Resource information
In
2012,
amidst
the
communal
violence
between
Royingha
and
Rakhine,
a
Chin
bride
father
at
Paletwa
in
southern
part
of
Chin
state
in
Myanmar
asked
twenty
lakhs
in
kyat
(approximately
equivalent
to
200
US$)
to
the
groom
for
the
bride
price
which
made
the
public
shocking
record
that
a
normal
price
range
around
5-6
lakhs
(approximately
equivalent
to
500-‐600US$).
On
the
other
hand,
the
other
bride’s
father
asked
five
thousands
kyats
for
the
bride
price
to
the
groom
in
May
2013.
These
two
cases
have
shocked
near
and
far
Chin
members
in
Paletwa.
Some
Chin
young
women
are
even
competing
for
their
bride
price.
Many
Chin
nationalists
have
then
attained
concern
for
this
circumstance
as
an
additional
ethnic
politics
issue
from
the
state’s
hegemony
nation
state
building
process.
Yet,
not
only
the
geographical
location
of
Paletwa
but
its
socio-economic
setting
also
much
interwoven
with
Rakhine
since
in
the
historical
time
(see
also
in
Kyin
Lam
Mang
2014;
CHKC
2012;
Brown
1960).
Many
shop
owners
in
Paletwa
municipal
market
have
informed
me
in
2013
(May-‐July)
how
much
they
are
affected
from
the
communal
violence
happening
in
Rakhine
where
the
flow
of
major
basic
goods
and
medicines
are
imported
from
Rakhine
is
limited.
In
Paletwa,
half
of
the
residence
belongs
to
Rakhine
ethnic
nationalities
with
a
hundred
Muslim
populations.
The
trading
disadvantage
categorized
as;
the
Muslim
on
the
top,
the
Chin
in
middle
and
the
Rakhine
on
t
he
bottom
due
to
their
socio-‐economic
networks
in
Sittwe
and
Kyautdaw
in
Rakhine
state.
That
is,
for
example,
a
trading
associated
in
Rakhine
state
have
much
facilitating
for
Rakhine
in
Paletwa
while
many
Muslim
and
the
Chin
do
not
much
deserve
to
have
such
network.
The
Chin
missionary
or
nationalists
have
claims
that
Paletwa
is
in
need
of
“taking
care”
otherwise
their
fellows
are
under
the
economic
“trapping”
of
the
Rakhine.".....Paper delivered at the International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies: Burma/Myanmar in Transition: Connectivity, Changes and Challenges: University Academic Service Centre (UNISERV), Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 24-26 July 2015.
