Burmese scholar given hard labour for defending religious harmony against xenophobic Buddhists
Yangon (AsiaNews / EDA) - A court in central Myanmar has sentenced Htin Linn Oo, writer, intellectual and former information officer for the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) to two years in prison and hard labor.
He is accused of "insulting" the Buddhist religion, in the context of a speech focused on tolerance between religions, in which he denounced the activism of a group of Buddhist monks, supporters of ultra-nationalist and xenophobic policies.
The intervention indicted dates back to October 23, 2014. The arrest took place a few weeks later, on December 17, and the sentence was handed down on June 2. It came in conjunction with a protest march by a thousand Buddhist monks in the southern town of Pathein, to protest against possible openings for repatriation of migrants, mostly Rohingya Muslims.
Speaking at a literary meeting, the opposition activist criticized the exploitation of Buddhism to promote nationalist policies that tend to exclude minorities. In particular, the reference was to the Rohingya Muslim minority, subjected to violence and harassment in the Asian country.
Htin Linn Oo had string words for the so-called Association for the Protection of race and religion, better known as Ma-Ba-Tha and linked to extremist nationalist 969 movement and the infamous monk U Wirathu.
According to the man's lawyer, Me Thein Than Oo, he was sentenced to the maximum penalty for this type of crime, added to paragraph 295a of the Penal Code of Myanmar. It punishes those who "hurt the religious sentiments of others." However, the lawyer strongly affirms that the intellectual and activist is "innocent" and has already announced an appeal against the judgment.
The verdict issued by the court of Chaung O, a small town in Sagaing Division, west Burma comes at a time of great pressure on the country and the government of Naypyidaw to find a solution to the plight of the Rohingya migrants.
Since June 2012, the western state of Rakhine has witnessed violent clashes between Burmese Buddhists and Rohingya causing at least 200 deaths and 250 thousand displaced people. According to United Nations estimates, there are still 800 thousand members of the Muslim minority in Myanmar, who the government considers illegal immigrants and who are therefore subject to abuse and persecution.
To date, there are still 140 thousand displaced persons confined in refugee centers which, as according to the Burmese government must accept the classification of Bengali - and obtain citizenship - or remain in the camps "for life". Within these camps they are deprived of basic rights, such as health care, education or work. The Catholic Church in Burma has intervened on several occasions against the marginalization and neglect faced by the Muslim minority.
.png)
18/02/2020 10:04
