Arakan News Agency
In any democracy, money plays a large role. Rakhine State, where most of the Rohingya people live in Burma, is largely agricultural and resource rich. The Rohingya claimed much of the land during colonial times from the Rakhine people and used their positions of power in the state to suppress the Rakhine. After independence, this role reversed as they lost their citizenship.…
Kachin State, home of the Kachin people, contains a high concentration of gold and jade. Also, because of its proximity to China, it houses a large, highly controversial hydroelectric dam project that plans to sell the energy it produces to China and is responsible for displacing tens of thousands of native Kachin.
These economic realities lead to many questions: Would granting citizenship to the Rohingya shift the balance of power and property in Rakhine State? Will democratically elected Kachin leaders increase taxes on lucrative gold and jade trades and cancel major dam projects? Will the cost outweigh the benefit? The answer comes down to whether the government chooses to continue its democratic experiment or maintain a half-hearted commitment.
Source : washingtonpost
