“The religions can play a significant role in repairing the emotional, spiritual and psychological wounds of those who have suffered in the years of conflict,” he said. “Drawing on deeply held values, they can help to uproot the causes of conflict, build bridges of dialogue, seek justice and be a prophetic voice for all who suffer.”
Some diplomats thought it was for the best that the pope had not explicitly mentioned the Rohingya.
“The problem is that with the press, maybe some human rights organizations, the expectations are very high,” said Nikolay Listopadov, Russia’s ambassador to Myanmar, after exiting the International Convention Center, where the speeches took place. “They usually expect some miracles. But even the pope can’t just produce a miracle right now.”
The pope emphasized similar themes earlier Tuesday at the archbishop’s residence in Yangon, where he met for 40 minutes with Buddhist leaders, as well as Hindu, Jewish, Christian and Muslim representatives. He said that diversity was a source of strength and that uniformity eroded humanity.
But that view is anathema to many Buddhists in Myanmar. Many see the Rohingya, who have lived in Myanmar for generations, as unassimilated Muslim separatists whose propagation poses a threat to Buddhist, and nationalist, identity.
“We don’t like them. We’re angry,” said Naing Win, a 19-year-old novice monk who was walking around a pagoda complex in Yangon on Monday afternoon.
Nor does the view of Rohingya as, essentially, trespassers in Myanmar appear to be limited to hard-line Buddhists. Asked if any Rohingya had been present at the morning meeting in Yangon, Father Soe Naing, the spokesman for the Myanmar Catholic Bishops conference, explained that it was unlikely, as the Muslims who called themselves Rohingya were not allowed to move around the country.
The designation Rohingya, he added, was “a sudden creation” that reflected a separatist movement in Rakhine State: “For us they are called Bengalis.”
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