27th October, 2015
Ethnic Karen Christians in Hpa-An, capital of Karen state, are protesting against the construction of a Buddhist pagoda and a stupa in a Baptist Church compound in southern Burma (also known as Myanmar), according to a report on Morning Star News.
Led by Myaing Kyee Ngu Sayadaw, a revered Buddhist abbot and founder of the armed Karen Buddhist faction known as the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), building of the structures reportedly began in August, sparking protests from Christians.
Nang Khin Htwe Myint, an ethnic Karen woman in Hpa-An, told Morning Star News by phone that the stupa and pagoda were almost finished. “It is completely inappropriate to build Buddhist religious project on Christian land…" Nang said.
Local Christian leaders and representatives from the Myanmar Baptist Convention have called on the monk to halt the project without success. Christian leaders have also reported their concerns to Soe Win, Burma’s religious affairs minister, who pledged to resolve the dispute, but there has been no progress.
A church leader told that the congregation has not been able to worship there since the stupa was built, as the monks recite Buddhist verses over loudspeakers, according to The Irrawaddy, a news magazine run by Burmese exiles in Thailand. The church leader reportedly said he asked Buddhist leaders to reduce their volume once a week for an hour, while the Baptist congregation met, but they refused.
The Baptist church has been a functioning fixture at the site since 1919.
– DAVID ADAMS (with Morning Star News)
