violence in Rakhine and its devastating consequences on people.

Today, a majority of the citizens of Myanmar enjoy a great deal of freedom, something they are experiencing after several decades. Yet, a section of the population in Rakhine who are Muslims are caught in a vortex of violence, marginalization, and depravity. The book provides a detailed account of the origins of the religious-ethnic divide, the role of the colonial period, the identity politics, the growth of religious nationalism, a major effort at social engineering under military rule, and the continuing angst between people divided by religion. However, it is important to read the book and understand the complexity of Myanmar without being judgmental quickly. Myanmar is extremely complex in its ethnic makeup, history, and culture. To view anything in binary terms – good versus bad, one religion versus another, autocracy versus democracy – isn’t sufficient to understand the nature of the violence and its roots in Rakhine. One needs to patiently peel the various layers to get fresh perspectives, each one enriching in understanding Myanmar better while at the same time saddened by the human tragedy.

I liked reading the entire book, but Chapter 10 titled “U Maung Soe: An Outcaste is Disguise” was a curious one. It briefly chronicles the life (said to be a true story) of a Muslim born in Rakhine, who manages to change his identity to being a Buddhist, joins the army, works in Rakhine too and plays a part in the repression of Muslims as part of his duties, even rises to the rank of a Captain, then retires from the army to move to the construction business, and talks to the author about this subterfuge. Should I accept this to be entirely true and bereft of any embellishment, or take it with a tiny pinch of salt? Of course stranger things have happened in real life elsewhere.

It is a must-read for anyone trying to understand and make sense of the religious-ethnic divide and yearns for peace and prosperity in a country that has seen decades of conflict, repression and poverty.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the fact that the author comdemn Western countries, UN and Suu Kyi. I bought this book expecting to learn about the ordeal Rohingya have been in. I didn't know much about the border crossing and the tension between Rohingya (or other ethnic minorities) and Rakhine (or Buddists). Having grown up in a place where people respect others' religion, I never experienced / witnessed the trouble from swapping to another religion. To the past me, religion is something personal even that may affect your way of living. The parts about people chasing another religion got beaten were alarming. On the other hand, the chapter about U Maung Soe surviving as an outcast made me reflect what should be considered right and what should be considered wrong. I used to have clearly extreme right and wrong zones and didn't know there's a viable option to live through the days. U Maung Soe demonstrated a new way of survival in extreme situation which is enlightening. Besides, the other chapter reminiscing the evening / night of football match in the old cinema hut is phenomonal too. I didn't expect a chapter of hopefulness that reminds us of how all humans are just humans after all those tragedies.
Even though I have not been to Myanmar before, this book really helped me develop emotional connection to the people who the author interviewed. I would really love to see justice, peace and equality in Myanmar soon. The people there regardless of their religion and skin tone deserve a bright future.
Last but not least, I truly adored the writing. The author made those scene so vivid and I couldn't stop admiring his words.

[Ivani Yuhendra]

Konflik Rohingya ini booming pas saya kuliah semester pertama, dan di situ rata2 media membeberkan alasannya karena Myanmar ga nganggep Rohingya sebagai salah satu etnik di negara mereka. Pemerintah seakan mendukung kekerasan terhadap Myanmar meskipun waktu itu mata dunia menuntut Myanmar untuk menghentinkan kekerasan.
Tapi, di buku ini saya diperlihatkan dua sisi yang berbeda. Bukan hanya kekerasan terhadap Rohingya, tetapi juga ketidakberdayaan pemerintah dalam menangani konflik ini, gimana massa Buddhist yang besar menguasai negara dan bahkan bisa membuat Negara ga berkutik.
Buku ini menjelaskan dengan detail gimana kekerasan terjadi bukan cuma karena perbedaan agama, tetapi juga ada keterkaitan dengan jihad dan terorisme, dan juga dari kekerasan ini lahirnya budaya 'apartheid' baru di Myanmar.
Bagus, tapi terkesan repetitif. Dan, sebenarnya kalau di-remove beberapa bagian, buku ini ga terlalu panjang panjang banget. Setidaknya walaupun repetitif, bisa memberikan perspektif berpikir baru mengenai konflik Rohingya.

[Suysauce · Rating 3 out of 5]

For starters, I walked into this book feet first hoping for a complete journalistic narrative of the Rohingya Crisis. Turns out, Wade writes with the flair of an anthropologist in several parts. He is a seasoned journalist with diverse breadth of knowledge, that I inferred through his timely references to the works of Hannah Arendt and Arjun Appadurai while discussing the mundaneness of genocidal violence.

He does claim at the outset that this book is a product of his visits to Myanmar and mainly limited to his perspectives as an outsider. Admittedly, a few parts were marked with historical inaccuracies and his creation of the “enemy within” necessitated further analysis. Some chapters in the middle felt rather repetitive with only additions of firsthand accounts of the violence.

Regardless, Wade’s book provides a good background of the Rohingya crisis and raises important questions about the neocolonial processes of “othering” ethnic minorities in the broader context of South Asia.

Young, fresh, and timely a piece of work.

[Daisy · Rating 3 out of 5]

┊ 我已相當了解種族清洗和種族滅絕的力學，很清楚儘管這樣的行動是以瘋狂殺戮引人側目，源頭卻從很早之前就悄悄開始，不是從行動，而是從概念：這些人不是我們的一分子。┊

緬甸，總共有135個以上的民族，讓我們本來從小時候說的九族變成現在十六族的台灣原住民族數量顯得小巫見大巫。

對於緬甸其實除了翁山蘇姬以外其他都沒什麼聽過（我才疏學淺孤陋寡聞🥲），而且其實對於翁山蘇姬也只是偶爾看到的新聞報導上得知。

2010年代的羅興亞人難民潮、種族滅絕事件，慚愧地承認我也不太有印象… 沒想到在不遠的亞洲國家竟然發生了讓人如此不安的事件。

本書作者為一名緬甸、東南亞記者，整本書其實不容易讀；是一本厚厚的報導資料，各個章節的時間順序也不一致，很神奇的是因為失眠看了這本書卻也沒有因此睡著，下次來讀個達爾文的物種起源試試看好了…

（不小心扯開話題😂

歷史上我們可以看到不管在什麼地方、什麼時候，發生民族之間的動亂，其實原因不外乎宗教、種族和領土。而羅興亞人就因為種族不同和伊斯蘭教的關係，被以佛教為國教的緬甸排出社會。

最剛開始，是巧立名目收了他們的身份證件，新的證件上必須註明「種族」和「宗教」，而他們也逐漸的失去了參政權甚至公民資格，被關在集中區受到嚴格的控管。

只要區別並貶低對方、去人格化，並且製造出大眾的恐懼感，就能產生憎恨與不安，進而引發了種族滅絕事件。明明我們在歷史上也看過數次類似的事件，它仍然還在發生…

身為公民，我想其實辨別真相並「阻止錯誤的事情發生」也很重要。不免讓我想到馬丁•尼莫拉有名的碑文《沈默的代價》。即使只是保持沈默，也算是無形中推動了慘劇發生。

[Wallace Thorns · Rating 1 out of 5]

The problem in this book was expertly explained by Bertil Litner. But I'll add that Wade either didn't know, or ignored, that Muslims in Burma / Myanmar are not all the same. They live all over the country and they are fully integrated into Myanmar society and governance. For example, the Rohingya in Rakhine State did not speak Burmese, but Muslims in other parts of Myanmar did. Even one of Aung San Suu Kyi's leading advisers was Muslim. I could go on, but the only othering taking place in this book is by Wade and really, the whole Rohingya lobby who totally ignore the crimes of the Rohingya fighters who also massacred Buddhists.

Read it if you must, but it is biased and misleading. Shame on the author.

[Maxine Blackwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muslims have been an established presence in western Myanmar for hundreds of years, yet the Buddhist majority regards them as foreign usurpers. In 2012, conflict between these two groups escalated into an all-out assault on Muslims. Isolated incidents provided the justification for this violence, but it drew on deeper roots. Fostered by British colonial policy, anti-Muslim sentiment became a key plank of Myanmar nationalism. This ideology wasn’t just the official creed of the dictatorship, though – its assumptions are widely shared across contemporary Myanmar society.

[Quinns Pheh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Muslims in Myanmar have an established presence in the western side for hundreds of years. Yet, the Buddhist majority think them as foreign usurpers. The conflict between these two groups escalated into an all-out assault on Muslims in 2012. After all, there is an anti-Muslim sentiment behind Myanmar nationalism. This ideology though, according to the author, are assumptions widely shared across contemporary Myanmar society.

[Zhivko Kabaivanov · Rating 2 out of 5]

Myanmar’s Enemy Within (2017) examines a shocking outburst of violence against an ethnic minority – the Rohingya Muslims in western Myanmar. Beginning with an account of the events of 2012 and 2013, these blinks work their way back to explain the historical context of anti-Muslim resentment in the country. Along the way, they explore the legacies of British colonialism, the rise of nationalism, and the country’s troubled transition to democracy.

[Michael Jr. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exceptional overview. The author does a really good job of detailing what the elements of the nationalist and exclusionary push are in the country but in a way that could be applicable anywhere: the creation of a negative other and the dehumanization of that other, the desire for an imagined glorious past, etc. It is still revelatory that Buddhists would be involved with the military in the violent push to rid the country of Muslims.

[Floris Meertens]

De centrale hoofdstukken, die gingen over de constructie van raciale identiteit, de historische verdelingen en de koloniale categorisaties van het Britse rijk, en bovendien de religieuze rechtvaardigingen van onmenselijk geweld en apartheid, waren fascinerend en leerzaam. De rest van het boek bevatte veel herhaling, en de structuur was niet helemaal logisch. Ondanks dat toch een goede duiding voor de leek over de genocide op de Rohingya en de bredere politieke situatie in Myanmar.

[Clare Calvert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I feel this is a fair book. Read with the intention to garner an understanding of Myanmar’s social cleavages, it is a good starting point. From an academic standpoint, one would wish for more theoretical background to the deep divisions that exist.
I thought the chapters discussing the non-physical violence that the Rohingya population face were fantastic, and rise above the other chapters in the book.

It is a good starting point for a brief understanding of Myanmar society.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know that much about the Myanmar conflict between Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims, so this was very informative to me. Sadly, every religion has extremists, even religions like Buddhism that preach nonviolence. Reading it, all I could think was that the same sort of thing- "othering" a group and persecuting them- has happened over and over again throughout history and is still happening now. I saw a number of parallels between the Rohingya and migrants to the US. Super depressing.

[Adrienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

To think is to create

What are those in Myanmar creating for themselves? What can we all learn from their thoughts, actions, and experiences? This is an enormously insightful book on the people in this country and the stories are instructive for people in every country in the world. Pay attention to Burma. Pay attention.

[Vladimir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrifying what people do to each other. After decades of oppression by a military dictatorship, there was no robust civic society or norms to mitigate panic about the threat posed by a religious and ethnic minority. Case study in how introducing democracy and removing oppressive restrictions are not, by themselves, a panacea.

[peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent insight into the origins and features of Islamophobia in Myanmar. Though published in 2017, it deals mostly with instances of violence in 2012, 2013, and 2014, and the state of segregation and apartheid that the Rohingya were living under after that time. It would be good to have a follow-up dealing with the acts of genocide committed by the Tatmadaw in 2016 and 2017.

[Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

- After becoming a democratic state, Buddhist majority began having armed conflict with Muslim minority

- Full democracy led to less media control, which leads to more radical message being spread

- "Differences" is the root to many conflicts. It's important to stay alert should "differences" became a flashing point

[Ate Hoekstra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very insightful read for those who want to know more about what created the tensions between Buddhists and Muslims in Myanmar, and how it was possible that things got so out of hand after the military junta stepped down (but did they really?).