Abstract: "Anti-Muslim sentiment is not a new phenomenon in Myanmar but it is deeply rooted in its pre-­independence history. Throughout the military junta in Myanmar, the escalation of anti-­Muslim hate speech aimed to instigate Buddhist-­Muslim riots in order to deflect the people?s anger and exasperation away from the military regime. Since 1988 when the military ruled Myanmar, anti-­Muslims hate and dangerous speech have been mainly circulating in the print media, and nowadays particularly on social media in Myanmar although most of the people in rural areas cannot access the internet. Anti-­Muslim hate speech and propaganda such as pamphlets, leaflets, DVDs, VCDs, CDs, posters and others have been distributed in some parts of Myanmar right before outbeaks of mass violence against Muslims such as the anti-­Muslim riot in Mandalay (1997), the anti-­Muslim riot in Taungoo (2001), and the anti-­Muslim riot in Meikhtila (2013). Based on interviews and documents such as pamphlets, leaflets, DVDs, VCDs, and CDs, and sermons, as well as interviews given by nationalists and nationalist Buddhist monks, this paper analyses speech acts that promote anti -­‐ Muslim sentiment, which is a precondition for instigating anti-­Muslim violence. This pap er argues that promotion of anti-­Muslim sentiment has always escalated shortly before the outbreaks of mass violence against Muslims in Myanmar. The contribution of this paper is to call attention to a dynamic that could lead to atrocities against Muslims in Myanmar.".....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.