Hundreds of Buddhist nationalists gathered in Yangon and Mandalay on Sunday to demand the resignation of Religious and Cultural Affairs Minister Thura Aung Ko within a week.
The demand comes a little more than a month after similar protests were held in Naypyidaw, where nationalists accused the minister of neglecting the rights of Buddhists in favor Muslims. They also demanded the lifting of a preaching ban from anti-Muslim monk Wirathu, the enactment of a plan to protect Buddhism in the country, and an apology from the minister.
Wirathu was banned from preaching for year starting from March 10 by the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, which sought to crack down on hate speech.
At yesterday’s protests, disgruntled Buddhist nationalists called for the minister’s resignation after he did not meet last month’s demands. They pledged to continue protesting until their demands are met, even threatening to camp outside Yangon City Hall.
They accused Thura Aung Ko of oppressing monks and of exerting undue influence over the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee. They also condemned the minister for defending Myanmar Now editor Swe Win, who publicly accused Wirathu of un-Buddhist behavior when the latter thanked the gunman who assassinated Muslim lawyer U Ko Ni.
Indeed, Thura Aung Ko has spoken out publicly against hate speech and has said Myanmar’s previous government “over-promoted” Buddhism.
However, he has also come under fire from Christians for failing to stop Buddhist nationalists from building pagodas on church property in Kayin State, and he also upset Myanmar’s Muslims when he referred to them as “visitor citizens”.
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