Doden bij rellen in Myanmar tussen moslims en boeddhisten

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(CNN) -- The death toll from clashes between Buddhists and Muslims in central Myanmar has risen to around 20, a local lawmaker said Friday.
Set off by a dispute between a Muslim gold shop owner and two Buddhist sellers, the violence in Meiktila Township has prompted thousands of residents to flee their homes as rioters set fire to houses, schools and mosques, according to Win Htein, a member of parliament for the area.
He said that the number of dead had reached about 20 by his estimate, including charred bodies that had been found in the street.

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YANGON - At least 11 people died and a mosque was burned in two days of rioting in a central Myanmar town, in the latest challenge for the government in keeping the peace while making the transition to pluralist democracy.

State-controlled media Thursday night broke their silence on the violence in Meikhtila with government television announcing that five people had been killed and 39 injured in rioting that was triggered by an argument between a Muslim gold shop owner and his Buddhist customers.

Witnesses on the scene contacted by telephone said the toll was at least 11.

Occasional isolated violence involving Myanmar's majority Buddhist and minority Muslim communities has occurred for decades. But the risk of spreading violence was underlined last year by clashes in the western state of Rakhine between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Muslim Rohingya that left about 200 people dead and more than 100,000 homeless.

There was fear the number of dead in Meikhtila would rise because the violence - the country's worst since the clashes in Rakhine state - was continuing.

According to an employee of Meikhtila General Hospital, Amar Yee, the dead included one Buddhist monk, two local Buddhist residents and two Muslims.

As nightfall approached Thursday, the situation remained tense, although a curfew was apparently put in force for a second night. But there was confusion even among police about when it was supposed to take effect.

"At the moment, people are gathering here and there in groups downtown," said Tin Mg Thin, a police warrant officer in Meikhtila. "Some parts of the town still have structures burning. ... The police are patrolling and guarding some points. We are awaiting orders from above." He said a safety camp had been opened at one police post for people to take shelter.

Several Muslim-owned shops and at least one mosque were burned Wednesday. Showing sensitivity to the threat of further enflaming feelings, state television said one "religious building" was destroyed along with a township education office, some shops and some vehicles.

"People are going crazy, especially young people," said a Meikhtila resident who spoke on condition of anonymity because she feared for her safety. "It's hard to stop them. Some Muslims run to the safety camps and some run into the fields near town."

She said some houses belonging to Muslim residents had been destroyed, including one of her neighbors'.

"We don't dare to leave our home as burning and riots are going on outside," she said. "The biggest mosque in town burned to the ground today. It had been burning since yesterday, but no one dared to put out the fire and the rioters wouldn't let others put it out."

Win Htein, a Meikhtila member of parliament from the opposition National League for Democracy, said it seemed likely that the actual death toll was higher than five.

"I saw three dead bodies myself. And my people also found some bodies," he said by phone. "Even though the curfew has been imposed since yesterday, the police seem a bit hesitant to control the rioters as they don't have much experience on handling riots."

The TV announcement said those responsible for inciting the violence would face legal action, as would the gold shop owner, who allegedly had the customers beaten up.

Under the military governments that ruled Myanmar from 1962 until 2011, ethnic and religious unrest was typically hushed up, an approach made easier in pre-Internet days, when there was a state monopoly on daily newspapers, radio and television, backed by tough censorship of other media.

But since an elected government took power in 2011, people have been using the Internet and social media in increasing numbers, and the press has been unshackled, with censorship mostly dropped and privately owned daily newspapers expected to hit the streets in the next few months.

The civilian government of President Thein Sein is constrained from using open force to quell unrest because it needs foreign approval in order to woo aid and investment. The previous military regime had no such compunctions about using force, and was ostracized by the West for its human rights abuses.

The United States, which had been the harshest critic of the military regime but now is encouraging the democratic transition, said it is "monitoring events closely."

"I am deeply concerned about reports of violence and widespread property damage in Meikhtila Township, Mandalay Region," said a statement by U.S. Ambassador Derek Mitchell. "We extend our deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives and property in the violence."

There was no apparent direct connection between the Meikhtila violence and that last year in Rakhine state. Rakhine Buddhists allege that Rohingya are mostly illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh. The Muslim population of Meikhtila is believed to be mostly of Indian origin, and although religious tensions are longstanding, the incident sparking the violence seemed to be a small and isolated dispute.

Meikhtila is about 550 kilometers (340 miles) north of the main city of Yangon.

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Op vrijdag 22 maart 2013 11:26 schreef Uberkullie het volgende:
Zo vredig zijn die boeddhisten echt niet hoor, al snap ik hun woede in deze enigzins wel.
Verder vind ik het nogal een vaag artikel.

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Op vrijdag 22 maart 2013 11:46 schreef Woestijnvos het volgende:
Boeddhisten krijg je heus niet zo snel boos hoor ts dan moet er al heel wat aan de hand zijn.

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Op vrijdag 22 maart 2013 11:46 schreef Woestijnvos het volgende:
Boeddhisten krijg je heus niet zo snel boos hoor ts dan moet er al heel wat aan de hand zijn.

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Op vrijdag 22 maart 2013 11:18 schreef Individual het volgende:

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Boeddhisten en moslims op de vuist in Myanmar

Veel reacties op de FP kiezen meteen kant van de boeddhisten door hun ervaringen met Islamitische hangjongeren in Nederland. De PVV maakt ook gretig gebruik van de onkunde van de gevestigde politiek hier passend mee om te gaan. De 'oplossingen' van de PVV raken dan kant nog wal. Er is zeker een probleem, maar niemand in de huidige politiek die er mee om weet te gaan.

Daarnaast is het beeld dat Boeddhisten zo vredig en sereen zouden zijn ook compleet misplaatst. Boeddhisten zijn door de geschiedenis heen flink agressief geweest en nog steeds zoals he bericht al aangeeft.

En als laatste reageert er iemand die Boeddhisme 'aan het studeren is' en Boeddhisme geen religie vind, maar een geesteswetenschap. Is dat niet een andere benaming voor religie? Boeddhisten hebben ook zo hun tempels, schriften, regels, goden, beelden, gebeden, etc. Toch wel erg veel raakvlakken met religie toch?

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Op vrijdag 22 maart 2013 12:48 schreef Individual het volgende:

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Dit.

Zoals ik al eerder zei: zolang je je er beter door voelt is het goed toch?

Mijn mening blijft dat Boeddhisme een van de grote religies is.

Wel frappant dat de Europese stroming het sterkste is om met handen tand de niet-religieuze zelfbenoemde status te verdedigen. De Boeddhisten uit ZO Azie die ik ben tegengekomen gaan graag de dialoog aan zonder te schuimbekken. Daar haal je veel meer uit.

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Op vrijdag 22 maart 2013 13:21 schreef Trance_X het volgende:

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Ik kom uit een (overwegend) boedhistisch land en het is echt niet waar dat het boedhisme een religie is of als religie beschouwd kan worden. Het wezenlijke verschil tussen een religie en een levenswijze wat het boedhisme is is dat religie mensen met elkaar bind om tot EEN overtuiging te komen. Die ene overtuiging is voor hun de enige echte waarheid. Maar volgens boedha is elk mens uniek en heeft een eigen waarheid in en kijk op het leven. Wil je slecht zijn dan staat niets je in de weg om het slechte pad op te gaan. Wil je goed zijn dan staat niemand je in de weg om het goede pad op te gaan. Er is geen goed of kwaad in het boedhisme.

En dan is er nog iets wat het boedhisme onderscheidt van religies en dat is karma. Karma is wat je geeft krijg je ook terug. Hoe je leeft maakt niet uit maar je moet wel constant letten hoe je handelt en hoe je dingen zegt.

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Op vrijdag 22 maart 2013 13:33 schreef Individual het volgende:

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hmm...

En als je goed leeft wordt je beloond met een goede reïncarnatie (dus geen rat of kakkerlak) of maakt dat niet uit?