The Ethnic Cleansing of the Rohingya Could Be the New Myanmar’s Original Sin

Author Michael Fuchs maintains that Myanmar's persecution of the Rohingya people undermines the nation's path toward democracy.

In 2016, the world had high hopes for Myanmar. Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi had gone from prisoner to the de facto leader of a country slowly moving toward democracy.

In 2017, innocent civilians in Myanmar are watching their homes burn. The military is killing people and forcing entire communities to leave their country. Some 400,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to Bangladesh.

Myanmar is perpetrating an ethnic cleansing campaign, which, if not stopped, will become the original sin of Myanmar’s new state. The United States — and the world, is sitting on the sidelines watching it happen.

The above excerpt was originally published in Foreign Policy. Click here to view the full article.

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