Vice recap: ‘Massacre in Myanmar and the Blue Helmets’
By Grant Butler
On the latest episode of Vice, “Massacre in Myanmar and the Blue Helmets” took a look at two connected stories.
The first was a look at the situation faced by Rohingya minority in Myanmar. The Rohingya people are subject to massive violence and intimidation from the government of Myanmar. Even Nobel Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar has come under criticism for her response to the treatment of the Rohingya. As a result, the Rohingya are attempting to flee Myanmar for Bangladesh. But it’s not quite that simple. The situation is in the early stages of a humanitarian and refugee crisis. Some of the Rohingya hope the United Nations will get involved to help broker a solution. “Massacre in Myanmar and the Blue Helmets” points out the UN itself considers the Rohingya one of the most persecuted minorities in the World.
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The second story was a look at how the UN Blue Helmets actually operate on the ground. The story in Myanmar provided a sort of look at situations the UN gets involved in, whereas this one took a look at how they try to assist in matters. The Blue Helmets are the UN’s peacekeeping troops and since the end of the Cold War, they’ve been deployed all across the globe. Vice found them trying to assist the situation in Mali, where ISIS has been operating.
After the Soviet Union collapsed, the global situation drastically changed. There were no longer two dominant World powers in direct competition. As a result, warfare itself changed. Traditional warfare of two countries going head to head with armies became replaced by terrorism and insurgency from non-state actors (from various groups like the Taliban, etc). Third World countries used to dealing with either the U.S. or the Soviet Union now found themselves operating within a new international status quo, where non-state actors were now a variable to consider. It becomes more complicated to keep the peace when you have a variety of actors to consider. It is far more difficult for a country to go to war than it is for a rogue group to.
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Vice has always shined a light on problems around the world people aren’t necessarily focusing on. “Massacre in Myanmar and the Blue Helmets ” is no different, and the episode brings up a lot of interesting points about the UN and war-ravaged nations.
Be sure to check out the critically acclaimed series Friday nights on HBO, or On Demand from their app.