Ambassadors of harmony

Swayed by the media reports, one would probably be hard-pressed to believe the apparent harmony that prevails among the Myanmar team members taking part in the 4th Roll Ball World Cup taking place in Dhaka.

Thanks to the well-documented atrocities of the military in Western Myanmar on the Muslim minority of Rohingyas in the Arakan province, the southern tip of Bangladesh is now a big shelter house for refugees. But the 11-member team from Myanmar, who are here in their first overseas appearance, bring a different side to the story.

The 11-member team, accompanied by a team manager and a federation official, is as diverse as it could be. According to one of the members, there are seven Buddhists, one Christian and three Muslims, including one who has his roots  in Bangladesh.

“I know the issues [relating to Rohingyas]. It's a big headache for us,” said the member on condition of anonymity. “Actually that hatred is created by only small groups of people. We and other middle class people have no problem. Even in my team, there are a lot of Muslims.”

“Frankly, the new government controls only 50 per cent of the country. Important ministries are controlled by the army. So those are the rules happening around the Arakan state and they are controlled by the military. There is a big disconnect between the political parties and the army,” he added.

The players said since they don't live at the hotbed of turmoil of the Arakan province, they haven't witnessed the atrocities, but they are glad to be 'in the friendly and neighbouring country as ambassadors of harmony.'