4th November, 2015
"Dialogue, respect for others and tolerance are core values for the Burmese people that want to start a new democratic season", Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, Archbishop of Yangon in Myanmar (also known as Burma), told Roman Catholic news service Agenzia Fides as the country prepares itself for elections on 8th November.
Recent days have seen national and international attention turn to the plight of the Rohingya, a Muslim minority that is still victim of trafficking and violence in the Andaman Sea.
According to the UN, between January and June 2015 at least 370 people died while they were trying to flee from Myanmar to reach other countries in the area. In Myanmar, the Rohingya are, by law, non-citizens. The repeated waves of violence against them have forced tens of thousands of people to flee, ending up at the mercy of human traffickers.
Cardinal Bo, who became the the country’s first Roman Catholic cardinal earlier this year, said that in the midst of the violence that the Rohingya have suffered at the hands of Buddhist extremist groups, "the Burmese Church has always promoted reconciliation following values such as justice, peace and equitable development for all, inter-religious dialogue".
Meanwhile, in an interview with UCAnews, Cardinal Bo criticised the mix of "religion and politics" being seen in Myanmar in recent months which has linked Buddhism with nationalism.
"The attitude that Myanmar must have one race and on religion, such as Bamar and Buddhist, is not acceptable," he said.
Cardinal Bo also said he was also disappointed opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi hasn’t spoken out about discrimination against the Rohingya community. He also called on the Nobel Peace Prize laureate to address the ongoing conflict in the predominantly Christian Kachin state.
"Suu Kyi should speak out on the conflict in Kachin state and on Rohingya Muslims, who are confined to the camps."
He told UCAnews that it was time for change in Myanmar. "It’s time to let a new system run the country, so I vehemently urge people to embrace the opportunity to vote for worthy candidates as a sacred duty," he said. "It’s time to end old attitudes, old elites, and the old system that had existed for five decades."
– DAVID ADAMS (with Agenzia Fides)
