Sinhala extremists stir up anti-Muslim violence in Sri Lankan capital

Sinhala extremists stir up anti-Muslim violence in Sri Lankan capital

By K. Ratnayake
12 November 2002

Sinhala extremists fanned a minor local dispute over the extension of a Muslim religious school in Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital, into a major communal confrontation at the end of last month. Racist thugs looted and burned homes and businesses belonging to Muslims, prompting security forces to impose a three-day curfew throughout wide areas of the city. One person was killed and several others injured when soldiers fired on groups of Muslims.
The clashes began on October 30, one day before the second round of peace talks began in Thailand between the Colombo government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to seek an end to the country’s protracted civil war. The clashes are symptomatic of the tensions being stirred up by Sinhala extremist groups, which oppose any concessions to the country’s Tamil and Muslim minorities. In this charged atmosphere, literally any issue is being seized on to heighten communal animosity.
The confrontation took place in Maligawatte, an inner suburb that features a mixture of residences and small businesses. It is home to large numbers of poor Muslims and Sinhalese who are largely segregated in different areas, as well as small pockets of Tamils.
Local Muslims had established a religious school in 1999 on a tiny patch of land—about 50 square metres. In August, the school was planning to build an extension—with the permission of the city’s municipal council—after purchasing another small piece of land.
Buddhist monks from the nearby Bodhirajaramaya temple, backed by the Sinhala chauvinist party Sihala Urumaya (SU), immediately began to agitate against the construction, claiming it would infringe the rights of Buddhists. A number of small protests were held which police then used to file a court case against the planned building on the grounds that it would “breach the law and order”.
The court ruled in favour of the construction on October 25 and work began on the same day. Five days later, however, the police produced a letter from the Colombo Divisional Secretary, the city’s chief administrative officer, demanding a halt to the work on the grounds that there was a dispute over the land. Thanabeddegama Sobitha, the Buddhist monk organising the opposition, admitted to the press that the letter had been written at his instigation.
When those in charge of the construction cited the court decision and refused to recognise validity of the letter, the police, including high-ranking officers, moved to halt the work. As the exchange with the police took place, groups of Sinhala thugs, who had gathered to watch events, began to throw stones and attack local Muslims. The police stood by as these gangs attacked and burned houses, looted businesses and torched vehicles. When groups of Muslims gathered to retaliate, the police chased them away.
As the situation started to escalate out of control, the government imposed a curfew in several areas of the city and mobilised some 7,000 soldiers and police to enforce it. The actions of the security forces, which are deeply imbued with Sinhala chauvinism, were directly mainly against Muslims. Soldiers opened fire in densely-populated areas to disperse groups of Muslims, killing a worker, Mohammed Junaid. In the same area, a 50-year-old woman, Buhari Fareeda, and a 26-year-old pregnant woman, Siththi Fawsia, received gunshot injuries and had to be treated in hospital.
Junaid was a father of four. His wife said he had been killed going to a small nearby store. Local residents explained that it had taken nearly 20 minutes to get him to hospital as a result of the army’s indiscriminate shooting. He was pronounced dead on arrival. The following day, 10,000 people participated in his funeral to voice their protest.
The police continued to enforce a 2pm-6am curfew on October 31 and November 1 in areas of central and northern Colombo. A number of people complained that their houses and businesses continued to be attacked during curfew hours. Of 500 houses and businesses belonging to Muslims in the Maligawatte area, about 300 have been damaged, along with a number of taxis, motorbikes, lorries and vans. Muslim gangs damaged about 10 houses belonging to Sinhalese in retaliatory attacks.
M.M.A. Nizam, a mechanic, told WSWS he rushed home on October 30 after hearing about the violence. “I came by taxi which belonged to the garage where I work. Thugs came to my house wielding clubs and swords. We ran away. I have three children. They destroyed my house and looted everything. A three-wheeler [a small motorised vehicle] was burned as well. We are poor people. My wife makes wire chains at home to earn a living. How can we start life again?”
Another resident, 49-year-old Mohamed Faiz, described what happened. “When someone pointed a pistol at me I ran away. Houses were destroyed by thugs from other areas, but they had people pointing out Muslim houses to them. Why should people do these things because of a religious school? We have lived together peacefully for years. But how can we do it in the future?”
While Sinhala chauvinists seized on the plans to extend the religious school to whip up anti-Muslim sentiment, it is clearly part of a broader agenda. A chauvinist leaflet handed out by organisations affiliated to the local Buddhist temple declared: “Come forward to stop the birth of another Afghanistan, to prevent the birth of more bin Ladens who will destroy Buddha statues.”
An organisation calling itself the “Armed Front for the Defence of Sinhalese” sent a threatening letter to a teacher at the religious school ordering a halt to construction work. While attempting to deny any involvement, SU issued a leaflet declaiming: “Stop illegal constructions! Mobilise for Buddhist rights! ... Unite Sinhalese! Go forward without fear!” SU leader Tilak Karunaratne provocatively told a press conference that vigilance was necessary because Islamic religious schools have terrorist connections.
This open incitement to communal violence took place as the SU, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and other Sinhala extremists from the Buddhist hierarchy and opposition Peoples Alliance intensified their campaign against the government-LTTE peace talks in Thailand. These groups are hostile to any moves to end entrenched discrimination against the country’s minorities and to the demands of the Muslim elite for the creation of a separate administrative district in the east of the island.
As for the small religious school in central Colombo, its construction is still on hold. A top-level meeting of Buddhist monks, Islamic priests and police held on November 2 and presided over by the Divisional Secretary for Colombo came down in favour of the Sinhala extremists. The school could continue to operate but without any extensions. Colombo’s deputy mayor told the press that the Buddhist Affairs Minister had “assured several leading Buddhist priests that the [construction] project would not go ahea

THE DARKER SIDE OF BUDDHISM

THE DARKER SIDE OF BUDDHISM

Many people are under the illusion that Buddhism is somehow superior to other faiths and that persecution and other forms of evil could never take place in the name of Buddhism. This is simply not the case. I have brought this to the attention of others, only to have them say "they're not real Buddhists if they behave like that." a statement which they themselves would laugh at and ridicule if it were made in defense of the Christian faith. I have no reason to doubt that Buddhist teachings are peaceful and this thread is not meant as an attack on the Buddhist faith; its simply to dispel the myth that violence and persecution can never take place in the name of Buddha.

(for this & all further posts, please click on the links for the full un-edited articles)

For example; Bhutan is one of the top five persecutors of Christians and Buddhism is its state religion:

ONE OF THE TOP-FIVE PERSECUTORS OF CHRISTIANS:

Bhutan - A key leader says there are approximately 13,000 Bhutanese Christians in the country. Officially, the Christian faith does not exist and Christians are not allowed to pray or celebrate their faith in public. Christians can meet as a family but not collectively with other Christian families. Religious workers are denied visas to enter the country. Christian children are accepted in schools, but they face discrimination if known to be Christian and they face the constant pressure to attend Buddhist religious festivals. It is almost impossible for Christian students to get to university level. For Christians with government jobs, discrimination is also an issue, as there are cases of believers being deprived of government jobs simply because of their faith. The import of printed religious matter is banned, and only Buddhist religious texts are allowed in the country. Persecution mainly comes from the family, the community, and the monks who yield a strong influence in the society. There is discrimination for some Christian workers in the government, but this is not rampant. Cases of atrocities (i.e. beatings) are sporadic. The persecution mainly comes in the form of pressure to reconvert, and this comes mainly from the family and community.
source

Another example are the Buddhists and Buddhist Monks of Bangladesh who kidnap Christians and use that age-old “convert or die” strategy against them, or they forcibly evict Christians from their communities:

BUDDHIST MONKS IN BANGLADESH TAKE CHRISTIANS CAPTIVE:

DHAKA, Bangladesh – Buddhist clerics and local council officials are holding 13 newly converted Christians captive in a pagoda in a south-eastern mountainous district of Bangladesh in an attempt to forcibly return them to Buddhism....Local government council officials in Jorachuri sub-district in Rangamati district, some 300 kilometers (186 miles) south-east of Dhaka, are helping the Buddhist monks to hold the Christians against their will, According to the source, two Buddhist clerics, Pronoyon Chakma and Jianoprio Vikku, and two local council members, Vira Chakma and Rubichandra Chakma, were behind the anti-Christian activities along with nine other Buddhist leaders. The Christian leader said Buddhist leaders and local council officials have warned Christians to return to Buddhism or be evicted. Fearing for their lives, the source said, some area Christians have gone into hiding. Mogdhan Union Council Chairman Arun Kanti Chakma, the source said, warned that Christian converts would be ostracized, beaten, and – assuming they returned to Buddhism only to return to Christianity – killed. In another mountainous neighborhood in the Khaokhali area near Jorachuri, about 50 recently converted Christians have been cut off from all communications. They are barred from going to Rangamati town and are living in isolation. Christians in the district have not informed police, fearing that any police action would infuriate terrorist groups among the tribal people of the area. The source said terrorist groups have been known to put the lives of Christians in jeopardy at the slightest provocation.
source

We have all heard of “Cults” inspired by Christianity, but you may be less familiar with the Buddhist equivalents (which there are many):

UNHOLY ROW OVER DUBIOUS BUDDHIST SECT:

BANGKOK - If the Lord Buddha is looking down on the religious affairs of Thailand, he may well be frowning. Not only is there an unholy row over attempts to disrobe the head of a dubious Buddhist sect, but the ethics of the mainstream clergy are facing increasing public criticism. Problems range from so-called "naughty monks" indulging in alcohol, drugs, gambling and fornication, to downright rotten monks convicted of extortion, rape and murder. Monks have been convicted of molesting children. Abbots have paid bribes to be transferred to more profitable temples. There has even been over-charging for funeral rites. Some believe there is a widespread malaise as monasteries and temples, once centres of learning, lose their relevance in a world of mass communications and consumerism. Rather than emphasising self-enlightenment and detachment, Dhammakaya backs self-interest all the way. Miracles and prosperity are promised in return for big donations, and there are theatrical religious events attended by tens of thousands of people at the Dhammakaya Temple on the outskirts of Bangkok. The editorial said some monks thought nothing of sleeping with women, extorting cash and assets from disciples, burning the bodies of babies to make love potions and selling "magical" amulets. The Nation said some members of the Sangha Supreme Council had been accused of riding in chauffeur-driven limousines provided by Dhammachayo's sect.
source

Or how about Buddhists attacking non-Buddhist places of worship?

BUDDHISTS ATTACK A CHURCH IN CAMBODIA:

Cambodia - About 100 Buddhists ransacked a church during a service on Sunday in southeastern Cambodia, an official reported. The Buddhists invaded the church of Kok Pring, destroying the cross at the altar, breaking windows, and throwing Bibles into puddles of water, the governor said. It seems that the church was Catholic, although the governor was unable to confirm this. The attack caused some injuries, the governor said. He didn't elaborate. The vandals accused the Christians of being contemptuous of the Buddhist community, who are a majority in this South-east Asian country of 12.7 million. Police kept the Buddhists from destroying the building.
source

and finally, war in the name of Buddha:

Here are some further links:

Christian Persecution in Laos:

Buddhists Drive Bangladeshi Christian from Home:

Extremists stir up anti-Muslim violence in Sri Lankan:

Crackdown on Burmese Muslims:

Human Rights Situation in Bhutan:

WikiIslam - The politically incorrect truth

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6 OUT OF 8 BUDDHIST MAJORITY NATIONS PERSECUTE NON-BUDDHISTS

In the West, Buddhism is synonymous with peace, compassion, wisdom, and ecumenical brotherhood. This is true also in the case of its most noted figure, the Dalai Lama.

Moreover, Buddhism has a reputation as a persecuted religion, and Tibet is the emblem of this.

But the latest Report on Religious Liberty in the World, released in Rome on June 25, 2004 by Aid to the Church in Need, contains striking evidence of a contrary nature.

In almost all of the Asian states in which Buddhism is the majority religion, there is cruel religious repression. And this strikes all of the non-Buddhist religions.

The most egregious case is, perhaps, that of Myanmar, the country formerly known as Burma. The June edition of the American monthly magazine "Crisis" published an account by Benedict Rogers of the implacable persecution of the Christian and Muslim religious minorities, with many forced conversions to Buddhism.

The U.S. Department of State classifies Myanmar among the six worst oppressors of religious liberty in the world. In another ranking of the religious persecution of Christians, carried out by Open Doors, the third place is occupied by another mainly Buddhist country, Laos.

Here is a summary, in alphabetical order, of the states in Asia in which Buddhism is the prevailing religion. It contains references to the religious situation in each of them, taken from the Report 2004 of Aid to the Church in Need.

BUTHAN

Public worship, evangelization, and proselytism are illegal for non-Buddhists. In its Ningmapa and Kagyupa versions, Buddhism shapes politics, and it is illegal for a Buddhist to convert to Christianity. Only Buddhist religious texts may be introduced into the country. No alternative religious instruction is permitted in the schools. 15,000 Hindus have been expelled from the south of the country into neighboring India, and the government has begun a program of forced settlement of Buthanese Buuddhists in the region.

CAMBODIA

Prime minister Hun Sen says he highly values the work of the foreign missionaries. Nevertheless, a recent resurgence of nationalism - closely connected with Buddhism, which is the state religion - has made more difficult the lives of Christians and Muslims, who live mostly in the rural areas. In July of 2003, around 100 Buddhists attacked a church in Kok Pring, in the southeast of the country, during the Sunday service, blaming the Christians for a drought that had lasted three years. The situation is particularly critical for the Montagnard Christians who fled from Vietnam to Cambodia. The Cambodian government hunts them down and hands them over to the Vietnamese police, who put them into prison.

LAOS

The communist government, in power since 1975, has expressly declared its intention of eliminating Christians, because it considers Christianity as a violation of Laotian customs and an "imperialistic foreign religion" supported by Western and American political interests. Christians are thus considered subversives and enemies of the state. The persecution particularly strikes the ethnic Hmong Christians, who were converted by Protestant American missionaries. Theravada Buddhism is the most important religious organization in the country, and it leaves its mark on public life, especially in the rural areas. It is not a state religion, but the government favors it as a characteristic element of the nation and increasingly uses Buddhist rituals in state-sponsored events. Proselytism by other religions is severely hampered. There have been documented cases of forced renunciation of the Christian faith, with prison for those who refuse.

MONGOLIA

The constitution guarantees religious freedom, and the government generally respects it, but there are obstacles to proselytism and difficulties in registering and obtaining permission for religious activities. Buddhism - of the Tibetan Lama type - is not a state religion, but it is considered as an integral part of national life and has gained supremacy and advantages over the other religions.

MYANMAR

It has been governed since 1962 by a communist military regime, which paid no attention to the 1990 electoral victory of the democratic opposition party lead by Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace laureate. The Theravada Buddhism practiced by the majority of the population is not a state religion, but the government controls and favors it, while persecuting the Christian and Muslim minorities. The Catholic schools have been confiscated by the state, and Christians are not permitted to assume leadership posts. The Christians mostly belong to the Chin, Kachin, and Karen populations, among which there are some independence movements. Many have fled to Thailand and India, where they live in refugee camps. In the Chin region, the crosses on the mountainsides, the expressions of their faith, were torn down, and frequently substituted with pagodas. Christians are obliged to pay an annual tax to support the Buddhist religion, and if they convert, they obtain privileges: one of these is exemption from forced labor for the army, which they are periodically constrained to do. The Bible is forbidden, as are meetings outside of the Sunday liturgies, which are frequently disrupted or interrupted. Many Christian children are taken far from their families and interned in Buddhist monasteries.

SRI LANKA

In Sri Lanka, where Buddhists make up nearly 70 percent of the population, the 2004 report of Aid to the Church in Need writes: "Christianity is perceived as a colonial imposition, and the condition of Christians is rapidly deteriorating." The entry into the country of new pastors and priests - especially Jesuits, who have been banned for over thirty years - is seriously obstructed. Anti-Christian sentiment is even expressed in violent ways, and is aimed above all at the Evangelical and Pentecostal communities. The Buddhist monks, especially in the rural zones, lead the assaults against churches, schools, pastors, and faithful, with destruction and massacres, and form protest marches against "the diabolical conspiracy of the Christian forces to convert and corrupt the nation." In August of 2003, the supreme court ruled that the constitution forbids proselytism. In September, the government ordered the closing of all of the Catholic schools of higher education.

THAILAND

Buddhists make up 85 percent of the population, and Theravada Buddhism is the religion of the state. But freedom for all religions is guaranteed by law, and is respected in practice. Good progress has also been noted in relations with the Muslim minority, especially after the 2002 nomination of a Muslim, Wan Nor Muhamad Matha, as interior minister.

VIETNAM

There are six authorized religions: Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam, Hoa-Hao, and Cao-Dai. But the government exercises very strict control over each of them, frequently accompanied by real persecutions, with the arrest of the faithful and the destruction of churches and temples. The Christian minority, more than 8 percent of the population, is particularly harried, for religious and ethnic reasons (as in the case of the Montagnard and Hmong populations). But even Buddhism, which is the most widespread religion, followed by 50 percent of Vietnamese, is placed under heavy restrictions. Its most authoritative leader, Thic Huyen Quang has been under house arrest since 1982.

From this inventory it emerges that, of the eight Asian countries with a Buddhist majority, only one of them - Thailand - assures substantial religious to all faiths, and another - Vietnam - persecutes all of them, including Buddhism.

In the other six states, Buddhism is more or less an integral part of a regime that represses the other religions.

Buddhist thugs Distroy Anuradhapura mosque

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yjLJRMAP1U&noredirect=1

Monk arrested on child abuse charges

Monk arrested on child abuse charges

 

	The senior Buddhist monk is accused of repeatedly sexually abusing a 12-year old girl

Police in Sri Lanka have arrested a senior Buddhist monk on charges of repeatedly sexually abusing a 12-year old girl.

Namalwewa Rathanasara nayake thero was arrested by the police Criminal Investigation Division (CID) at Colombo’s international airport when he arrived from Singapore.

Producing the chief incumbent of Mihintale Rajamaha Viharaya, the police requested the Colombo magistrate Tikiri K Jayathilake to remand him in custody until 24 August.

But the magistrate ordered the monk to be taken to police custody and to be produced before Anuradhapura magistrate.

A court in Anuradhapura, north central Sri Lanka, has issued a warrant to arrest Rathanasara thero on 12 August but media reports said he has left Sri Lanka after the warrant was issued.

Police said Namalwewa Rathanasara thero will remain in Colombo on Sunday as it is not required by law to transfer him within 24 hours.