BANGKOK, Jan. 20, 2004�Up to 100 Buddhist monks have been jailed inBurma since November for allegedly breaking a government curfew aimedat quelling religious disturbances, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports.
An estimated 100 monks are detained at the notorious Insein Prisonfor allegedly flouting a 7 p.m.-4 a.m. curfew on monks imposed inNovember last year, sources who spoke on condition of anonymity toldRFA�s Burmese service.
Most of the detained monks are from in and around the capital,Rangoon, and security personnel have been posted at a number ofBuddhist monasteries. Some of the monks are undergoing treatment atthe Insein Prison hospital, according to one source.
The Burmese junta announced the curfew following unrest betweenBuddhists and Muslims in the Upper Burma regions of Kyaukse andMandalay late last year.
Burmese Buddhist monks objected to the government�s handling of thosedisturbances, according to U Khemar Sarya, chairman of the All BurmaYoung Monks Association. The curfew was aimed at keeping them fromexpressing their discontent openly.
The unrest broke out in the central town of Kyaukse on Oct. 19,spreading to Mandalay and Rangoon and unnerving the ruling junta, theState Peace and Development Council (SPDC). Fires and clashesultimately left dozens of people dead, including a pregnant woman.
"Soon we saw one corpse after another. They were taking them away tothe hospital," one eyewitness told RFA�s Burmese service. Whilecorpses were taken to hospital, relatives of the victims were barredfrom entering the local morgue.
The British government suggested that the junta may have incited theunrest, citing "a widespread belief amongst the Burmese people,whether Muslim or Buddhist, that these incidents have been contrivedby the government to distract attention from the stalled politicalprocess, and to justify a continued military clampdown." The SPDCrejected that accusation as baseless.
In an unusual admission of trouble, the junta on Oct. 28 issued astatement to foreign media confirming "disturbances between people ofdifferent faiths" and acknowledging casualties and property damage.
In 1997, anti-Muslim riots in central Burma were characterized bysome reports as being provoked by the junta. Human rights groups alsopoint to evidence detailing anti-Muslim persecution by the governmentin Kayin State the same year, during which mosques were burned,Korans destroyed, and Muslims evicted from their homes.
Only about 4 percent of the Burmese population is Muslim, whileBuddhists account for 90 percent.
RFA broadcasts news and information to Asian listeners who lackregular access to full and balanced reporting in their domesticmedia. Through its broadcasts and call-in programs, RFA aims to filla critical gap in the lives of people across Asia. Created byCongress in 1994 and incorporated in 1996, RFA currently broadcastsin Burmese, Cantonese, Khmer, Korean, Lao, Mandarin, the Wu dialect,Vietnamese, Tibetan (Uke, Amdo and Kham) and Uyghur. It adheres tothe highest standards of journalism and aims to exemplify accuracy,balance and fairness in its editorial content.#####