42 Houses, 19 Business torched by Radical Buddhist Mobs

RB News 

August 25, 2013

Kanbalu, Sagaing - According to local State Media, MRTV News, 39 Muslim houses, 3 shops and 1 chicken farm were torched by radical Buddhist mobs. Additionally, 3 houses, 12 grocery store and 3 construction shops were destroyed in Htan Gone, Kanbalu Township of Sagaing Division. 

According to locals, although higher authorities were available at that time they couldn’t manage to stop the incident. The mobs set the fire at about 9 pm and the houses were burning till today early morning. Now the homeless Muslims are taking refuge in the Madarasa (Religious School) in Htan Gone. 

Wirathu, a radical monk based in Mandalay posted on his Facebook yesterday when the violence started in Htan Gone that three Muslim men raped a 19-years-old Buddhist girl. Although it is completely rumor, most of his followers believe whatever he propagates.

BBC Burmese service had an interview with the local police. The police said that a Muslim man proposed to a girl and tried to hug her. So the rumor spread out in the region that she was raped. The Muslim man is in custody now. Police are investigating the matter deeply.

The Eleven Media Group, well known as an instigator since last year, echoed the same as radical monk Wirathu in their Burmese news. Wirathu and Eleven Media have been instigating the Myanmar public by posting the rumors to fuel the violence. Although it is a matter that must be solved by local police, the radical 969 group is always ready in any region to attack Muslims. The authorities never try to control the situation, whenever there is an attack on Muslims.

The Ministry of Information released the news this afternoon and reported that the Muslim man tried to rape 25-years-old Buddhist girl. However the ministry could not provide the profile detail of the Muslim man. The news of the ministry said the police and fire brigade were attacked by the mobs. The police opened fire into the air to disperse the crowd. They use a different method against Buddhist and Muslims in Myanmar. The police opened fired directly into peaceful protesters when Muslims in Sittwe asked for the dead body of a Muslim fisherman killed by police on August 9, 2013.

Now that the Muslims in Htan Gone have lost their properties, they are homeless and left on their own. There is no hope that the government will help them rebuild their houses Although the government has full responsibility to protect its citizens.