Was the United Kingdom's policy of pushing for the return of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar following ethnic cleansing in 2017 realistic?

• Published in: Sprawy Narodowościowe. Seria nowa no. 51; pp. 1 - 17
• Main Author: Holmes, Arthur J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Warsaw Instytut Slawistyki Polskiej Akademii Nauk 01.01.2019; Institute of Slavic Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences; Institute of Slavic Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences (ISS PAS)
• Subjects: Britain; Campaigns; Camps; Concentration camps; Ethnic cleansing; Ethnic Minorities Studies; ethnic nationalism; genocide; Inter-Ethnic Relations; Migration Studies; Muslims; Myanmar; Nationalism Studies; Refugees; Rohingya; Rohingya people; Studies in violence and power; Victimology; Violence; United Kingdom > UK; Myanmar (Burma); ethnic eleansing; Myanmar; ethnic nationalism; Rohingya; genocide; Britain; foreign policy
• ISSN: 1230-1698; 2392-2427
• DOI: 10.11649/sn.1800

This article explores the United Kingdom’s response to the Rohingya Crisis which began in August 2017, resulting in the ethnic cleansing of 600,000 Rohingya Muslims in the first nine weeks of violence, with a minimum of 6,700 people being killed in the process. The United Kingdom reacted with condemnation, and began immediately calling for the safe return of refugees who had fled the violence, to their homes in Rakhine state, Myanmar. Using the testimony from Mark Field MP, Minister for Asia, in a Foreign Affairs Committee meeting, this essay assesses this policy of pushing for the return of the Rohingya to their homes. Using primary sources available to Britain at the time its policy was formed, this essay argues that Britain’s approach was not only unrealistic with regards to providing an environment in which Rohingya refugees would be provided safety, but also in relation to Burmese authorities’ desires to take back Rohingya refugees. Myanmar’s campaign of ethnic cleansing intentionally created the environment in which either the Rohingya would never return, or they would return to state-controlled concentration camps. Secondary material expires the history of violent state policies against the Rohingya in Myanmar, and Britain’s policy is shown to not only be unworkable due to such policies, but would actively endanger those refugees who chose to return.