In the vein of historical Muslim-Buddhist conflicts in Asia, is the fear among Buddhist populations, that Muslims will overwhelm them demographically. In the predominantly Buddhist country of Myanmar, some refer to the Rohingya Muslims as ” illegal immigrants.” One Burmese politician stated, ” All the Bengalis learn in their religious schools is to brutally kill and attack… It is impossible to live together in the future.”
Keeping the situation in Myanmar in mind, we must similarly look to China and their Muslim re-education camps. Although China is officially an Atheist nation, much of China’s population, in reality, is religious: one of the main religions being Buddhism. One could argue that the turbulent history between the two world religions, is an immediate cause of the genocide in the State of Rakhine. Time and time again in world history, we see governments justifying their actions on the grounds of the predominant religion within their nation. During The Cold War, it was stated that the Soviets were Atheists and that “argument” was generally accepted among the Christian population of America. I imagine that the global Buddhist population, are fearful of the religion’s decay, particularly in Asia though. In certain places within the continent, that were once predominantly Buddhist, we are now seeing a rise in practicing Muslims. As an American, I feel like I don’t see a lot of religious conflicts that are a reality for countless people around the world. This absence of conflict could also be due to the fact that diversity is embraced and encouraged in America. While in foreign nations, diversity isn’t seen the same way. In Asia especially, we notice this feeling of ethnic and cultural unity, that can be diminished with the introduction of new people and their ideas or religions. This fear of cultural erasure isn’t only witnessed in Asian nations, but also European nations. From personal discussions I have had with Italian family members, they dislike the refugees and believe they are simply there to mooch off the government and take away from Italians.