Is racial hatred of Chinese a problem in Burma?

New Delhi (Mizzima) – A fight broke out between ethnic Chinese and local Burmese gem traders at a gem market in Mahaaungmyay Township in Mandalay on Monday. The Chinese were taken to a safe location, and the gem market was closed after the clash.

In Burma, many Chinese people own successful businesses. The recent incident and others like it have raised a question of whether there are racial problems between the Burmese and the Chinese living and doing business in Burma?

Mizzima reporter Te Te has compiled a roundup of views on the racial views of Burmese in Mandalay. In addition, he talked in depth with Dr. Hla Kyaw Zaw,  a Sino-Burmese affairs analyst.

I personally don’t have racial hatred. I think we should look at the cause of the incident and consider that. We need to consider what led to the current situation. We need to think why the Chinese colonized us. It’s very likely that they (Chinese people) can manipulate others in the business and trading community. It is possible that rich Chinese can have haughty manners. The businessmen will know more than we know. 

 Tun Oo (Tun Oo Press) 

People feel unhappy that outsiders are flooding into our city. In the past, outsiders beat Burmese in karaoke lounges. They have money and good cars.  Some did very bad things, but they did not shoulder any responsibility. For instance, if their car hit someone, they used to refuse to bear any responsibility. If the victims tried to take legal actions against them, they just went back across the border. They are just guests who came from far away. Some have fake identification cards but they do business. They enter the country and buy raw materials. But, they cannot speak the local language and some of them are very rude. They have formed their own groups. They manipulate the religious sculpture market too. They usually go to the alabaster mountains in Madaya to buy raw materials. Some have bought homes in nearby villages and made Chinese style sculptures. You can guess how strong their market is. 

They also bought watermelon and mango farms.  

Earlier, a Burmese person hit a Chinese person, and he was sentenced to six months in prison. On the day of the incident, police, holding riot shields, escorted those five Chinese people to a safe place. That means Chinese people had the upper hand. We don’t like it. If a Burmese committed an assault on a Chinese, it’s sure that the Burmese would be hurt and arrested by police. I think people just don’t like discrimination.

 Dr. Hla Kyaw Zaw, a Sino-Burmese affairs analyst

The Burmese government does not follow its own laws. The authorities aren’t impartial. Chinese people can give them a bribe, so they can get better treatment. That’s why the Burmese people are upset. When Chinese people go to foreign countries the Chinese government tells them to follow the rules and regulations of the countries and to respect the relevant local cultures and to establish friendly relationships with local residents. But a businessman will have only business in their mind, so many problems usually occur. Chinese shoe shops and Chinese markets were set afire in Italy and Russia, respectively. Chinese people have good business ideas and plans, so many have have become rich. Then the local residents find those conditions intolerable. Then problems can take place because of nationalism. I think many people here hate the Chinese people. In Mandalay, Chinese have bought homes in urban areas, so many Burmese have had to move outside the city. Sometimes, governments use nationalism and racism as weapons to incite the people to violence. That depends on each government. If a government can handle the situation smoothly, there will be no problems. 

 Otherwise, there will be big problems. For instance, in the past former dictator Ne Win transformed the problem regarding scarcity of rice into anti-Chinese riots. Now, Burma suffers from poverty and it’s a big government problem. So, it is likely that the government may use racial hatred as a political weapon. The government may transform people’s anger against some groups into racial riots. I think that Burmese people clearly know who the main culprit is, and they will not be caught in the government’s trap.   I think the situation is not the same as earlier. The Burmese government led by Thein Sein has to rely on China. So, I don’t think that Burma will want to make China angry. Remember that when Burmese government troops launched a military offensive against Kokant troops, China told Burma to stop the fighting because some Chinese people had died. And the Burmese government followed China’s suggestion.

 I think that the Burmese government will try hard to solve this problem.  China’s Prime Minister Wen Jiabao told Burma’s leaders to ensure the security of Chinese people in Burma who follow Burma’s laws. They know about earlier cases. China’s government knows that Burmese people have a racial backlash against the Chinese. That’s why they urged the Burmese government to provide Chinese people in Burma with security.