Indoctrination of Islamophobia in Myanmar’s Dhamma Schools: A Politically Engineered Narrative
Since their inception in 2012, Myanmar’s Dhamma Schools have enrolled over 700,000 children in nearly 5,000 centers nationwide. Ostensibly established to provide moral education based on Buddhist teachings, these schools have become a covert vehicle for Islamophobia and racial nationalism. The movement was spearheaded by the Dhamma School Foundation, closely tied to the hardline nationalist group Ma Ba Tha, and politically backed by military-linked parties such as the USDP (Union Solidarity and Development Party).
Supported by former military leaders like General Than Shwe, President Thein Sein, and other ex-generals, the Dhamma School project was strategically crafted not only to spread Buddhist values but also to propagate an ultra-nationalist ideology under the guise of patriotism. Financed by cronies of successive military regimes, the curriculum instilled racially divisive and anti-Muslim sentiments into the minds of children as young as six.
Among the most disturbing elements are hate-filled poems targeting Islam, immigrants, and mixed-race families. Young learners are taught to avoid marrying foreigners to preserve their “race and religion,” reinforcing ideas of ethnic purity. These teachings were politically motivated, designed to undermine the rising popularity of the NLD (National League for Democracy) and its leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who had won national and international acclaim.
Paradoxically, fearing the erosion of her Buddhist support base, Suu Kyi and the NLD leadership attempted to align with Ma Ba Tha’s ultranationalist monks, including figures such as U Wirathu. This attempt to “hug the opponent,” a tactic akin to defensive strategies in Myanmar traditional boxing, proved politically fatal. It alienated religious minorities and international allies alike, ultimately contributing to Suu Kyi’s loss of moral credibility. Her silence during the 2017 Rohingya crisis, compounded by her tacit acceptance of the hate-driven narrative, led to her inclusion in discussions around international legal accountability, including the ICC.
The ideological roots of these Dhamma Schools trace back to Sri Lanka, where nationalist Buddhism has also taken an anti-Muslim turn. Myanmar monks studying there imported the Dhamma school model and adapted it into a mechanism for nationalist mobilization.
Ma Ba Tha, formerly known as the 969 Movement, rebranded in 2014 to sanitize its image after criticism for inciting religious violence. However, the rebranding was superficial. Under its new name, the association continued disseminating anti-Muslim propaganda, with sermons from monks like U Wimala warning that the Buddhist race and religion were under existential threat.
Statements such as “We Buddhists are like people in a boat that is sinking” foster an atmosphere of fear and urgency. This apocalyptic rhetoric mirrors propaganda in other Buddhist-majority nations such as Sri Lanka, where similar narratives led to systemic anti-Muslim violence in 2014, 2018, and 2019.
The impact of this institutional Islamophobia has been devastating. In Myanmar, it paved the ideological groundwork for the 2017 genocide of the Rohingya population, with over 650,000 fleeing to Bangladesh. Much of the violence was state-sponsored or committed by state-aligned groups.
Legislative measures have also reinforced anti-Muslim discrimination, including the 2015 “Race and Religion” laws that restricted interfaith marriages, religious conversions, and birth rights in Muslim-majority areas.
In conclusion, the Dhamma Schools serve not only as educational institutions but as ideological training grounds aimed at preserving military-aligned nationalism under a religious cover. Their true legacy may not be spiritual enlightenment, but a generation indoctrinated with fear, racial superiority, and religious intolerance. Myanmar’s future, and its hope for inclusive peace, depends on dismantling such systems of engineered hate.
