MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#77: 21 FEBRUARY 2024 Rohingya: The People Without Hope BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY Abstract Even as hundreds of Rohingya refugees continue to die at sea during their perilous boat journeys to Malaysia and Indonesia, their plight has evaded regional as well as global attention. The lives of those who stay put in the camps in […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#75: 17 NOVEMBER 2023 Civil War in Myanmar: Internal and External Sources of Sustenance BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY Abstract The ongoing civil war in Myanmar shows no sign of abating. From the February 2021 coup by the Myanmar military to present (17 November 2023), a reported 4,190 civilians have lost their lives in operations carried […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#72: 02 OCTOBER 2023 A Rail Line from China to Myanmar BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY Abstract Myanmar’s military-formed government and China are seeking to kickstart the much-delayed Muse-Mandalay railway project. Responsibility for dealing with opposition to the project and other hindrances within Myanmar appears to have been assigned. Nonetheless, swift execution of the project is […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#70: 19 SEPTEMBER 2023 India in Myanmar: Limits of Pragmatism BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY Abstract Since the mid-1990s, India’s ‘pragmatic’ policy in Myanmar has supported de facto governments in that country to further New Delhi’s strategic objectives. Without much concern for the cause of democracy, India has done business with the dominant Myanmar military. Even […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#67: 04 JULY 2023 Myanmar’s Surging Narco-trade: Military and the Opiate Economy BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY Abstract Opium production in Afghanistan has significantly declined. But it has surged in Myanmar. The military, which is in power following the coup in February 2021, is neither willing nor capable of launching a war on opium cultivation and […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#66: 23 MAY 2023 The Question of Myanmarese Migrants in Manipur: Ethnic Violence, Drugs, & Conflict Spillover BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY Abstract Among the many factors behind the ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities in Manipur is the alleged presence of Myanmarese in the five hill districts of the state. Whereas the Kuki […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#65: 7 APRIL 2023 Dissolution of the National League for Democracy: What Next for the Prospect to restore democracy in Myanmar? BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY Introduction On 28 March 2023, Myanmar’s election commission announced the dissolution of 40 political parties including the National League for Democracy (NLD) for failing to re-register under a new military-drafted […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#63: 14 FEBRUARY 2023 Preparing for a Fraudulent Election: Myanmar Military attempts to Legitimize the Coup BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY ABSTRACT Myanmar’s military junta is preparing for holding an election in 2023 in order to provide the much-needed legitimacy to its rule. It is most likely to be a sham exercise, the UN has speculated. […]
MANTRAYA SPECIAL REPORT#21: 23 JANUARY 2023 Sunken Dreams: Rohingya Refugee Crisis BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY ABSTRACT Hopelessly stuck in the wretched camps in Bangladesh for over five years, Rohingya refugees are undertaking perilous sea journeys to Malaysia, across the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. While thousands have reached their destination in search of better […]
MANTRAYA POLICY BRIEF#44: 28 DECEMBER 2022 Myanmar in 2022: Future of the Opposition’s Armed Uprising BIBHU PRASAD ROUTRAY ABSTRACT The bloody war of the Myanmar military unleashed on the civilian PDFs and the ethnic armed organisations continues to claim lives daily. The opposition’s violent resistance,centred around restoring democracy, although impressive thus far, needs external support […]