Religious violence threatens to tear Myanmar apart

[Zomi for Federalization and Democratization of Bur]

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Everybody knows that there in no RULE of law in Burma. Those who
robbed people are scot-free, but those who were robbed are thrown into
prison. It is the authorities themselves who commit crimes. Burma is
ruled by criminals, USDP dacoits, who pretend to be Buddhists.
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Religious violence threatens to tear Myanmar apart

Friday, 03 May 2013 16:02

By Archbishop Charles Bo and Benedict Rogers


Myanmar is on a knife-edge of hope and fear. The first signs of
fragile freedom that have emerged over the last two years have given
us hope. There is greater freedom of expression, the release of many
political prisoners, preliminary ceasefires with most of the armed
ethnic resistance organizations, more space for civil society and the
media. For the first time in decades, there is a real chance of
liberty and peace in the country. Yet all this is at risk now, with
the rise of religious intolerance, hatred and violence which threatens
to tear Myanmar apart.

The mass killings of Muslims, the destruction or desecration of
mosques and madrassahs, the burning of Muslim homes and properties,
the looting of Muslim shops–these scenes have shocked and sickened us.
It is time to speak out, for peace, respect for human dignity and
human rights, religious freedom and inter-religious harmony.

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As Christians, we appeal to our Buddhist and Muslim brothers and
sisters to work together to put an end to hatred, violence and
discrimination. We appeal to people of all religions and none to look
to the core teachings of their respective religions or philosophies,
and live by the principles of “Metta” (loving kindness) and
“Karuna” (compassion), “Salam” (peace), “love your neighbor as
yourself” and “love your enemy”, and to basic common humanity.

In particular, we appeal to Buddhist monks around the country to use
their “Taya Pwe” sermons not to incite hatred but instead to call for
consideration, mercy and compassion towards Muslims. The voices of
hatred, intolerance and violence are a minority, but they are vocal
and violent. The silent majority needs to wake up, unite and say “no”
to violence and hatred.

Pope Francis 1 recently called on Christians to be a “community of
love”, “a community of open doors”, and “a community of ‘yes’” –
saying yes to the positive opportunities that await us. We extend the
Pope’s appeal to all the people of Myanmar. But in order to be a
community of ‘yes’, with a positive view of the future for Myanmar, we
need to be a people that says ‘no’ to hatred and violence.

In the immediate term, there is a very urgent need for some practical
action. Firstly, the Government must deploy security forces, with
strict orders to take action to stop violence, protect vulnerable
communities and act with impartiality to maintain law and order.

It is clear from the violence in Meiktila and other places in Myanmar
that the security forces have in many instances stood by and watched
while Muslims are killed and properties burn. This cannot continue. As
one young activist for peace said recently, the government must “do
something effective, efficient and timely to protect the livelihood of
every faith-based community”.

Secondly, those who incite hatred and violence, or who perpetrate acts
of violence, should be prosecuted and brought to justice. If Myanmar
is to develop on the path to peace, prosperity and freedom, we cannot
continue in a climate of impunity.

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Photo:
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Thirdly, we need serious investment in initiatives to promote
religious harmony, inter-religious dialogue and peace. Religious
leaders from all communities should speak out loudly and clearly
against hatred, intolerance and violence, and should work together,
with experts from around the world, to promote reconciliation. There
are civil society organizations in Myanmar such as ‘Co-exist’, the
Myanmar Youth Empowerment Organization and Religions for Peace who are
already trying to develop initiatives to counter extremism and
intolerance and promote harmony and peace.

A month ago, a coalition of young activists from different religious
backgrounds organized a ‘Pray for Myanmar’ day. They had launched a
sticker campaign to promote peace. As one of them said: “Hate speech
is still circulating and we are trying to counter it. We can never get
true peace without dialogue. Just posting stickers cannot bring
harmony, but we want to post the stickers to our inner hearts and
minds. It will take time. We must open our fists, show we are willing
for peace, and start a conversation.”

If the scenes we have seen this week in Oakkan, and in Meiktila and
elsewhere several weeks ago continue, not only will Myanmar’s hopes
for freedom and peace be dashed, and the country torn apart, but there
is a real danger of a new challenge arising: the threat of radical
Islamism. Extremism breeds extremism, and the extremist Buddhist anti-
Muslim violence could send Myanmar spiraling into a vicious cycle of
religious extremism and violence. Muslims have lived peacefully in
Myanmar for centuries. They are our brothers and sisters. We must all
unclench our fists, extend an open palm, end the violence and begin
the long hard work of reconciliation and reconstruction–before it is
too late.

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Archbishop Charles Maung Bo is the Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Yangon.
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Photo:
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Benedict Rogers is East Asia Team Leader at the international human
rights organisation Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), and author
of Burma: A Nation at the Crossroads. The views expressed in this
article are the author's and do not reflect Mizzima editorial policy.
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