(Photo courtesy of unrefugees.org) The South East Asian nation of Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) is bordered by Bangladesh, China, India, Laos, and Thailand. It is home to more than 50 million people (130 ethnic nationals and 100 languages and dialects. Myanmar gained its’ independence from Britain in 1948. Beginning in 2010 efforts were made at democratizing the country. However, in 2021, the military seized power, and a humanitarian crisis was triggered. More than one million people have been displaced and 14 million people need urgent humanitarian assistance with health care, food, water, and shelter. That includes 5 million children. By the end of this year, nearly half the population of Myanmar will be in poverty-stricken communities.
Among the hardest hit by this humanitarian crisis are the ROHINGYA MUSLIMS. Persecution, including massacres, rapes, and arson …perpetrated by the government and nationalist Buddhists…started back in the 1970’s, but dramatically increased on August 25, 2017 in the northern Rakine State. One million Rohingya’s fled into refugee camps in Bangladesh, and about 600,000 remain in Myanmar. They have been denied citizenship under Myanmar’s 1982 Citizenship Law, which leaves them essentially stateless. Many consider these people no better than animals. Please pray for Myanmar, and especially for the Rohingya Muslims daily!