20 Matthew J. Walton and Susan Hayward Buthidaung, are over 90 percent Rohingya (although the report uses the term “Bengali”) (Republic of the Union of Myanmar 2013). These demographics have increased the sense among Rakhines that they are alone in “guarding Myanmar’s western door,” as the chair of the Rakhine Women’s Network described it (Belford 2014). Even Speaker of Parliament Thura Shwe Mann felt obliged to acknowledge and praise these sentiments in 2013, saying, “I appreciate the attempts of the Rakhine people to protect Myanmar” (Ei Ei Toe Lwin 2013b). Moreover, many even within the Myanmar Muslim community note that there has been an increasing presence of more conservative forms of Islam throughout the country, spread by missionaries who travel from village to village, often recruiting young men. This form of Islam derives from the Deobandi school, preaches a message that is perceived to be less tolerant of other religions and cultures, and assumes practices (such as the donning of conservative dress) that set it apart culturally. Some leaders within the Muslim community express concern about the spread of this conservative form of Islam and worry that the Buddhist community sees these adherents, which drives their fears of being overcome by a form of Islam that is inimical to their values.21 One must be quick to note, however, that adherents of this form of Islam remain small in number. Defense of the Sasana While the current Buddhist-Muslim conflict embodies a broader threat to democratic consolidation in Myanmar, it reflects a common theme in Theravada Buddhist history. Buddhist groups such as 969 and MaBaTha jus969 and MaBaTha use tify discrimination (and sometimes even violence) against Muslims as a necessary ‘ defense of the sasana’ response to the imminent threat of Isto justify discrimination lam’s expansion in Asia, and its encroachment upon the Buddhist community. In (and sometimes violence) a situation like this, some Buddhists in Myanmar and elsewhere in Asia (like Sri Lanka and Thailand) argue that actions taken against non-Buddhist communities, which seem counter to Buddhist values of compassion and equanimity, are justified if undertaken in defense of the sasana (Bartholomeusz 2002).