Rohingya in Bangladesh

Introduction / History

The Muslim Rohingya people are from Rakhine State (also known as Arakan), Myanmar, and speak the Rohingya language. Rohingyas and some scholars claim they are indigenous to Rakhine State, while the Burmese claim the Rohingyas are mainly migrants from Bengal. Buddhist people of Rakhine State and Muslim Rohingyas have struggled against each other for many decades and there were riots in 2012. Many Rohingyas have fled to ghettos and refugee camps in Bangladesh and to areas along the border with Thailand. They have been denied citizenship in Myanmar and have been described as one of the most persecuted minorities in the world.

What Are Their Lives Like?

The Rohingya are not welcome in over-crowded Bangladesh. That is a Muslim country, but they don’t have the capacity for refugees. For that reason, the Rohingya in Bangladesh are pressured to leave Bangladesh.

What Are Their Beliefs?

The Rohingya people are Sunni Muslims who believe that the supreme God, Allah, spoke through his prophet, Mohammed, and taught mankind how to live a righteous life through the Koran and the Hadith. To live a righteous life, you must utter the Shahada (a statement of faith), pray five times a day facing Mecca, fast from sunup to sundown during the month of Ramadan, give alms to the poor, and make a pilgrimage to Mecca if you have the means. Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol, eating pork, gambling, stealing, slandering, and making idols. They gather for corporate prayer on Friday afternoons at a mosque, their place of worship.
The two main holidays for Sunni Muslims are Eid al Fitr, the breaking of the monthly fast and Eid al Adha, the celebration of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son to Allah.
Sunni religious practices are staid and simple. They believe that Allah has pre-determined our fates; they minimize free will.
In most of the Muslim world, people depend on the spirit world for their daily needs since they regard Allah as too distant. Allah may determine their eternal salvation, but the spirits determine how well we live in our daily lives. For that reason, they must appease the spirits. They often use charms and amulets to help them with spiritual forces.

What Are Their Needs?

No scripture is reported as available in the Rohingya language. Acts of kindness done in the name of Christ, directed toward the downtrodden Rohingya people will be well received.

Prayer Points

None of the Rohingya have reported themselves as Christians to the census of Bangladesh. In fact, a similar thing is true for all other countries of residence. If there are Christian believers, they are few and desperately in need of our prayers. Pray for fair treatment of the Rohingya in Myanmar and in other countries where they live. Pray they will be protected from radical and violent Buddhists, and that the government of Myanmar will accept the responsibility to protect and provide for these people. Acknowledging them as citizens would be important.

Text Source:   Joshua Project