Myanmar Struggles to Put Down Buddhist Attack on Muslims

[Ensapa]

Myanmar struggles to handle the buddhist riots...

Myanmar Struggles to Put Down Buddhist Attack on Muslims
 
Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters


A police officer outside a mosque that was set on fire in the northern city of Lashio, the latest outbreak of religious violence in Myanmar.
By THOMAS FULLER
Published: May 29, 2013

BANGKOK — Security forces on Wednesday struggled to bring peace to a northern city in Myanmar after Buddhist mobs set fire to a mosque, a Muslim school and shops, the latest outbreak of religious violence in Myanmar and a sign that radical strains of Buddhism may be spreading to a wider area of the country.
 

Gemunu Amarasinghe/Associated Press
Hundreds of Buddhist men on motorcycles roamed the streets with machetes, sticks and metal rods.

The violence afflicting the city, Lashio, in the north near the border with China, is hundreds of miles from towns and villages affected by religious violence this year.

One Muslim man was killed and four Buddhists were wounded in the clashes, said U Wai Lin, an official with the Information Ministry in Lashio.

U Khun Zaw Oo, a freelance photographer reached by telephone in Lashio, said mobs of young men on motorcycles roamed the city with swords and metal rods.

“They are riding around neighborhoods and destroying,” he said.

Witnesses said Muslims had fled the city. A movie theater and Muslim shops were destroyed Wednesday, according to U Myo Myint, a member of the National League for Democracy, a political party, who witnessed the violence.

The burning of the mosque and other buildings took place on Tuesday evening and followed a pattern seen elsewhere in Myanmar of the police and military units’ being unwilling or unable to disperse angry crowds of Buddhists.

Lauri Nio, a student from Finland visiting Lashio, said the first police units arrived two hours after groups of men set fire to the mosque and began destroying shops. The police stayed for only a few minutes, he said, and when a larger contingent of police and military units returned later in the night, they closed off the streets but did not confront the rioters.

Groups of men gathered in the market “shouting, cheering and singing Burmese nationalist songs” as they destroyed shops, he said.

Video from the city posted on Facebook on Wednesday by the Democratic Voice of Burma, a Myanmar online news service, showed what now have become familiar scenes in the country of burned-out buildings and charred motorcycles.

As with previous bouts of violence in central Myanmar, journalists were singled out.

“They hit me on the head with a metal rod,” Mr. Khun Zaw Oo said. The mobs also removed and destroyed memory cards from his camera, he said.

Like a rampage in March in the central city of Meiktila, the violence in Lashio appeared to have been touched off by a relatively minor quarrel. State television said a Buddhist woman selling gasoline was attacked by a Muslim customer, who was later detained by the police.

Buddhist mobs surrounded the police station where the man was being held and reacted with fury when the police did not hand him over. Details of the quarrel could not be confirmed.

Ye Htut, a government spokesman, said the crowd outside the police station in Lashio included 80 Buddhist monks. The police opened fire on Wednesday to try to quell the violence, Mr. Ye Htut said.

Earlier on Wednesday, he said the authorities and religious and civic organizations in Lashio had been “cooperating with each other to avoid further violence in the city.”

At least 44 people have died since March, when Buddhist mobs rampaged through Meiktila, violence that followed a dispute in a gold shop between a Muslim proprietor and Buddhist customers. Most of the victims in Meiktila were Muslims.

Muslims make up about 5 percent of the population in Myanmar, but their presence is visible in nearly every large town and city.

The violence of recent months has strained Myanmar’s relations with Muslim countries and has underlined questions about the ability of its government, which is overwhelmingly staffed by Buddhists from the Burman ethnic group, to maintain long-term peace and stability among the country’s many other ethnic and religious groups.

Wai Moe contributed reporting from Yangon, Myanmar.

[Ensapa]

Another article on the same issue:

Are Buddhist Monks Involved In Myanmar's Violence?


Some Muslims say Buddhist monks have been inciting followers during recent violence in Myanmar. Monk U Wirathu acknowledges that he is a Buddhist nationalist but says he has tried to prevent fighting. He's shown here at the Masoeyein monastery in Mandalay, Myanmar, on March 27.

In the Western stereotype, Buddhists are meditating pacifists who strive to keep their distance from worldly passions. But last month, more than 40 people were killed in fighting between Buddhists and Muslims in the central Burmese town of Meiktila. Witnesses say some Buddhist monks joined in the violence, while others tried to stop it.

One prominent monk in particular has been blamed for being behind it.

U Wirathu, 45, is head of the Masoeyein monastery in Myanmar's second-largest city, Mandalay, just up the highway from Meiktila. Wirathu is considered a talented scholar of Buddhist scriptures in the ancient Pali language, which gives him authority among Buddhists.

On a recent day, he sat in the middle of a large hall, full of Buddhist imagery and pictures of other monks. Wirathu is a slight figure, clad in saffron-colored robes. He says he was in Meiktila during the violence, and was trying to stop it.

"We spoke to the crowds to try to control the situation," he says in a steady voice. "We assured them of their safety. We told them we intended to protect their lives and homes and asked them to join us."

Wirathu acknowledges he's a Buddhist nationalist. But he says he's just defending his nation and his religion against attacks by outsiders.

"The Burmese race has been insulted," he argues. "The Buddhist religion has been attacked, and our country has been trespassed. These are the origins of our nationalism."


A decade ago, authorities charged Wirathu with inciting anti-Muslim riots outside Mandalay, and jailed him for eight years. He's aware it could happen this time too.


As Myanmar Reforms, Old Tensions Rise To The Surface
"One of my followers was arrested. Another one is missing, and his house was searched. Some books of mine were confiscated. They are watching me too, and will probably arrest me soon.

He laughs nervously, and points out two men who have quietly come in and sat down during our interview. One, he says, is police, the other, military intelligence.

Wirathu says the recent violence in Meiktila is an extension of fighting between Muslims and Buddhists last year in western Rakhine state that killed more than 110 people.

The group Human Rights Watch has called this ethnic cleansing against Muslims. But Wirathu says it was an organized attack on Buddhism.

Wirathu says he's not anti-Muslim. But he is against Buddhists marrying Muslims, and he advocates a boycott of Muslim-owned businesses.

"Muslims who live in Burma have raped Burmese girls, even mute girls, mad girls, Buddhist nuns too," he claims. "They married Burmese Buddhist girls and forced them to convert to Islam by stepping on the pictures of the Buddha and pagodas. All this inflicted a lot of mental pain."

Historical Friction

Under Britain's colonial rule of Burma until 1947, many Muslim Indians who spoke English and understood colonial ways immigrated to Burma. They staffed the local bureaucracy and dominated professions such as medicine and money lending. During the Great Depression in the 1930s, resentment against this dominance erupted into anti-Muslim riots. Some of that suspicion remains to this day.

Perhaps the most contradictory thing about U Wirathu is that he and his followers describe him as pro-democracy. Pictures of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi meeting with President Obama are prominently displayed in his monastery. Many members of democratic political parties, such as the National League for Democracy, revere Wirathu and claim he is not anti-Muslim.

Matt Walton, a Burma expert at George Washington University, says that a century ago, Buddhist nationalists like Wirathu led the effort to make Burma into a modern democracy, free of British colonial rule.

"You had this really complex combination of this sort of democratic intention," he says, "or, at that time, a desire for independence that was coupled often with this virulent exclusionary nationalism, this idea that, in order to get independence, we have to get rid of all of these groups that weren't really part of the nation."

Walton says that in Myanmar, the concept of democracy often emphasizes the rule of the majority, which in this case means ethnic Burman and Buddhist, over the rights of the minority.

Buddhist nationalism has also cropped up in Sri Lanka, where majority Buddhists are in conflict with Hindu and Christian Tamils, and in southern Thailand, where there are tensions with Malay Muslims.

Those Buddhists share the perception that their religion is under attack, and they fret that their countries could go the way of Afghanistan and Indonesia, where Islam supplanted Buddhism as the dominant religion.

[Ensapa]

It's good that the monks in myanmar are taking the initiative to speak up and clear their name. I applaud this move.

Myanmar Buddhist monks make clarification of Buddhism
Published on Saturday, 15 June 2013 20:10


Dr. Ashin Dhammapiya, Ashin Cekainda, and Ashin Daewunabiwuntha (Photo - EMG)
More than 200 Buddhist monks took part in a two-day event aimed at promoting the peace aspect of the religion amid a growing criticism from the international community about the role of the religion in the ongoing communal violence.

The event brought together famous Buddhist monks who stressed the peaceful nature of Buddhism. The event was held at the Cekainda Rama Monastery in Hmawbi Township, Yangon Region.

The main purpose of the ceremony is to make clear the peacefulness of Buddhism, which the international community is misunderstanding because of the current situations in Myanmar, officials said.

Head of the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee (patronage committee of Myanmar Buddhist monks), Sayadaw Vhaddanta Panna Vansa from Malaysia and 227 Buddhist monks attended the ceremony.
A statement covering seven main topics was released today.
Seven topics include: 
(1) Solving the crisis through the Buddha’s teachings
(2) Legal sector
(3) Peaceful living for all the citizens
(4) Pursuance of the education sector
(5) News and information sector
(6) Coordination and negotiation of various organizations
(7) Counseling program
The statement urges the peaceful coexistence within the country, respecting the 1982 Citizenship Law, which supports peaceful coexistence in Myanmar.


Venerable monks replying to questions from the press (Photo - Aung Zaw Htun/EMG)

The monks also urged the Buddhists in the country not to take part in the so-called “969” anti-Muslim movement. The figure represents the religion’s holy trinity - Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.

The monks also issued a statement suggesting the government to rule the country in accord with the Buddhist teachings.

It also highlights doing research on the origins of Buddhism in Myanmar with confirmed data with the help of researchers. 

To include what made Buddhism disappear in some countries in the curriculum of the religious examinations is also suggested. 

The statement proposes to launch a website for releasing the genuine information about Buddhism.
“Why we have this ceremony is because Buddhism has already been regarded as the most peaceful religion in the world. Yet, clashes happened. Buddhism is intentionally disgraced on the pretext of some miscellaneous matters. We will continue to seek peacefully ways to make known that Buddhism is a peaceful religion,” said a famous venerable monk Ashin Cekainda. 

The monk stressed that the violence could be handled thanks to the cooperation of the government and religious and social leaders.

The attendees expressed the condolences to the families of the victims killed in Malaysia. Also, they applauded the kind assistance of local businesses to the Myanmar nationals in Malaysia so that they can return home. 

[dondrup]

Following the fighting between Muslims and Buddhists last year in western Rakhine state that killed more than 110 people, one would have expected the authorities in Myanmar to have stepped up the security measures and enforce greater control to restore law and order and bring harmony among the minority Muslims and the Buddhists. Unfortunately, history had repeated again, more riots had occurred at Lashio.

Buddhist monks are known to be kind and compassionate.  Being the ambassadors of Buddhism and friends of all beings, it is hard to believe that Buddhist monks could be involved (as reported) in the violent attacks on the minority Muslims in the cities of Lashio and Meiktila in Myanmar. 

Another irony is that the Buddhists in Myanmar were very violent and dangerous!  They had attacked the Muslims with weapons like swords and metal rods, burned down their mosques and attacked their shops, school and movie theater! 

The authorities did not seem to be concerned with the law and order.  It was reported that the police and military units were unwilling or unable to disperse angry crowds of Buddhists.  The police were slow to arrive at the scene where the mob had set fire to the mosque.  It was also reported the police did not confront the rioters.

It is rejoicing to know some prominent Myanmar Buddhist monks like Dr. Ashin Dhammapiya, Ashin Cekainda, and Ashin Daewunabiwuntha had taken the initiative to establish peace and harmony during this time of strife.

May peace be established swftly and the people in Myanmar – Buddhists, Muslims and other minority groups live in perfect harmony.

[Manjushri]

Quite a disgrace to create riots and war in the name of Buddhism. The Buddha never taught to inflict pain and suffering on others, to burn the properties of others or to set fire to places of worship. If you don't use religious labels on others, then we are all the same.

It is only when we label one another, then segregation occurs. Just because the other party is muslim, and they hurt a Buddhist, doesn't give you the right to rage against the entire Muslim community. Just look at the person as someone who hurt someone else. And blame it on the fact that ethics and morality has declined in today's society. That the person was not brought up well. That the person could've been mentally ill. That the person's karma led them to that. Why use religion to label the negativities of others when religion in fact has nothing to do with hate, destruction, anger, war, rage, riots. If Buddhists are using their religion to harm others, then they should not call themselves Buddhist because the fundamental teaching of the Buddha is to help all sentient beings and alleviate the suffering of others. You cannot call yourself Buddhist you are going against the very goal Buddha aimed for. 

[lotus1]

Agreed to Manjushri that we should not use the name of religion to harm others. “Just because the other party is muslim, and they hurt a Buddhist, doesn't give you the right to rage against the entire Muslim community.” Just like a lot of Shugden lama and monks, they are being discriminated and some even are harmed. Do they harm the non-shugden practitioners for revenge? No! They just continue to practice, create awareness of who is Dorje Shugden and let more people understand who Dorje Shugden is.

[bonfire]

I do not believe that the Buddhist monks that lead communities would not speak up against the rise of violence, be it in the Buddhist camp or the Muslim camp.
I am convinced that there will be Buddhist monks speaking up against violence, and teaching other ways, ways to reach for the community, way to help the minority.

After all, if all Buddhist were to help the Muslim minority, the Muslim would have nothing to fear.
So the boy-cot of Muslim-goods, the burning of Muslim properties IS NOT the solution, it can only make things worse.
The solution is to reach a hand to the Muslim minority, and this is the responsibility of the Buddhists because they are the majority, they must offer FEARLESSNESS, not fear and terror!

I pray for peace in Myanmar!