Nehginpao Kipgen

Time magazine portrayed Wirathu, a prominent Myanmar Buddhist monk, as “The Face of Buddhist Terror” on the cover of its July 1 international edition.

The story has triggered mixed responses and has sparked a campaign to denounce the magazine for linking Buddhism with terror.

The article itself became so controversial and sensitive that the Myanmar government banned the magazine. Ye Htut, spokesperson for President Thein Sein, announced that Time “would not be sold and distributed to prevent the recurrence of racial and religious conflict”.

The magazine defended its story and said: “Time’s international cover story … shows the presence in Myanmar of an extremist movement that associates itself with Buddhism. Time is pleased by the debate and discussion this important piece has raised.”

While the Myanmar government condemned the article, Wirathu said the magazine is not against Buddhism but him. He accuses Muslim extremists of attempting to strip him of his monkhood.

Wirathu’s name has been associated with radical ideologies for some time now. Since 2001, he has warned that Muslims will take over Myanmar. He was jailed in 2003 for his radical sermons but released in 2012 as part of a general amnesty.

by Anthony Kuhn

To her many admirers in the international community, Aung San Suu Kyi remains one of the world’s best known democracy icons.

But in Myanmar, also known as Burma, she is now very much a politician who is being criticized for trying to cooperate with the former military rulers who kept her under house arrest for nearly two decades.

“ What we have is a situation where they’re very used to top-down, unquestioned power. So anyone who’s sitting out of the system, in a system that is still very new and untested, really has to negotiate things really carefully.- Sean Turnell, Myanmar expert at Australia’s Macquarie University

If you want to see the old, iconic Aung San Suu Kyi, just head to the bustling headquarters of her party, the National League for Democracy, or NLD, in Yangon, the country’s largest city and former capital.

Go past the tables selling Suu Kyi T-shirts, coffee mugs and calendars. Step in the door and look to the right, up on the wall. There she is, looking down at you, steely and defiant. The caption reads: “There will be change, because all the military has are guns.”

Posted by Margie Richards

 Eh Doh, at 62, can’t help but smile at the thought of starting a whole new life at his age, though that is just what he’s in the process of doing.

A native of Burma (also known as Myanmar), Doh and his family have spent the last 17 years in refugee camps in Thailand. Like thousands of others, they were forced to flee their village due to attacks from the Burmese militia, who have long targeted certain ethnic groups, such as their tribe, known as “Karen.”

Now Doh’s family, along with two other refugee families, are in temporary residence at Jubilee Partners in Comer.

“I feel like a small bird that has flown from the nest,” Doh said in halting English. “I will only look to the future and I will not look back.”

For Doh and his family, the future means a new way of life in America, and eventually, American citizenship.

OnIslam & Newspapers

CAIRO – After decades of peaceful co-existence with the Buddhist majority, fears and mistrust are prevailing among the Muslim community in Burma in the wake of deadly bouts of sectarian attacks.

“We are losing trust with each other,” U Aye, a Muslim used-car salesman, told The New York Times on Wednesday, July 3.

“Any business transaction between a Buddhist and a Muslim can turn into an incident.”

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Fears have been gripping Burmese Muslims after repeated attacks by Buddhists in recent months since last year’s sectarian violence which killed more than 200 people and displaced thousands.

Anti-Muslim violence engulfed central Burma last April after an argument between a Buddhist couple and gold shop owners, leaving at least 42 people dead.

David Cundall  vows to return to continue quest for buried Castle-Bromwich built planes

THE hunt for long-lost Birmingham-built Spitfires isn’t over. The iconic fighter planes are rumoured to be buried in Burma and a new dig to try to find them will resume in 2014. Justine Halifax reports.

Spitfire hunter David Cundall will return to Burma to start a new dig for a lost squadron of buried Castle Bromwich-built Spitfires early next year, it can be revealed today.

The news comes a week after the aviation enthusiast revealed he had unearthed fresh evidence suggesting he had found the exact location of the buried planes.

It has emerged that Mr Cundall, whose team is now 90 per cent sure that it has found the Spitfires, is working towards starting to dig for the squadron of aircraft at the new site in January 2014.

He has dismissed claims by some that the story of the buried Burma bombers is nothing more than a “captivating legend” and that the Spitfires were never delivered to Burma.

Eleven Media Group/Asia News Network

Harsh action will be taken against those fuelling hatred between different religions said President Thein Sein on July 2 in a radio broadcast.

“A particular group in the country is misusing our noble beliefs as a stepping stone to extremist acts and fuelling tensions between different faiths.

“Such groups are taking advantage of the political and economic situation in our country which has resulted in riots and created greater insecurity and concerns for Myanmar citizens working abroad,” he said.

Thein Sein did not mention which groups in particular he was referring to but gave a stern warning to anyone instigating violence in Myanmar.

“Severe actions must be taken against those instigating hatred in the country in accordance with the law. Concerted efforts must be escalated in the prevention of further possible violence,” he said.