In a number of Buddhist- majority
states in Asia- Burma (Myanmar),
Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, etc. -the Muslim minorities are under siege.
Both the State agencies and the Buddhist chauvinists are driving the anti-Muslim
hate campaigns and consequent violence against the hapless minorities. The unspeakable
horrors committed by the Buddhist marauders against the Rohingya Muslims of
Burma have caught international attention in the recent months.
In the latest issue of the
international newsweekly Time Magazine
of the United States, one may read a graphic portrait of Buddhist Terrorism in
Burma and Thailand, where a Muslim-majority province in the deep south of the
country is under siege of the Buddhist army of Thailand. Sri Lanka on
Tuesday (July 02, 2013) banned the
sale of this issue of Time magazine because of the newsweekly’s feature article
on Buddhist terrorism. We publish below the Full text of the cover
story “The Face of Buddhist Terror” in July 01, 2013 TIME magazine.
The Face of Buddhist Terror
It’s a faith famous for its
pacifism and tolerance. But in several of Asia’s Buddhist-majority nations,
monks are inciting bigotry and violence — mostly against Muslims
By Hannah Beech / Meikhtila,
Burma, And Pattani, Thailand
His face as still and serene as a
statue’s, the Buddhist monk who has taken the title “the Burmese bin Laden”
begins his sermon. Hundreds of worshippers sit before him, palms pressed
together, sweat trickling down their sticky backs. On cue, the crowd chants
with the man in burgundy robes, the mantras drifting through the sultry air of
a temple in Mandalay, Burma’s second biggest city after Rangoon. It seems a
peaceful scene, but Wirathu’s message crackles with hate. “Now is not the time for calm,” the monk intones, as he spends 90
minutes describing the many ways in which he detests the minority Muslims in
this Buddhist-majority land. “Now is the
time to rise up, to make your blood boil.”