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SearchToday in Islamophobia: Myanmar prepares to release its report on the military’s crackdown in Rakhine, as Modi’s “plan against Muslims” in India comes unstuck. A new millennial site in the U.S dispels stereotypes about Muslims. Our recommended read today is by Azeem Ibrahim on Myanmar, and how the country blazed a path toward democracy without rights for minorities. This, and more, below:
Myanmar
Myanmar Has Blazed a Path to Democracy Without Rights | Recommended Read
But even then, some of us noted at the time that her public defense of the military operations in the international press went beyond meek acquiescence to the power the military establishment still holds in the country. And after some digging, we also found some possible explanations for her behavior: Her personal views had long had evidence of substantial anti-Muslim bias. Perhaps the reasons she was not mounting a defense of the Rohingya people while the military was waging a genocidal campaign against them was not mere political cowardice. Perhaps she shared at least in part the military establishment’s view of the Rohingya as illegitimate foreigners in Myanmar. read the complete article
Myanmar to release its Rohingya crackdown investigation results
An inquiry set up by the government of Myanmar to investigate the 2017 crackdown that prompted hundreds of thousands of Rohingya to flee the country is expected to report this month, but activists and independent observers are sceptical about the story it will tell, despite promises of accountability from the country's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. read the complete article
India
Amazon’s Pushing Into India and Jeff Bezos Is MIA on Controversial Citizenship Law
Jeff Bezos was in India this week, documenting a highly anticipated business trip with sunny Instagram posts from choice destinations like a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. But the richest man in modern history has been silent on a top issue gripping the country: a controversial new citizenship law that has produced deadly unrest. The law in question, the Citizenship Amendment Act, provides a pathway to Indian naturalization for refugees of all major South Asian religions—except practitioners of Islam. read the complete article
Opinion | Why Modi's plan against Muslims is coming unstuck
In a few decades, the number of India's Muslims will surpass that of Indonesia, giving India the world's biggest Muslim population. But they remain a minority, made to feel increasingly that they are no more than tolerated in their own country. read the complete article
Shaheen Bagh: A new kind of 'satyagraha' with a fresh grammar of protest
There are organisers but no leaders in Shaheen Bagh. An NDTV report says this is a reason why police are finding it difficult to get a solution to the right-of-way issue for those transiting from Delhi to Noida. There are no leaders to talk to. There is just a mass of hijab or chador-clad women with children, at times buzzing with talk and often listening attentively to speakers as they come on — or at other times bursting into impatience with Inquilab Zindabad in the middle of a speech. Facing a podium that has Dr Ambedkar’ portrait very prominently displayed, the women sit one behind the other, separated by a passage that leads to the podium. read the complete article
Recipe for solidarity: How Indian protesters are being fed
A group of Sikh farmers from the northern state of Punjab arrived at New Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, picked a spot under a pedestrian bridge, and began to unpack its wares - a gas stove, huge utensils, and provisions - and fired up a community kitchen, or "langar". Shaheen Bagh is the epicentre of ongoing protests, led by Muslim women, against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), an amendment to Indian citizenship law 1955 that is seen as anti-Muslim. read the complete article
United States
Opinion | Donald Trump Loves the Iranian People So Much He’s Banned Them From the U.S.
Donald Trump really wants you to think he cares about the people of Iran. Over the weekend, he even tweeted in Farsi, telling Iranians, “I've stood with you since the beginning of my Presidency, and my Administration will continue to stand with you.” He added, “We are following your protests closely, and are inspired by your courage.” read the complete article
Muslim Millennial's Site Dispels Stereotypes for Millions
“Being bombarded with those headlines growing up and never feeling represented by them, I did what any millennial would do, which was to turn to social media,” Al-Khatahtbeh said. “I decided to put my own place out there and create that space for us to talk back.” read the complete article
United Kingdom
Opinion | Take it from Britain's Muslims, it's not Extinction Rebellion that's the problem, it's Prevent
But this discussion has - for the most part - ignored the heart of the matter; it is not XR's addition to the extremist list which is the problem here, but the Prevent scheme itself. Also overlooked is the fact that Prevent cannot be laid at Johnson's door alone, as it has been in place for nearly 15 years. Why, after so much criticism, does the scheme exist? The answer will be an uncomfortable one for many; until now, it has focused primarily on children from a Muslim and ethnic minority background. read the complete article