Citizenship, nationalism, and refugeehood of Rohingyas in Southern Asia

This book provides an in-depth investigation of citizenship and nationalism in connection with the Rohingya community. It analyses the processes of production of statelessness in South Asia in general, and with regard to the Rohingyas in particular. Following the persecution of the Rohingya community in Myanmar (Burma) by the military and the Buddhist militia, a host of texts, mostly descriptive, have examined the historical, political and cultural roots of the genocidal massacre and the flight of its victims to South Asia and South-East Asian countries. The UNHCR reports describe the plight of Rohingyas during and after their journey, while other works focus on the political-economic roots of this ethnic conflict and its consequences for the Rohingyas. To date, very few theoretical insights have been provided on the Rohingya issue. This book seeks to fill that gap, and explores a dialogue between the state and its citizens and non-citizens that results in the production of statelessness. In theoretical terms, the book addresses the construction of citizens and non-citizens on the part of the state, and the process of symbolic othering, achieved through various state practices couched in terms of nationalism. Extensive case studies from India, Myanmar and Bangladesh provide the foundation for a robust theoretical argument. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to students, academics and researchers with a focus on political economy in South Asia in general and/or refugee studies in particular. Front Matter ....Pages i-xx Contextualizing Citizenship, Nationalism and Refugeehood of Rohingya: An Introduction (Nasreen Chowdhory, Biswajit Mohanty)....Pages 1-30 National Identity and Conceptualization of Nationalism Among Rohingya (Shamna Thacham Poyil)....Pages 31-50 The Unmaking of Citizenship of Rohingyas in Myanmar (Meghna Kajla, Nasreen Chowdhory)....Pages 51-70 The Politics of Marginalization and Statelessness of the Rohingyas in India ( Kaveri)....Pages 71-95 Understanding Media Portrayal of Rohingya Refugees (Biswajit Mohanty)....Pages 97-111 Being Stateless and Surviving: The Rohingyas in Camps of Bangladesh (Sucharita Sengupta)....Pages 113-135 The Assimilation of Stateless Rohingyas in Bangladesh (Meherun Ahmed, Syeda Nafisa Nawal, Ugyen Samdrup Lhamo, Nhung Tuyet Bui)....Pages 137-154 Rohingya Refugees: Risks and Safety in Bangladesh (Shahana Afrose Chowdhury, Ayesha Tasnim Mostafa)....Pages 155-170 Women, Conflict and Conflict Reporting: The Deeply Gendered Discourse on the Rohingya Crisis in the News Websites in India (Ritambhara Malaviya)....Pages 171-188 Radio in the Lives of Rohingyas in Camps in Bangladesh (Mafia Mukta)....Pages 189-196 New Faces of Statelessness: The Rohingya Exodus and Remapping of Rights (Nergis Canefe)....Pages 197-215 Within a Legal Vacuum, Is Repatriation a Way Forward? Some Theoretical Reflections (Nasreen Chowdhory, Biswajit Mohanty)....Pages 217-232 Correction to: New Faces of Statelessness: The Rohingya Exodus and Remapping of Rights (Nergis Canefe)....Pages C1-C1 Back Matter ....Pages 233-235 This volume is about migration across South Asia and the complex negotiation of borders by people and the states in the process. A border is understood as a form of demarcation, but it also opens up the flow of people, goods, and ideas of legality and illegality. Borders are dynamic and dyadic in the interface of state and non-state actors involved in border operations. Consequently, transborder movement becomes a complex web involving concerns of security, trade, militancy, and questions of citizenship, along with discourses of ghettoisation, belonging and otherness. Since the mid-20th century, the South Asian region has witnessed growing social and political instability and breakdown of regional cooperation. In this context, the volume casts a wide, interdisciplinary lens across South Asia and discusses economic migration as well as forced migration due to persecution and natural disasters. It looks at how understandings of ‘territoriality’ and ‘border’ become blurred due to increasing transborder migration in the region: how states in South Asia address transborder movements at both policy level and on the ground; and how borderlands become spaces for illegal trade and informal economy in South Asia and for negotiations between states and refugees on identity and citizenship. This highly topical volume is for a wide group of scholars and students interested in South Asia, ranging from sociology, anthropology, political science, history, to interdisciplinary fields like migration studies, peace and conflict studies, and development studies. This book provides an in-depth investigation of citizenship and nationalism in connection with the Rohingya community. It analyses the processes of production of statelessness in South Asia in general, and with regard to the Rohingyas in particular. Following the persecution of the Rohingya community in Myanmar (Burma) by the military and the Buddhist militia, a host of texts, mostly descriptive, have examined the historical, political and cultural roots of the genocidal massacre and the flight of its victims to South Asia and South-East Asian countries. The UNHCR reports describe the plight of Rohingyas during and after their journey, while other works focus on the political-economic roots of this ethnic conflict and its consequences for the Rohingyas. To date, very few theoretical insights have been provided on the Rohingya issue. 0This book seeks to fill that gap, and explores a dialogue between the state and its citizens and non-citizens that results in the production of statelessness. In theoretical terms, the book addresses the construction of citizens and non-citizens on the part of the state, and the process of symbolic othering, achieved through various state practices couched in terms of nationalism. Extensive case studies from India, Myanmar and Bangladesh provide the foundation for a robust theoretical argument. 0Given its scope, the book will be of interest to students, academics and researchers with a focus on political economy in South Asia in general and/or refugee studies in particular Annotation This book examines forced migration of two refugees groups in South Asia. The author discusses the claims of "belonging" of refugees, and asserts that in practice "belonging" can extend beyond the state-centric understanding of membership in South Asian states. She addresses two sets of interrelated questions: what factors determine whether refugees are relocated to their home countries in South Asia, and why do some repatriated groups re-integrate more successfully than others in "post-peace" South Asian states? This book answers these questions through a study of refugees from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh who sought asylum in India and were later relocated to their countries of origin. Since postcolonial societies have a typical kind of state-formation, in South Asia's case this has profoundly shaped questions of belonging and membership. The debate tends to focus on citizenship, making it a benchmark to demarcate inclusion and exclusion in South Asian states. In addition to qualitative analysis, this book includes narratives of Sri Lankan and Chakma refugees in post-conflict and post-peace Sri Lanka and Bangladesh respectively, and critiques the impact of macro policies from the bottom up Designed to cover the entire sweep of Asian history in its broadest definition, from prehistory to the present and into the future. Provides access to state-of-the-art research and also connects readers to the full range of internet resources for research and teaching, including audio, visual, video materials, digitized archives, and other primary sources. Contributors to the ORE are professional historians, independent scholars as well as faculty at institutions around the world. Their essays provide a comprehensive overview of each subject and a brief historiography that will indicate how scholarship has been developing and locate their own contribution. 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