HMAWBI, Burma (AP) — A meeting of more than 200 Burma Buddhist monks on how to solve deadly
communal conflicts that have pitted majority Buddhists against Muslims declared
Friday they seek peace and accused the media of tarnishing their religion’s
image.
A statement released at the end of the two-day meeting
did not mention a prominent Buddhist monk’s proposal that a law be enacted to
regulate inter-religious marriages, particularly specifying that anyone who
marries a Buddhist woman must convert to Buddhism.
The monk Wirathu, who is known for his anti-Muslim
sermons, told reporters Thursday on the sidelines of the conference that he
would propose the legislation to parliament.
Conference spokesman Dhammapiya, another monk, said
the proposal was not directly related to the meeting.
“The draft law was proposed at the wrong place and
caused confusion,” he told The Associated Press.
The remarks had fueled unease that Buddhist monks are
promoting religious intolerance. Wirathu is a key leader of “969,” an
ultra-nationalist movement of monks that preaches that the country’s small
Muslim minority threatens racial purity and national security.
The conflict has threatened to undermine the political
and economic reforms undertaken by President Thein Sein, who came to power in
2011 after almost five decades of repressive military rule.
Sectarian violence began in western Rakhine state last
year, when hundreds died in clashes between Buddhist and Muslims that drove
about 140,000 people, mostly Muslims, from their homes. The violence had seemed
confined to that region, but in late March, similar Buddhist-led violence swept
the town of Meikthila in central Burma, killing at least 43 people.
Several other towns in central Burma experienced less
deadly violence, mostly involving the torching of Muslim businesses and
mosques.
Regarding the violence, Dhammapiya said that anyone
who broke the law should be dealt with according to the law.
“We have to ascertain if the monks who took part in
the violence were fake or genuine monks,” he said. “It has to be investigated
and there should be rule of law to stop the violence.” News reports suggested
that some monks were armed and encouraged the bloodletting.
Participants in the meeting, held at a monastery in
Hmawbi, about 32 kilometers (20 miles) from Yangon, complained that the media
had presented a distorted view of Buddhism’s role in the violence.
Dhammapiya told reporters on Thursday that “We are
just requesting you to write the news with the right information.”
“There are many media that report ethically. But there
are some which get backing from some sort of organizations,” he said, without
elaborating. “We feel that it’s not balanced.”
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