Operation Clean and Beautiful Nation
Part of the Rohingya conflict
Date1991–1992[1]
Location
Northern Rakhine State;
Bangladesh–Myanmar border
Result

Burmese tactical failure

Belligerents
Myanmar (SLORC)

Rohingya Solidarity Organisation

 Bangladesh
(border skirmish)
Commanders and leaders
Saw Maung Muhammad Yunus
Casualties and losses
200,000[2]–250,000[3][1] displaced
(150,000 later repatriated)[4]

Operation Clean and Beautiful Nation (Burmese: ပြည်သာယာ စစ်ဆင်ရေး), officially known as Operation Pyi Thaya in English, was a military operation conducted by the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Armed Forces) in northern Rakhine State, near Myanmar's border with Bangladesh.[2][5][6][7] The operation took place between 1991 and 1992,[1] under the military junta of the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), officially as a response to the military expansion of the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO).[3]

Similar to Operation Nagamin (Operation Dragon King) in 1978, the government's official explanation for the operation was to expel so-called "foreigners" from the area, as well as capturing RSO insurgents. The resulting violence however, resulted in 200,000[2] to 250,000[3] civilians being displaced (most of whom fled to neighbouring Bangladesh) and failed to prevent further attacks by the RSO, which continued until the end of the 1990s.[5][7]

In December 1991, Tatmadaw soldiers crossed the border and accidentally fired on a Bangladeshi military outpost, causing a brief strain in Bangladesh–Myanmar relations.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Burma/Bangladesh: Burmese Refugees In Bangladesh - Historical Background". www.hrw.org. Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  2. ^ a b c Ahmed, Akbar. "The Rohingya: Myanmar's outcasts". www.aljazeera.com. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d "Bangladesh Extremist Islamist Consolidation". by Bertil Lintner. Archived from the original on 21 October 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  4. ^ Skutsch, Carl (7 November 2013). Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities. Routledge. p. 128. ISBN 9781135193881. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  5. ^ a b "Bangladesh: The Plight of the Rohingya". Pulitzer Center. 18 September 2012. Archived from the original on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Understanding and responding to the Rohingya crisis". ReliefWeb. 27 May 2015. Archived from the original on 20 September 2015. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  7. ^ a b Hodal, Kate (20 December 2012). "Trapped inside Burma's refugee camps, the Rohingya people call for recognition". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 14 April 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
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