Title: CDA on the Rohingya Crisis: Suu Kyi vs. Yunus
Stream: Language, Literature and Linguistics
Presentation Type: Virtual Presentation
Authors:
Masuda Khan, Brac University, Bangladesh
Abstract:
The Rohingya Crisis dates back to many generations, but in 2016 it caught worldwide attention again when Bangladesh opened its borders for a huge influx of 1.1 million refugees. The UN defines what happened to the Rohingya in the Rakhine as ‘the textbook definition of genocide’. Yet to the representatives from Myanmar, the state of affairs differs greatly from the rest of the world.
In this study I aim to look at the language two famous Nobel Peace Prize laureates from Myanmar and Bangladesh use to describe the conflict. Aung San Suu Kyi and Muhammad Yunus, are both icons in their respective countries, being ambassadors to peace. And their violently opposing views on the delicate topic of mass genocide will definitely make this an interesting study.
The research is conducted using qualitative data and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). Using different lenses I looked at their language when describing this humanitarian issue and also looked at how they used and flouted various Politeness Strategies. We saw that Muhammad Yunus expressed his thoughts clearly without any of the political masks but is seen flouting politeness maxims.
Aung San Suu Kyi on the other hand uses discourse strategies. She is seen to be using Chilton(1990)’s extended version of Brown and Levinson’s Politeness Strategies in the context of political discourse, which are: ‘common ground’ and ‘military metaphor’ strategies of politeness. These make her seem more humane, and the direct result of her speech is visible in the positive feedback she is getting about her leadership in the comment section of the video clip analyzed. All in all this paper gives an insight to how politicians have sculpted images with discourse that change the world views of the mass. Genocide is normalized always strategically with change in vocabulary.
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