Myanmar’s military regime to allow Russian Orthodox church to be built in Yangon
State media reported the decision last week. This boosts relations with Moscow, which uses religion as much a Myanmar’s military. In July 2022, the junta leader opened a Buddhist temple in Moscow, the replica of one in Myanmar.
Yangon (AsiaNews/Agencies) – While a civil war rages across the country, Myanmar’s military regime has granted Russia, its main arms supplier, land in Yangon, the business capital, to build an Orthodox church, part of the celebrations marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Metropolitan Sergiy of Singapore and Southeast Asia met last week with the city’s military-appointed mayor, Bo Htay. In May, he had met with General Min Aung Hlaing – who led the coup d'état in February 2021 against Aung San Suu Kyi’s government – to discuss the opening of a Buddhist centre in Russia.
According to military-controlled state media, the church will be built in North Dagon Municipality on a 0.5-hectare plot, with Yangon Municipality providing water and electricity.
Along with nuclear and financial cooperation and arms sales, the ruling regimes in Myanmar and Russia are also not shy about exploiting religion.
In July last year, General Min Aung Hlaing opened a replica of the Shwezigon temple in Bagan in Moscow along with Monk Sitagu Sayadaw Ashin Nyanissara, who backed the coup the same way Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill supports Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
In the past two years, many Buddhist monks have received honours for their support of the coup despite the fact that, in Myanmar's Buddhist-majority central regions, people have come out strongly against the military.
During the May visit, Metropolitan Sergiy met with former Major General Aung Thaw, who now chairs the Myanmar-Russia Friendship Association, as well as the junta's Union Civil Services Board.
On that occasion, the Russian religious leader pointed out that Russian travellers abroad often visit local Orthodox churches, suggesting that such a church in Myanmar could attract tourists.
Since the coup, and the brutal civil conflict that pits the military against anti-coup resistance militias, Myanmar’s tourism sector has gone into decline.
However, direct flights between Russia and Myanmar resumed last month after a 30-year hiatus. For Russia’s aviation agency, this could “create additional opportunities for Russian tourists who prefer vacationing in Southeast Asia” and “contribute to the development of business contacts”.
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28/07/2023 18:15
10/03/2022 12:48
