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Acknowledgments This report is a result of research undertaken on behalf of Smile Education and Development Foundation, who I thank greatly for this opportunity, and as a requirement for a higher degree of the University of Winchester (MA Peacebuilding and Reconciliation). I wish to thank my supervisor Dr Mark Owen for his guidance, motivation and continual help for my study and its related research. I would also like to thank Dr Majbritt Lyck-Bowen for her advice and support. My sincere thanks also goes to Smile Education and Development Foundation, particularly Rachel who provided insight that greatly assisted this report, and for her support throughout my research. I would like to thank Rachel, Poe, and Khin for setting up my focus groups and translating for me during them. Last but not least I would like to thank each and every one of the participants of the focus groups who took the time to speak with me about this sensitive topic and share their thoughts and experiences. -3-

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Religion, hate speech and social media in Myanmar: Analysing methods of intervention

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Language

English

Topic

Hate Speech
Rohingya Crisis

Author(s)

Bethany Davis

Date Published: Dec 1, 2015

Abstract: Myanmar is home to one of the longest running intrastate conflicts in the world, involving a series of ethnic and religious clashes that have caused harm to all parties involved. The ideology of a homogeneity based on Buddhism and the Bamar ethnicity has marginalized minority groups, which make up a third of the population, and has particularly affected the Rakhine state’s Buddhist and Muslim communities, the latter of which are subject to what international human rights organizations are calling an ethnic cleansing. Since the government relaxed restrictions to the access of foreign websites, the social media site Facebook has become a popular means to disseminate misinformation and rumours, and this has created mistrust and hatred against Muslims across the country, heightening the polarization between Buddhist and Muslim groups. This study will combine conflict analysis with the assessment of different approaches of countering hate speech to propose which methods of intervention are most suitable for this situation in Myanmar. Lederach argues that to counter hatred and avoid reoccurrence of violence, deep alterations of the parties’ relationships is needed. This idea forms the basis for chapter three which examines educational methods, interfaith projects and social media campaigns to both prevent and change negative attitudes towards the religious ‘Other’. It argues that education and awareness campaigns are more effective than the implementation of legal regulation as we need to combat the underlying issue. In addition to secondary sources, this study involved field research to collect information about how the youth are influence by hate speech and counter hate campaigns in Myanmar.

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Religion, hate speech and social media in Myanmar: Analysing methods of intervention

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