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I'm on a journey around beautiful
and troubled Burma...
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..one of the largest countries
in Southeast Asia.
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A land that's suffered generations
of dictatorship and ongoing war.
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They've been fighting now
for decades.
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It's supposed to be
a fledgling democracy...
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There's a lot of freedom,
or less fear I would say.
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..that's opening up to the world.
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This is like Burma's version
of Venice.
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All right. More? More?
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It's just completely,
totally fantastic.
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But Burma is still a place
of tragedy
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and now an unfolding catastrophe.
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On this first leg of my journey,
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I travel through Burma's
Buddhist heartlands,
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to discover how some are pushing
a religion of peace
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towards hatred and violence.
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I witness how Burma's
all-powerful military
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has turned on its own people,
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driving hundreds of thousands of
Rohingya Muslims from their homes.
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Like nothing I have seen
anywhere on planet Earth,
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this speaks of a Biblical exodus.
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Burma, which is now also
known as Myanmar,
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was once part of the British Empire.
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I began my journey in Mawlamyine,
the first colonial capital.
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TRAIN HOOTS
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Right. Let's catch a train.
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I think this is the carriage.
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I was travelling to Burma's
biggest city, Yangon.
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And we're off.
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TRAIN HOOTS
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This is so atmospheric.
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It really is.
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No glass separating you
from the outside,
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so a lovely breeze coming in.
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And a really stunning landscape
outside.
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TRAIN HOOTS
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In the late 1800s the British
began building railway lines
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running almost the entire length
of the country.
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At times it can feel like the trains
are of a similar vintage.
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So we went for ordinary class
with solid wood benches
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rather than upper class, where
you get a comfier, padded seat.
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But with added lice.
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We thought this was a better bet.
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The British ruled Burma
for more than a century.
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After a long struggle, Burma finally
gained independence in 1948.
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Just over a decade later,
the military seized power,
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ushering in decades
of brutal dictatorship.
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The military completely
ruined Burma.
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They wrecked the economy, they
jailed thousands of dissidents,
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they imposed severe censorship
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and they cut Burma off
from the outside world.
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Under the military,
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this became one of the ten
poorest countries in the world.
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Now the slight issue with lack
of a window becomes apparent.
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Everyone else has chosen
to close the shutters.
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How much is your...
How much is water from you?
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300 per bottle?
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OK. All right,
we'll have one, please.
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How old are you?
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How much money do you normally make
for the family?
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About £2 to £3 a day.
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Is that good money?
Does it help the family?
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When do you get a chance
to go to school?
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Poverty is still endemic here.
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Around a third
of school-age children
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don't actually attend school.
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Hundreds of thousands of youngsters
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work in fields,
factories and trains.
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The military dictatorship in Burma
lasted for nearly 50 years.
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It was the generals who actually
renamed the country Myanmar.
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Now, both names are still used.
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In 2011, the military said
they were stepping aside.
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Today the country has a new,
democratically elected government
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led by a human rights icon whose
struggle against dictatorship
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earned her the Nobel Peace Prize.
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The de facto leader of the country,
as I'm sure you know,
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is Aung San Suu Kyi.
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Daughter of the great
independence hero, Aung San.
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She is loved by many Burmese
as a human rights hero,
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an Asian Nelson Mandela,
if you like.
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So what do you think
of Aung San Suu Kyi?
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Are you telling me you like Aung
San Suu Kyi because she's pretty
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and still got her youthful looks?
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It sounds like you really
quite love Aung San Suu Kyi.
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Aung San Suu Kyi is hugely popular
across much of Burma,
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a country of more than
50 million people.
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When her party won elections,
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many saw it as the start
of a new era for the nation.
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After a ten-hour journey,
we finally arrived in Yangon.
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When Burma was ruled
by the military,
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the international community imposed
heavy sanctions on the country.
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Now, sanctions have been lifted,
money and investment has poured in
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and this huge city and its skyline
is starting to be transformed.
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The civilian government has released
hundreds of political prisoners.
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Many exiles have returned
from abroad.
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I was on my way to meet one of them,
an old friend.
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An activist who spent her life
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campaigning for Burma's
many ethnic groups.
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During the dictatorship
she had to flee the country.
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She is brave and brilliant
and her name is Cheery Zahau.
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I'm looking for a small green car.
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And that is a small green car.
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Hi! Cheery!
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Oh, my goodness!
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Cheery! Can I come in?
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Oh, my God! How are you?
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You look good! You look good, too.
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How the hell are you? Good.
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Who's this? This is my...
my daughter and my mum.
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Hello, Mum. Look at you!
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Are you the cutest child
in the whole country?
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Hello!
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Cheery comes from
the Chin ethnic minority,
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one of more than 100
ethnic groups in Burma.
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During military rule,
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Cheery risked her life
to smuggle me into the country.
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Ready? Are you ready? Yeah.
As I'll ever be.
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Travelling into the remote homeland
of the Chin people,
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who are Christians,
was one of my riskiest adventures.
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I've travelled to one of the most
repressive countries in the world.
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Under the military, many ethnic
minorities suffered terribly.
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The Burmese troops
are not so far from here.
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That's why the villagers are always
scared of the Burmese troops.
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The Chin endured arrest,
torture, massacres.
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Villages were burned
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as the army tried to crush dissent
and their culture.
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I think we should go back.
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Our trip was cut short when troops
suddenly appeared nearby.
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You were on a wanted list.
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Yeah. How much danger were you in
doing this with us?
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Life-threatening?
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If they get...
They arrest me, of course.
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And I don't know
what will happen in prison.
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The fact that I took foreigners
into Chin state,
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it would be seen as really...
a heavy case.
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I mean, obviously, for you,
things have improved.
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Here we are.
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You've come back from exile.
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Yes. In 2012 the government
said people can come back.
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People who have been campaigning
for democracies, human rights,
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you all can come back.
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And... And you didn't think
it was a trap?
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Cautious optimism.
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We'll show you... Are you going
to be my guide again?! Yeah!
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What an honour. I'll be your guide.
What an honour for me.
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This time not in the jungle.
Not in the jungle. Urban jungle.
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Yeah, urban jungle.
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It was emotional for me
to see Cheery.
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There was so much to discuss,
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starting with the basics -
the country's name.
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Burma has been officially
renamed Myanmar.
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But Burma is still used as a name
by some foreign governments
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and many people here use both.
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Why do you say Burma
rather than Myanmar?
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I use Burma because
the military regime
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never conducted a public referendum
to choose the name of the country.
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They just changed it?
They just changed it.
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So I want to make a statement
by using Burma,
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that I'm not being fooled
by the generals. OK!
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This is a beautiful landmark
of Yangon,
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or the whole of Burma, Myanmar.
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All right. Let's cross.
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And this is a... Oh!
..very beautiful place to hang out.
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Look at this! Yes, it is!
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You can just come here and
sit and you know, like meditate.
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Shwedagon Pagoda
is one of the most famous
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and dramatic monuments
in the whole country.
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And it's extraordinary
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that you are now able to be
out in Yangon at all
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and that, to me, signifies some
really positive and profound changes
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have happened in the country.
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Yes. If you live in Yangon, yes.
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There's a lot of freedom,
or less fear, I would say,
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to go anywhere you want.
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It's a very special time to be here,
actually, at sunset.
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And a very strange time as well
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because of what is going on
elsewhere in this country.
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It is bizarre to be here now
in the city
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at a peaceful meditative
Buddhist shrine,
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while genocidal ethnic cleansing
against a Muslim minority
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is happening elsewhere in Myanmar.
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Shall we go here? Yeah.
Lovely tea shop.
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I think most people watching this
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will have heard about what's been
happening to the Rohingya Muslims.
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Yeah. It is...serious.
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Nearly half a million people
were driven out
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of their communities in one month.
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It's the biggest exodus of,
you know,
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people driven out of their
communities in recent history.
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But you look around, you would
not... It's as if nothing happened.
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You would not have the sense that...
Yeah.
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..there is such an
extraordinary thing
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going on in the country
at the moment.
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Yeah. In Yangon, life goes on
as if nothing happens.
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I am astonished that this is
happening in Myanmar today,
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with Aung San Suu Kyi as the leader.
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Yeah. Are you?
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Erm...
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Yes, or no.
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It's very...
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..like, taboo topic.
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Taboo topic? Yeah.
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Even someone like you,
who has risked your life endlessly
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for this country and for the
different peoples in it,
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there are still some things
you cannot risk,
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or it wouldn't be wise
for you to risk saying?
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Yeah, exactly. So I will not
tell you everything I know!
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Probably wise.
Or everything you think. Yeah.
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OK.
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Burma's one million Rohingya people
come from Rakhine State.
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They're Muslims in a country where
90% of the population is Buddhist.
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The United Nations has described
what's happened to them
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as ethnic cleansing.
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Others have labelled it genocide.
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I'll be heading to meet the Rohingya
later on this journey,
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but first I headed north
from Yangon
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and into the Buddhist heartlands
of the country.
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You drive on the right but the
steering wheel is on the right,
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so the driver can't really see
what's coming at him.
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But they drive on the right because
a former leader of the country
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had a premonition
or spoke to a fortune teller,
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it's not entirely clear which,
which said that they should move
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from driving on the left to the
right. So they did, overnight.
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I don't imagine it did wonders
for road safety.
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Such is the power
of a military dictator.
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On a whim, the entire country's
roads were thrown into chaos.
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The daft change, combined with rules
that made it almost impossible
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to import left-hand drive cars,
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is part of the reason Burma
has one of the highest rates
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for road deaths
in the whole of Asia.
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The generals could be bizarre -
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another time switching the currency
to multiples of nine,
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again based on advice from
astrologers and fortune tellers.
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Across Burma, even today,
people mix Buddhism
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with a deep belief in spirits
and the supernatural.
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We're just on the outskirts
of the town of Pyay
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and we're going to stop here,
probably overnight, actually.
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So we're here? We're here.
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With a local guide,
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I stopped off to meet one of
Burma's famous spirit mediums.
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People consult them
with their everyday problems.
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They are important and influential.
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Lovely to meet you.
You are a Nat Ga Daw?
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Have I said that right, and if so,
what is a Nat Ga Daw?
245
00:16:29,760 --> 00:16:32,760
You're a medium for the spirits,
is that right?
246
00:16:35,760 --> 00:16:37,760
Can we come in, is that OK?
247
00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:40,040
Oh, I'm going to get taken! Lovely.
248
00:16:41,400 --> 00:16:44,480
Daw Tin Tin Myaing says the spirits
started talking to her
249
00:16:44,480 --> 00:16:46,240
when she was a child.
250
00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:49,640
Oh, my goodness. Look!
251
00:16:55,280 --> 00:16:59,800
I can see there's a busty figure
over here smoking a massive cigar.
252
00:16:59,800 --> 00:17:01,520
What's going on there?
253
00:17:11,040 --> 00:17:12,880
What's going to happen this evening?
254
00:17:12,880 --> 00:17:16,120
Is it a celebration? Is it a
service? Is it a religious event?
255
00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:37,720
I get one wish and if it comes true,
I have you to thank?
256
00:17:51,440 --> 00:17:55,840
Even before Buddhism came to Burma,
people here worshipped the spirits.
257
00:17:58,920 --> 00:18:02,200
Today, aspects of the two religions
have merged
258
00:18:02,200 --> 00:18:06,520
in a wonderful, unusual way that
can often involve a bit of a party.
259
00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:24,520
Followers, locals
and slightly baffled guests
260
00:18:24,520 --> 00:18:28,600
were all being encouraged
to make donations to the spirits
261
00:18:28,600 --> 00:18:31,440
in return for luck and prosperity.
262
00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:45,960
Being a spirit medium is one of the
few occupations open to gay men
263
00:18:45,960 --> 00:18:48,800
in a country where it's still
technically illegal
264
00:18:48,800 --> 00:18:50,480
to be homosexual.
265
00:18:50,480 --> 00:18:52,960
And many face harassment.
266
00:18:52,960 --> 00:18:54,840
Has life improved for you?
267
00:18:54,840 --> 00:18:58,520
Have you felt that you live
in a more tolerant society
268
00:18:58,520 --> 00:19:01,080
since democracy came to the country?
269
00:19:59,840 --> 00:20:03,240
The next morning,
I continued my journey north
270
00:20:03,240 --> 00:20:06,480
towards the ancient capital
of Bagan.
271
00:20:14,440 --> 00:20:18,360
We're just coming into Bagan
and there are temples everywhere.
272
00:20:18,360 --> 00:20:20,640
It's an extraordinary sight.
273
00:20:20,640 --> 00:20:23,840
Bagan was the capital
of the first empire
274
00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:26,640
that united what became known
as Burma.
275
00:20:26,640 --> 00:20:29,640
A huge city of perhaps
over 100,000 people.
276
00:20:29,640 --> 00:20:31,520
This is astonishing.
277
00:20:42,640 --> 00:20:48,280
1,000 years ago, Bagan's kings chose
Buddhism as their state religion.
278
00:20:48,280 --> 00:20:51,800
They built around 10,000
Buddhist temples,
279
00:20:51,800 --> 00:20:54,760
more than 2,000 of which
survive today.
280
00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:05,680
This is a site to match any of
the great wonders of the world.
281
00:21:05,680 --> 00:21:07,600
It really is.
282
00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:11,680
It's as if you put all the great
Gothic cathedrals of Europe
283
00:21:11,680 --> 00:21:14,400
in an area the size of Bristol.
284
00:21:16,000 --> 00:21:20,120
During colonial rule, the British
deposed Burma's Buddhist kings.
285
00:21:21,320 --> 00:21:24,080
When the military took over
after independence,
286
00:21:24,080 --> 00:21:26,960
they pushed the idea
that to be truly Burmese,
287
00:21:26,960 --> 00:21:29,360
you needed to be Buddhist.
288
00:21:29,360 --> 00:21:32,360
They persecuted Christians,
like the Chin,
289
00:21:32,360 --> 00:21:34,840
and Muslims, like the Rohingya.
290
00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:40,120
The generals tried to use Buddhism
to prop up their power
291
00:21:40,120 --> 00:21:43,640
and they tried to put themselves
at the heart of the faith.
292
00:21:45,640 --> 00:21:48,320
So although almost everything here
looks ancient,
293
00:21:48,320 --> 00:21:51,000
much of it has actually
been renovated
294
00:21:51,000 --> 00:21:53,400
or even built quite recently
295
00:21:53,400 --> 00:21:57,240
and a lot of it by former generals
and serving generals,
296
00:21:57,240 --> 00:21:59,960
partly to atone for their sins,
297
00:21:59,960 --> 00:22:02,880
the crimes they've committed
against their own people.
298
00:22:04,800 --> 00:22:06,520
It is astonishing, really,
299
00:22:06,520 --> 00:22:10,920
that although the dictatorship is
supposed to have ended in Myanmar,
300
00:22:10,920 --> 00:22:13,360
the generals haven't been
prosecuted,
301
00:22:13,360 --> 00:22:16,160
they haven't been tried
for their crimes.
302
00:22:16,160 --> 00:22:20,240
Many of them are still in power
or in business power.
303
00:22:20,240 --> 00:22:23,120
If it makes money still in Myanmar,
304
00:22:23,120 --> 00:22:26,400
then the chances are that a general
or a former general
305
00:22:26,400 --> 00:22:28,320
is benefiting from it.
306
00:22:29,440 --> 00:22:31,640
Some of what they've done
is pretty gaudy.
307
00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:44,560
Despite some dubious renovations,
Bagan is still stunning
308
00:22:44,560 --> 00:22:47,440
and a site to rival
anywhere on the planet.
309
00:23:05,760 --> 00:23:07,880
Empires have risen and fallen.
310
00:23:09,080 --> 00:23:11,160
Dictatorships have been and gone.
311
00:23:12,520 --> 00:23:15,080
But through it all,
Buddhism has been a thread
312
00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:17,680
connecting most
of the Burmese people.
313
00:23:20,080 --> 00:23:23,640
And still today
it plays a critical role,
314
00:23:23,640 --> 00:23:25,840
often doing the job of the state.
315
00:23:27,760 --> 00:23:29,360
Look at this!
316
00:23:29,360 --> 00:23:31,960
"Social welfare,
monastic education school."
317
00:23:31,960 --> 00:23:34,840
My goodness.
I think I'd better do my shirt up.
318
00:23:36,520 --> 00:23:39,720
That looks like
a reception committee.
319
00:23:43,480 --> 00:23:46,520
Oh, my goodness.
Abbot Pyinya Wuntha is head
320
00:23:46,520 --> 00:23:49,880
of this school in Pakokku in the
middle of Burma.
321
00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:51,920
Mingalaba. Mingalaba.
322
00:23:51,920 --> 00:23:54,280
Mingalaba. My goodness.
323
00:23:54,280 --> 00:23:56,040
Mingalaba!
324
00:23:56,040 --> 00:23:58,360
ALL: Mingalaba!
325
00:24:45,920 --> 00:24:48,360
This is a school and a clinic,
326
00:24:48,360 --> 00:24:51,480
but also a monastery
that's training novice monks.
327
00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:55,160
At any one time,
328
00:24:55,160 --> 00:24:57,920
there are said to be around
half a million Buddhist monks,
329
00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:00,000
novices and nuns in Burma,
330
00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:02,560
thought to be the highest
proportion in the world.
331
00:25:04,320 --> 00:25:07,920
Every Burmese Buddhist boy
is expected to become a monk
332
00:25:07,920 --> 00:25:11,040
for a period of anything from
a week to several months.
333
00:25:12,520 --> 00:25:14,840
The monks live an austere lifestyle
334
00:25:14,840 --> 00:25:19,240
and they have to get up at what I
personally consider an ungodly hour.
335
00:25:22,720 --> 00:25:24,760
ALARM RINGS
336
00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:27,680
Bloody hell!
337
00:25:37,720 --> 00:25:39,600
Oh, my goodness.
338
00:25:47,600 --> 00:25:49,080
It's 4:30am...
339
00:25:50,600 --> 00:25:52,720
..and they're heading out.
340
00:25:52,720 --> 00:25:57,360
These young monks are performing
their early morning ritual.
341
00:25:57,360 --> 00:26:02,200
Every day, they'll walk sometimes
up to two miles in bare feet.
342
00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:15,040
So, we've arrived.
343
00:26:16,800 --> 00:26:20,160
Monks across Burma are supposed
to live entirely on donations
344
00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:22,080
from members of the public.
345
00:26:27,680 --> 00:26:30,960
Across the country, monks line up
to collect their breakfast
346
00:26:30,960 --> 00:26:33,400
at donation points just like these.
347
00:26:33,400 --> 00:26:35,600
What do you have
for the monks today?
348
00:26:35,600 --> 00:26:37,280
Chilli. Chilli.
349
00:26:37,280 --> 00:26:39,280
VOICE OVER TANNOY
350
00:26:41,000 --> 00:26:43,920
And what is this?
Is this a sermon...?
351
00:26:46,160 --> 00:26:48,120
An announcement.
352
00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:53,320
In the nicest possible way,
can I ask why you all do this?
353
00:26:53,320 --> 00:26:55,280
It's five o'clock in the morning!
354
00:27:17,120 --> 00:27:19,280
Monks also played
a very special role
355
00:27:19,280 --> 00:27:21,720
in Burma's transition to democracy.
356
00:27:23,280 --> 00:27:26,880
In 2007, tens of thousands
of saffron robed monks
357
00:27:26,880 --> 00:27:31,040
rose up against the military to
protest against worsening poverty.
358
00:27:31,040 --> 00:27:34,400
One of the biggest uprisings
was here in Pakokku.
359
00:28:02,200 --> 00:28:04,200
The military crushed the uprising.
360
00:28:04,200 --> 00:28:07,000
Thousands of monks were
imprisoned and tortured.
361
00:28:07,000 --> 00:28:08,760
Some were killed.
362
00:28:08,760 --> 00:28:11,800
Monks are the most respected figures
in the country.
363
00:28:11,800 --> 00:28:14,360
The fact they'd stood up
to the military junta
364
00:28:14,360 --> 00:28:17,120
put huge pressure
on the dictatorship to change.
365
00:28:17,120 --> 00:28:19,040
And it's fascinating to see this.
366
00:28:19,040 --> 00:28:22,440
I suppose it creates an
extraordinary culture in a country,
367
00:28:22,440 --> 00:28:25,760
where the monks depend on the
people, and to a certain extent,
368
00:28:25,760 --> 00:28:28,280
the people depend on the monks
as well.
369
00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:38,560
Buddhism is generally seen
as the most peaceful
370
00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:40,400
of the world's major religions.
371
00:28:42,360 --> 00:28:45,160
But there is now a darker side
to Buddhism in Burma.
372
00:28:46,920 --> 00:28:49,960
Some Buddhist monks here
are turning militant.
373
00:28:54,840 --> 00:28:59,080
So we're just on our way to a
very controversial monastery,
374
00:28:59,080 --> 00:29:01,560
and they don't want us to film,
375
00:29:01,560 --> 00:29:05,240
so I think we'll probably put the
cameras down now, go in there,
376
00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:07,160
and see if they'll let us film.
377
00:29:11,080 --> 00:29:14,240
We've had some delicate
negotiations, but I think...
378
00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:16,800
I think we're going to be allowed
to start filming.
379
00:29:16,800 --> 00:29:20,160
I'd gone to visit a group of monks
called Ma Ba Tha,
380
00:29:20,160 --> 00:29:23,040
the Committee To Protect Race
And Religion.
381
00:29:23,040 --> 00:29:25,000
They're supposed to be banned,
382
00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:27,760
and are controversial because
of their rabble rousing,
383
00:29:27,760 --> 00:29:29,800
particularly against
Rohingya Muslims.
384
00:29:29,800 --> 00:29:33,200
But they're still active and I
was meeting their senior members.
385
00:29:34,640 --> 00:29:36,480
What are your beliefs, then?
386
00:29:36,480 --> 00:29:38,480
How do your beliefs differ
387
00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:42,200
from almost the mainstream of
Buddhist philosophy in the country?
388
00:30:39,920 --> 00:30:44,000
Do you view Islam and Muslims
as a threat, then,
389
00:30:44,000 --> 00:30:47,000
to Buddhism and Buddhists
in this country?
390
00:31:05,400 --> 00:31:09,960
So you're worried that Muslims
are breeding very quickly, then,
391
00:31:09,960 --> 00:31:14,240
that they threaten to breed out
Buddhism in Myanmar, is that right?
392
00:31:16,040 --> 00:31:17,480
That's right.
393
00:31:17,480 --> 00:31:21,960
Right now, the United Nations says
there is an ethnic cleansing
394
00:31:21,960 --> 00:31:24,600
under way in Rakhine State.
395
00:31:24,600 --> 00:31:28,240
What do you say is happening
in Rakhine at the moment?
396
00:31:56,280 --> 00:31:58,920
I was really shocked to hear
such extreme views
397
00:31:58,920 --> 00:32:01,120
coming out of the mouths of monks.
398
00:32:01,120 --> 00:32:04,160
Ma Ba Tha has operations
across the country.
399
00:32:04,160 --> 00:32:07,280
There are at least 600 monks
living in just this monastery,
400
00:32:07,280 --> 00:32:10,480
avidly studying the beliefs
of their teachers,
401
00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:13,200
one of whom's been called
the Buddhist Bin Laden.
402
00:32:20,960 --> 00:32:24,280
There's been violence committed by
Buddhists and Muslims in Rakhine,
403
00:32:24,280 --> 00:32:27,120
but the students here
are played inflammatory videos
404
00:32:27,120 --> 00:32:29,160
that put all the blame
on the Rohingya.
405
00:33:39,200 --> 00:33:42,920
Fake news, social media and videos
have played a critical role
406
00:33:42,920 --> 00:33:46,120
in fomenting and spreading hatred
in modern Burma.
407
00:33:46,120 --> 00:33:49,760
Millions here have lapped up the
propaganda of militant monks,
408
00:33:49,760 --> 00:33:53,720
the Burmese military, and even
Aung San Suu Kyi's own government.
409
00:33:53,720 --> 00:33:55,480
In their own country,
410
00:33:55,480 --> 00:33:58,120
the Muslim Rohingya people
are now widely hated.
411
00:34:01,360 --> 00:34:04,000
Most Rohingya lived
in Rakhine State,
412
00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:06,240
in an area closed to foreigners.
413
00:34:06,240 --> 00:34:08,480
I couldn't go on a journey
around Burma
414
00:34:08,480 --> 00:34:12,040
without learning more about
what's happened to the Rohingya.
415
00:34:12,040 --> 00:34:15,120
So I headed to neighbouring
Bangladesh
416
00:34:15,120 --> 00:34:18,200
and on to the river that divides
the two countries.
417
00:34:25,320 --> 00:34:28,560
The Rohingya are one of the most
persecuted people on the planet.
418
00:34:28,560 --> 00:34:32,440
They've lived under a system
described by many experts
419
00:34:32,440 --> 00:34:36,440
as an apartheid system
for decades now.
420
00:34:36,440 --> 00:34:40,040
Many Burmese see the Rohingya
as illegal migrants,
421
00:34:40,040 --> 00:34:43,640
but there have been Rohingya
in the country for centuries.
422
00:34:43,640 --> 00:34:46,920
In recent years, they've been
deprived of their right to vote,
423
00:34:46,920 --> 00:34:49,920
their access to health care
and education was limited
424
00:34:49,920 --> 00:34:53,760
and they were banned from travelling
freely between villages.
425
00:34:53,760 --> 00:34:57,640
The Burmese dictatorship even
stripped them of their citizenship,
426
00:34:57,640 --> 00:34:59,960
making the Rohingya
the largest group
427
00:34:59,960 --> 00:35:01,880
of stateless people on the planet.
428
00:35:03,600 --> 00:35:05,720
This is about as far as we can go
429
00:35:05,720 --> 00:35:09,320
without crossing the border
between Bangladesh and Burma.
430
00:35:09,320 --> 00:35:11,240
It's a part of the country
431
00:35:11,240 --> 00:35:15,000
that we are completely forbidden
from visiting.
432
00:35:15,000 --> 00:35:17,480
In fact, if we get too close
to that side,
433
00:35:17,480 --> 00:35:21,880
it's quite possible Burmese border
guards will start shooting at us.
434
00:35:21,880 --> 00:35:23,880
Holy crap, look.
435
00:35:23,880 --> 00:35:25,680
There's a fire over there.
436
00:35:25,680 --> 00:35:27,560
It could be a normal fire
437
00:35:27,560 --> 00:35:32,400
or it could be the Burmese military
burning a Rohingya village.
438
00:35:34,280 --> 00:35:37,120
The most recent violence
against the Rohingya
439
00:35:37,120 --> 00:35:40,360
is just the latest phase
in a long campaign of oppression.
440
00:35:41,880 --> 00:35:45,800
Waves of Rohingya refugees have been
fleeing Burma for Bangladesh
441
00:35:45,800 --> 00:35:49,000
ever since the 1970s,
to escape persecution.
442
00:35:50,520 --> 00:35:53,520
Most have been held and housed
in refugee camps
443
00:35:53,520 --> 00:35:55,960
just inside Bangladesh.
444
00:35:55,960 --> 00:35:58,440
The largest is called Kutupalong.
445
00:35:59,800 --> 00:36:03,520
I met up with Shamin, a Rohingya
guide who grew up in the camp.
446
00:36:03,520 --> 00:36:05,280
Shamin!
447
00:36:05,280 --> 00:36:08,760
Assalaamu Alaikum. Wa alaikum
salaam. How are you?
448
00:36:08,760 --> 00:36:11,800
You've been living here
in the camp for how long?
449
00:36:11,800 --> 00:36:14,640
26 years. 26 years?! Yeah.
450
00:36:14,640 --> 00:36:16,720
You came across from Myanmar...
451
00:36:16,720 --> 00:36:21,240
1992. An earlier time of crisis
for the Rohingya, wasn't it? Yeah.
452
00:36:21,240 --> 00:36:24,240
In August 2017, a group
of Rohingya militants
453
00:36:24,240 --> 00:36:27,840
carried out a series of attacks
on Burmese police posts.
454
00:36:29,400 --> 00:36:33,040
In response, the Burmese military
unleashed an orgy of bloodshed
455
00:36:33,040 --> 00:36:36,440
on Rohingya men, women and children,
456
00:36:36,440 --> 00:36:39,760
burning hundreds of villages
and killing thousands.
457
00:36:39,760 --> 00:36:44,760
Nearly 700,000 Rohingya refugees
poured out of Burma into Bangladesh.
458
00:36:45,840 --> 00:36:49,480
The population of Kutupalong
camp exploded.
459
00:36:49,480 --> 00:36:52,760
This is now the biggest refugee camp
in the world.
460
00:36:52,760 --> 00:36:54,960
Oh, my God. Look at this!
461
00:37:13,320 --> 00:37:18,000
Look at the size of this camp,
this place, this city.
462
00:37:19,480 --> 00:37:22,600
I think like nothing I have seen
463
00:37:22,600 --> 00:37:27,120
anywhere on planet Earth
bespeaks of a biblical exodus...
464
00:37:29,240 --> 00:37:34,320
..of an entire people
terrorised into fleeing.
465
00:37:41,440 --> 00:37:44,080
Can we hop in this?
466
00:37:44,080 --> 00:37:46,400
The attacks by the Burmese military
467
00:37:46,400 --> 00:37:50,360
caused the most rapid movement of
people since the Rwandan genocide.
468
00:37:55,800 --> 00:37:58,800
God, it's just enormous, this camp.
469
00:37:58,800 --> 00:38:01,120
It is just enormous.
470
00:38:06,800 --> 00:38:08,680
What's going on here?
471
00:38:09,760 --> 00:38:11,600
Can we stop? Can we stop?
472
00:38:14,200 --> 00:38:17,680
During the exodus, tens of thousands
of families were split up.
473
00:38:17,680 --> 00:38:21,720
Many are still desperate to know if
their loved ones are dead or alive.
474
00:38:41,800 --> 00:38:43,400
What's happened?
475
00:39:53,360 --> 00:39:58,040
Is this the sort of situation
that can result in a reunification?
476
00:40:08,600 --> 00:40:11,160
You think stolen, trafficked? Yeah.
477
00:40:18,480 --> 00:40:22,200
More than half the refugees who have
come to Bangladesh are children.
478
00:40:23,600 --> 00:40:25,880
Some lost their parents
in the chaos.
479
00:40:25,880 --> 00:40:27,920
Others have been left orphaned.
480
00:40:30,080 --> 00:40:33,360
They need protection
and they need support.
481
00:40:39,440 --> 00:40:41,840
So this is a child-friendly space.
482
00:40:41,840 --> 00:40:45,960
This is one of 130 child-friendly
spaces in this area
483
00:40:45,960 --> 00:40:48,040
run by the charity Unicef,
484
00:40:48,040 --> 00:40:51,400
a vital safe haven for many
of the camp's children.
485
00:40:51,400 --> 00:40:54,920
Shakeel Faisula from Unicef
invited me to talk to two youngsters
486
00:40:54,920 --> 00:40:56,640
in the charity's care.
487
00:40:58,000 --> 00:41:00,560
Yousef came to the camp
with his sister, Rosina,
488
00:41:00,560 --> 00:41:02,280
after the August attacks.
489
00:41:10,520 --> 00:41:14,080
I promise you, it's not a gun.
It's a camera, OK?
490
00:41:14,080 --> 00:41:15,840
I promise you.
491
00:41:15,840 --> 00:41:20,960
What this lad is immediately
saying is that Jonathan's camera,
492
00:41:20,960 --> 00:41:26,560
which has a handle on it at the
front with almost a trigger,
493
00:41:26,560 --> 00:41:30,400
he's saying immediately,
"It looks like a gun."
494
00:41:30,400 --> 00:41:33,160
You can go and have a look. It's OK.
495
00:41:34,200 --> 00:41:36,920
All rights? So you know
it's not a gun, don't you?
496
00:41:44,640 --> 00:41:46,520
Why did you have to...
497
00:41:46,520 --> 00:41:49,320
..why did you have to come here
to Bangladesh, do you know?
498
00:42:07,480 --> 00:42:09,600
Do you feel safe here now?
499
00:42:11,400 --> 00:42:13,520
Yes, I feel safe here.
500
00:42:14,760 --> 00:42:17,760
Shakeel, these are horrific stories.
501
00:42:17,760 --> 00:42:22,200
Are you hearing this a lot
from children? Yes.
502
00:42:22,200 --> 00:42:25,680
These are kind of common stories
that we are hearing
503
00:42:25,680 --> 00:42:27,560
from many of the children.
504
00:42:27,560 --> 00:42:33,040
We kind of feel that their childhood
has kind of been stolen from them.
505
00:42:33,040 --> 00:42:35,240
And now, they are here,
506
00:42:35,240 --> 00:42:38,360
we are just trying to make sure
that at least they have a future
507
00:42:38,360 --> 00:42:41,360
because in many cases,
you really can't claim
508
00:42:41,360 --> 00:42:44,440
that these children
will forget these things.
509
00:42:44,440 --> 00:42:46,760
These will remain within themselves.
510
00:42:46,760 --> 00:42:48,480
Forever? Forever.
511
00:42:48,480 --> 00:42:51,480
For the time being,
we can just tell them that,
512
00:42:51,480 --> 00:42:54,400
yes, this has happened,
this has happened,
513
00:42:54,400 --> 00:42:56,400
but you have to continue.
514
00:42:56,400 --> 00:42:59,560
What are the things that you do here
or in life
515
00:42:59,560 --> 00:43:02,680
that really make you
laugh and smile?
516
00:43:15,720 --> 00:43:18,320
Have you got a favourite team?
Barcelona.
517
00:43:18,320 --> 00:43:22,320
Barcelona is your favourite
football team in the world.
518
00:43:22,320 --> 00:43:25,480
You're a good man.
Thank you for talking with us.
519
00:43:25,480 --> 00:43:27,200
Big guy!
520
00:43:34,520 --> 00:43:39,040
Oh, wow! Look what we've
been offered, Shamin!
521
00:43:39,040 --> 00:43:41,080
Oh, this is very nice.
522
00:43:42,560 --> 00:43:44,640
Oh, what a VERY kind offer.
523
00:43:44,640 --> 00:43:47,160
Do you like cake? This is cake.
524
00:43:47,160 --> 00:43:49,240
We've got some cake.
525
00:43:49,240 --> 00:43:51,000
This is biscuit. Biscuits!
526
00:43:51,000 --> 00:43:52,880
Oh, I love biscuits.
527
00:43:52,880 --> 00:43:56,560
You've brought us some tea
and some biscuits and some cake!
528
00:43:56,560 --> 00:43:58,560
Yeah. Delicious!
529
00:43:58,560 --> 00:44:03,600
There we go. In my country, we love
putting our biscuits in our tea.
530
00:44:03,600 --> 00:44:05,360
Yeah.
531
00:44:05,360 --> 00:44:07,920
Can you cut me some cake, please?
532
00:44:09,240 --> 00:44:11,640
Because if I cut it,
I'll have it all!
533
00:44:11,640 --> 00:44:13,640
Thank you.
534
00:44:13,640 --> 00:44:16,200
What do you like most
about coming here?
535
00:44:20,520 --> 00:44:23,960
One of the many wonderful things
about a centre like this,
536
00:44:23,960 --> 00:44:26,080
a sanctuary like this,
537
00:44:26,080 --> 00:44:30,240
is that it gives children
who often have very little
538
00:44:30,240 --> 00:44:32,720
and many of whom are traumatised,
539
00:44:32,720 --> 00:44:35,520
it gives them a chance
just to be children again.
540
00:44:35,520 --> 00:44:37,160
Her brother is calling her.
541
00:44:37,160 --> 00:44:39,840
Her brother is calling her,
all right.
542
00:44:39,840 --> 00:44:43,080
They've been through more than
most people can comprehend,
543
00:44:43,080 --> 00:44:44,840
haven't they, some of them?
544
00:44:50,400 --> 00:44:53,120
The scale of the killings,
rape and torture
545
00:44:53,120 --> 00:44:56,400
committed against these people
by the Burmese military
546
00:44:56,400 --> 00:45:00,240
has led the United Nations
to label it as ethnic cleansing.
547
00:45:01,600 --> 00:45:05,440
Burma's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi,
a Nobel Prize winner,
548
00:45:05,440 --> 00:45:08,360
has not condemned
the army's actions.
549
00:45:08,360 --> 00:45:10,640
She has blamed the crisis
on tensions
550
00:45:10,640 --> 00:45:13,720
between the Buddhist and Muslim
communities in Rakhine
551
00:45:13,720 --> 00:45:15,720
and violence on both sides.
552
00:45:17,080 --> 00:45:19,480
International observers
have not been allowed
553
00:45:19,480 --> 00:45:21,280
to freely visit the area.
554
00:45:30,040 --> 00:45:33,240
I'd heard that people were
still trying to flee Burma
555
00:45:33,240 --> 00:45:36,240
and that thousands were still stuck
at the land border
556
00:45:36,240 --> 00:45:38,080
between the two countries.
557
00:45:40,080 --> 00:45:42,960
Bangladeshi border guards
were closing crossing points
558
00:45:42,960 --> 00:45:46,840
and setting up checkpoints to stop
more Rohingya entering the country.
559
00:45:49,640 --> 00:45:51,240
Let's go.
560
00:45:58,000 --> 00:46:00,160
How close to the border
are we now, Shamin?
561
00:46:00,160 --> 00:46:03,040
This is also Burmese fence. Look.
INAUDIBLE
562
00:46:03,040 --> 00:46:05,800
Just there?! Yes, this one.
563
00:46:05,800 --> 00:46:09,360
This is the main.
Can we stop? Can we stop?
564
00:46:09,360 --> 00:46:10,400
Let's just hop out.
565
00:46:12,360 --> 00:46:13,840
OK, let's have a look.
566
00:46:16,720 --> 00:46:18,760
This is the border.
567
00:46:18,760 --> 00:46:21,000
Myanmar and Bangladesh border.
568
00:46:21,000 --> 00:46:22,160
This is the border?
569
00:46:22,160 --> 00:46:23,480
Yeah, this is the border and...
570
00:46:23,480 --> 00:46:26,160
Right here?! Yeah. Not the water?
571
00:46:26,160 --> 00:46:27,920
Yeah. The water is the border?
572
00:46:27,920 --> 00:46:30,280
Yeah, this is Bangladesh
and that is Myanmar.
573
00:46:32,760 --> 00:46:36,280
This is the fence and
pillar of the Myanmar.
574
00:46:36,280 --> 00:46:40,520
OK, so they are trapped on almost
a no-man's land, almost...
575
00:46:40,520 --> 00:46:43,920
Yeah. ..between the Myanmar fence
and the Myanmar border,
576
00:46:43,920 --> 00:46:46,080
which is just here.
577
00:46:46,080 --> 00:46:50,480
So they're being allowed to come
to this side just informally?
578
00:46:50,480 --> 00:46:55,480
Informally, to take medicines
and to take food,
579
00:46:55,480 --> 00:46:58,920
to take aid and
just to bring water also.
580
00:46:58,920 --> 00:47:00,320
OK. So...
581
00:47:02,520 --> 00:47:04,560
This little bridge here...
Yeah, bamboo bridge.
582
00:47:04,560 --> 00:47:08,000
..is one of a very few sort of
actual crossing points?
583
00:47:08,000 --> 00:47:10,400
Yes. An informal crossing point.
584
00:47:10,400 --> 00:47:11,760
This is utterly horrific.
585
00:47:13,520 --> 00:47:18,120
I mean, thank God the Bangladeshis
are letting the Rohingya come across
586
00:47:18,120 --> 00:47:20,800
to pick up aid, otherwise
these people would have nothing.
587
00:47:20,800 --> 00:47:22,720
But, of course,
you may well be asking
588
00:47:22,720 --> 00:47:26,560
why won't they let everybody cross
into the safety of this side?
589
00:47:26,560 --> 00:47:29,120
It's a very fair question.
590
00:47:29,120 --> 00:47:31,400
Obviously, Bangladesh is
a desperately poor country.
591
00:47:31,400 --> 00:47:35,120
They've already absorbed and are
housing tens and tens of thousands
592
00:47:35,120 --> 00:47:36,920
of Rohingya refugees.
593
00:47:36,920 --> 00:47:41,200
But there are tensions starting to
develop between the community here,
594
00:47:41,200 --> 00:47:43,160
of course, and the people coming in.
595
00:47:46,280 --> 00:47:49,280
Then we spotted Burmese
soldiers watching over the camp
596
00:47:49,280 --> 00:47:50,400
from the hill above.
597
00:47:53,520 --> 00:47:54,920
What happened? One is running.
598
00:47:54,920 --> 00:47:57,080
One has just run up.
Over there.
599
00:48:07,560 --> 00:48:08,760
Bloody hell.
600
00:48:20,080 --> 00:48:21,560
So she stepped on a land mine?
601
00:48:21,560 --> 00:48:23,840
No... Yeah. She...
602
00:48:25,480 --> 00:48:27,760
Lost both her legs. Yes.
603
00:48:30,240 --> 00:48:35,360
Relations have never been good
between many of the Burmese
604
00:48:35,360 --> 00:48:37,480
and the Rohingya, but this is...
605
00:48:37,480 --> 00:48:38,840
this is apocalyptic.
606
00:48:38,840 --> 00:48:41,680
It is a completely, erm,
607
00:48:41,680 --> 00:48:43,720
devastating situation.
608
00:48:43,720 --> 00:48:44,960
How can you ever go back?
609
00:48:46,240 --> 00:48:48,600
TRANSLATION
610
00:48:54,280 --> 00:48:58,000
What did you do before you came
here, before you had to flee?
611
00:49:01,200 --> 00:49:02,960
You studied psychology?
612
00:49:25,880 --> 00:49:29,200
The Rohingya see themselves
as part of Burma.
613
00:49:29,200 --> 00:49:32,200
Everyone I spoke to
wanted to return home.
614
00:49:32,200 --> 00:49:34,680
The Bangladeshis want them to go.
615
00:49:34,680 --> 00:49:36,400
But clearly it's not safe.
616
00:49:38,920 --> 00:49:40,480
HORN BEEPS
617
00:49:42,240 --> 00:49:45,120
Yeah, we've got some stuff.
We've got some stuff.
618
00:49:45,120 --> 00:49:46,360
There's a guy been injured.
619
00:49:49,240 --> 00:49:51,120
HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE
620
00:49:51,120 --> 00:49:53,560
Yeah, we've got bandages.
621
00:49:53,560 --> 00:49:55,080
Here. I'll try and find
a better one.
622
00:49:56,120 --> 00:49:57,640
That's probably the best thing.
623
00:50:00,640 --> 00:50:02,800
Not far. Yeah?
624
00:50:02,800 --> 00:50:06,400
OK. If you go on here.
625
00:50:06,400 --> 00:50:08,800
Oh, man, he's been badly beaten.
626
00:50:08,800 --> 00:50:12,120
Kairo went back into Burma
to check on his farm.
627
00:50:12,120 --> 00:50:14,040
He was caught by Burmese soldiers.
628
00:50:14,040 --> 00:50:15,640
Why did you want to go back?
629
00:50:38,160 --> 00:50:40,400
CAR HORN TOOTS
630
00:50:41,480 --> 00:50:43,760
HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE
Patient, patient. Yes, yes.
631
00:50:43,760 --> 00:50:45,000
Just here? Yes, yes.
632
00:50:53,880 --> 00:50:57,000
OK. How often is something
like this happening,
633
00:50:57,000 --> 00:50:59,920
where people have been across the
border,
634
00:50:59,920 --> 00:51:04,400
are being still brought in now,
beaten up, attacked, tortured?
635
00:51:04,400 --> 00:51:05,920
Daily. Every day?
636
00:51:05,920 --> 00:51:06,960
Yeah.
637
00:51:08,520 --> 00:51:10,640
He's lucky to be alive.
638
00:51:10,640 --> 00:51:12,400
They could've killed him. Mm.
639
00:51:19,200 --> 00:51:21,920
They want the Rohingya
to stay out of Myanmar?
640
00:51:29,040 --> 00:51:32,560
It's hard to know how the Rohingya
will ever be able to go safely back
641
00:51:32,560 --> 00:51:33,760
to Burma.
642
00:51:36,440 --> 00:51:37,520
30 minutes ago.
643
00:51:39,240 --> 00:51:40,720
There is a small fracture.
644
00:51:40,720 --> 00:51:42,160
He's got a fracture in his skull?
645
00:51:42,160 --> 00:51:44,680
Yeah, a small fracture,
no need to operate right now,
646
00:51:44,680 --> 00:51:46,600
but we'll just take him
to the observation
647
00:51:46,600 --> 00:51:48,720
and see through the night
how he goes.
648
00:51:53,240 --> 00:51:54,720
After all that's happened,
649
00:51:54,720 --> 00:51:58,240
surely the Rohingya would
need cast-iron guarantees
650
00:51:58,240 --> 00:52:01,040
and an international force to
protect them if they returned.
651
00:52:02,160 --> 00:52:03,400
Wouldn't you?
652
00:52:17,800 --> 00:52:21,120
The Burmese government has
always blamed Rohingya militants
653
00:52:21,120 --> 00:52:23,600
for starting the latest
bout of violence.
654
00:52:29,600 --> 00:52:32,880
There is a small, violent
Rohingya resistance movement
655
00:52:32,880 --> 00:52:36,400
called the Arakan Rohingya
Salvation Army, or ARSA.
656
00:52:37,680 --> 00:52:41,800
In August 2017, they coordinated
a series of attacks,
657
00:52:41,800 --> 00:52:45,960
mostly with knives and sticks,
on remote Burmese police outposts.
658
00:52:48,680 --> 00:52:50,880
We're in a blacked-out
vehicle because we're heading
659
00:52:50,880 --> 00:52:54,280
to try and meet some
of the militants
660
00:52:54,280 --> 00:52:56,920
behind the initial attacks.
661
00:52:56,920 --> 00:52:59,520
I heard about a guide who could
help take me to the group.
662
00:53:00,560 --> 00:53:02,600
I couldn't be sure what
I was getting into.
663
00:53:02,600 --> 00:53:05,440
Are these the guys here?
Assalaamu Alaikum.
664
00:53:05,440 --> 00:53:08,760
VOICEOVER: ARSA has been accused of
receiving support from foreign
665
00:53:08,760 --> 00:53:10,360
terror groups. Assalaamu Alaikum.
666
00:53:10,360 --> 00:53:11,880
Wa alaikum salaam.
667
00:53:11,880 --> 00:53:14,840
What inspired you,
what forced you to join the group?
668
00:53:14,840 --> 00:53:17,040
TRANSLATION
669
00:53:42,920 --> 00:53:43,960
What did you do?
670
00:54:13,600 --> 00:54:14,640
Oh, my God.
671
00:54:18,080 --> 00:54:22,040
During one of the attacks that
the Burmese say was responsible
672
00:54:22,040 --> 00:54:26,240
for causing their...their military
crackdown, as they put it?
673
00:54:41,720 --> 00:54:45,200
Do you have any regrets about
the attacks that you launched?
674
00:55:02,040 --> 00:55:03,640
What is it that you want us to know?
675
00:55:16,760 --> 00:55:20,240
Are you part of an
international group
676
00:55:20,240 --> 00:55:21,840
or organisation
677
00:55:21,840 --> 00:55:24,200
or are you just for the Rohingya?
678
00:55:36,000 --> 00:55:38,720
Are those international fighters,
are they Al-Qaeda?
679
00:56:13,400 --> 00:56:15,560
Well, look, I'm going to
go out on a limb here
680
00:56:15,560 --> 00:56:19,560
and I'm going to say that if you or
I had been through what these people
681
00:56:19,560 --> 00:56:20,800
have been through,
682
00:56:20,800 --> 00:56:23,280
there is every chance
that many of us would at least
683
00:56:23,280 --> 00:56:24,640
sympathise with that group.
684
00:56:26,400 --> 00:56:29,120
What an appalling situation this is.
685
00:56:30,600 --> 00:56:33,960
I tell you, what worries me is that
international jihadi groups
686
00:56:33,960 --> 00:56:36,560
are starting to latch
onto this situation.
687
00:56:36,560 --> 00:56:39,400
If they get involved
in the conflict,
688
00:56:39,400 --> 00:56:43,120
they will poison relations
around this region
689
00:56:43,120 --> 00:56:46,200
between the different ethnic
groups and different religions.
690
00:56:47,200 --> 00:56:54,080
Unless the Rohingya are given safety
and security and their land back,
691
00:56:54,080 --> 00:56:59,400
then I fear for the safety of
Myanmar and of this wider region.
692
00:57:03,480 --> 00:57:06,760
The Burmese government claims
they'll welcome the Rohingya back
693
00:57:06,760 --> 00:57:11,120
into Burma, but from everything I'd
seen, that seems more than unlikely.
694
00:57:13,240 --> 00:57:16,560
Evidence suggests the Burmese
army attacks were systematic
695
00:57:16,560 --> 00:57:18,000
and organised -
696
00:57:18,000 --> 00:57:19,280
possibly in advance.
697
00:57:20,840 --> 00:57:23,200
Many of the Rohingya villages
attacked by the soldiers
698
00:57:23,200 --> 00:57:25,440
have now been bulldozed.
699
00:57:25,440 --> 00:57:29,960
The state-run media in Burma is
busy spreading fear of Muslims.
700
00:57:29,960 --> 00:57:33,560
And anti-Rohingya feeling inside
Burma is shockingly widespread.
701
00:57:35,120 --> 00:57:39,240
I confess, I hadn't realised how bad
things are for the Rohingya until
702
00:57:39,240 --> 00:57:44,040
coming here. The point is
they've been bad for decades.
703
00:57:44,040 --> 00:57:46,760
I can't really understand why the
rest of the world hasn't spoken up
704
00:57:46,760 --> 00:57:49,520
about their treatment
more assertively.
705
00:57:49,520 --> 00:57:52,520
I think it was because recently
706
00:57:52,520 --> 00:57:55,720
we've been a bit blinded by the fact
that Burma is supposed to have
707
00:57:55,720 --> 00:57:57,680
changed into a democracy.
708
00:57:57,680 --> 00:57:59,240
And we haven't wanted
to criticise it
709
00:57:59,240 --> 00:58:03,040
and we haven't wanted to criticise
the country's de facto leader,
710
00:58:03,040 --> 00:58:04,240
Aung San Suu Kyi.
711
00:58:05,520 --> 00:58:08,480
We thought she was an Asian Mandela.
712
00:58:09,840 --> 00:58:11,280
How wrong we were.
713
00:58:16,480 --> 00:58:19,800
Next time, I journey deeper
into Burma to discover a land
714
00:58:19,800 --> 00:58:21,920
that's been cut off for decades...
715
00:58:21,920 --> 00:58:24,840
Well, this is like Burma's
version of Venice.
716
00:58:24,840 --> 00:58:27,520
..and I travel secretly to
one of Burma's conflict zones
717
00:58:27,520 --> 00:58:30,720
to meet a rebel army who have waged
a long war against the brutal
718
00:58:30,720 --> 00:58:31,760
Burmese military.