MYANMAR BUDDHISTS

EXTREME NUMBERS: Wimala Biwuntha, standing next to the 969 symbol, is a prominent preacher in Myanmar’s radical Buddhist movement. REUTERS/SOE ZEYA TUN Over the past year, radical monks have preached an anti- Muslim creed. The minister of religion, among others, approves. Myanmar’s official embrace of extreme Buddhism

BY ANDREW R.C. MARSHALL YANGON, JUNE 27, 2013

he Buddhist extremist movement in Myanmar, known as 969, portrays itself as a grassroots creed. T Its chief proponent, a monk named Wirathu, was once jailed by the former military junta for anti-Muslim violence and once called himself the “Burmese bin Laden.” But a Reuters examination traces 969’s origins to an official in the dictatorship that once ran Myanmar, and which is the direct predecessor

SPECIAL REPORT 1 MYANMAR BUDDHISTS THE 969 MOVEMENT

DEVOTION TO CAUSE: The 969 movement is growing rapidly across Myanmar as monks are more free to travel and preach now than they were under junta rule. REUTERS/SOE ZEYA TUN

of today’s reformist government. The 969 as Burma. Anti-Muslim unrest simmered moral justification for a wave of anti-Mus- movement now enjoys support from se- under the junta that ran the country for lim bloodshed that could scuttle Myanmar’s nior government officials, establishment nearly half a century. But the worst fighting nascent reform program. Another promi- monks and even some members of the op- has occurred since the quasi-civilian gov- nent 969 monk, Wimala Biwuntha, likens position National League for Democracy, ernment took power in March 2011. Muslims to a tiger who enters an ill-de- the political party of Nobel peace laureate Two outbursts in Rakhine State last year fended house to snatch away its occupants. Aung San Suu Kyi. killed at least 192 people and left 140,000 “Without discipline, we’ll lose our reli- Wirathu urges Buddhists to boycott homeless, mostly stateless Rohingya gion and our race,” he said in a recent ser- Muslim shops and shun interfaith mar- Muslims. A Reuters investigation found mon. “We might even lose our country.” riages. He calls mosques “enemy bases.” that organized attacks on Muslims last Officially, Myanmar has no state reli- Among his admirers: Myanmar’s minis- October were led by Rakhine nationalists gion, but its rulers have long put Buddhism ter of religious affairs. incited by Buddhist monks and sometimes first. Muslims make up an estimated 4 per- “Wirathu’s sermons are about promot- abetted by local security forces. cent of the populace. Buddhism is followed ing love and understanding between reli- In March this year, at least 44 people died by 90 percent of the country’s 60 million gions,” Sann Sint, minister of religious af- and 13,000 were displaced — again, mostly people and is promoted by a special depart- fairs, told Reuters in his first interview with Muslims — during riots in Meikhtila, a ment within the ministry of religion cre- the international media. “It is impossible he city in central Myanmar. Reuters docu- ated during the junta. is inciting religious violence.” mented in April that the killings happened Sann Sint, a former lieutenant general in after monks led Buddhist mobs on a ram- EASY SCAPEGOATS Myanmar’s army, also sees nothing wrong page. In May, Buddhists mobs burned and with the boycott of Muslim businesses being terrorized Muslim neighborhoods in the Monks play a complex part in Burmese led by the 969 monks. “We are now prac- northern city of Lashio. Reports of unrest politics. They took a central role in pro- ticing market economics,” he said. “Nobody have since spread nationwide. democracy “Saffron Revolution” uprisings can stop that. It is up to the consumers.” The numbers 969, innocuous in them- against military rule in 2007. The generals President Thein Sein is signaling a be- selves, refer to attributes of the Buddha, – who included current President Thein Sein nign view of 969, too. His office declined his teachings and the monkhood. But and most senior members of his government to comment for this story. But in response 969 monks have been providing the - suppressed them. Now, Thein Sein’s ambi- to growing controversy over the movement, tious program of reforms has ushered in new it issued a statement Sunday, saying 969 “is freedoms of speech and assembly, liberating just a symbol of peace” and Wirathu is “a It is impossible he is inciting the country’s roughly 500,000 monks. They son of Lord Buddha.” religious violence. can travel at will to spread Buddhist teach- Wirathu and other monks have been ings, including 969 doctrine. closely linked to the sectarian violence Sann Sint In Burma’s nascent democracy, the spreading across Myanmar, formerly known Myanmar Minister of Religious Affairs monks have emerged as a political force in

SPECIAL REPORT 2 MYANMAR BUDDHISTS THE 969 MOVEMENT

the run-up to a general election scheduled the government isn’t stopping it,” said Myo section of Burma’s colonial-era Penal Code, for 2015. Their new potency has given rise Win, a Muslim teacher. Myo Win likened which outlaws “deliberate and malicious to a conspiracy theory here: The 969 move- 969 to the Ku Klux Klan. acts intended to outrage religious feelings”. ment is controlled by disgruntled hardliners The religion minister, Sann Sint, said the QUASI-OFFICIAL ORIGINS from the previous junta, who are fomenting movement doesn’t have official state back- unrest to derail the reforms and foil an elec- ing. But he defended Wirathu and other The 969 movement’s ties to the state tion landslide by Suu Kyi’s. monks espousing the creed. date back to the creed’s origins. Wimala, No evidence has emerged to support “I don’t think they are preaching to make Wirathu and other 969 preachers credit this belief. But some in the government say problems,” he said. its creation to the late Kyaw Lwin, an ex- there is possibly truth to it. Local authorities, too, have lent the monk, government official and prolific “Some people are very eager to reform, movement some backing. writer, now largely forgotten outside reli- some people don’t want to reform,” Soe Its logo - now one of Myanmar’s most gious circles. Thein, one of President Thein Sein’s two recognizable - bears the Burmese numerals Myanmar’s former dictators hand- closest advisors, told Reuters. “So, regard- 969, a chakra wheel and four Asiatic lions picked Kyaw Lwin to promote Buddhism ing the sectarian violence, some people may representing the ancient Buddhist emperor after the brutal suppression of the 1988 be that side - the anti-reform side.” Ashoka. Stickers with the logo are hand- democracy uprising. Thousands were killed Even if 969 isn’t controlled by power- ed out free at speeches. They adorn shops, or injured after soldiers opened fire on un- ful hardliners, it has broad support, both in homes, taxis and souvenir stalls at the na- armed protesters, including monks. Later, high places and at the grass roots, where it tion’s most revered Buddhist pagoda, the to signal their disgust, monks refused to is a genuine and growing movement. Shwedagon. They are a common sight in accept alms from military families for Officials offer tacit backing, said areas plagued by unrest. three months, a potent gesture in devoutly Wimala, the 969 monk. “By letting us give Some authorities treat the symbol with Buddhist Myanmar. speeches to protect our religion and race, I reverence. A court in Bago, a region near Afterwards, the military set about co- assume they are supporting us,” he said. Yangon hit by anti-Muslim violence this opting Buddhism in an effort to tame re- The Yangon representative of the year, jailed a Muslim man for two years in bellious monks and repair its image. Monks Burmese Muslim Association agreed. “The April after he removed a 969 sticker from a were registered and their movements re- anti-Muslim movement is growing and betel-nut shop. He was sentenced under a stricted. State-run media ran almost daily reports of generals overseeing temple reno- vations or donating alms to abbots. In 1991, the junta created a Department for the Promotion and Propagation of the Sasana (DPPS), a unit within the Religion Ministry, and appointed Kyaw Lwin as its head. Sasana means “religion” in Pali, the li- turgical language of Theravada Buddhism; in Burma, the word is synonymous with Buddhism itself. The following year, the DPPS published “How To Live As A Good Buddhist,” a dis- tillation of Kyaw Lwin’s writings. It was re- published in 2000 as “The Best Buddhist,” its cover bearing an early version of the 969 logo. Kyaw Lwin stepped down in 1992. The current head is Khine Aung, a former mili- tary officer. Kyaw Lwin’s widow and son still live MERCHANDISING THE MOVEMENT: T-shirts with the 969 symbol are popular items at street stalls, in his modest home in central Yangon. Its alongside ones depicting Aung San Suu Kyi. REUTERS/ SOE ZEYA TUN living room walls are lined with shelves of

SPECIAL REPORT 3 MYANMAR BUDDHISTS THE 969 MOVEMENT

SPIRITUAL LEADER: Wirathu, an abbot in a prominent Mandalay monastery and a leader of the 969 movement, calls mosques “enemy bases”. REUTERS/SOE ZEYA TUN

Kyaw Lwin’s books and framed photos of Aung Lwin Tun plans to republish it. “Many Kyaukse, near the northern cultural capital of him as a monk and meditation master. people are asking for it now,” he said. He Mandalay. Better known as Wirathu, he is to- Another photo shows Kyaw Lwin shar- supports today’s 969 movement, including day one of the 969’s most incendiary leaders. ing a joke with Lieutenant General Khin its anti-Muslim boycott. “It’s like building a Wirathu and Kyaw Lwin stayed in Nyunt, then chief of military intelligence fence to protect our religion,” he said. touch after their 1992 meeting, said Aung and one of Myanmar’s most feared men. Also supporting 969 is Kyaw Lwin’s Lwin Tun, who believed his father would Kyaw Lwin enjoyed close relations with widow, 65, whose name was withheld admire Wirathu’s teachings. “He is doing other junta leaders, said his son, Aung Lwin at the family’s request. She claimed that what other people won’t - protecting and Tun, 38, a car importer. He was personally Buddhists who marry Muslims are forced promoting the religion.” instructed to write “The Best Buddhist” at their weddings to tread on an image of Kyaw Lwin died in 2001, aged 70. That by the late Saw Maung, then Myanmar’s Buddha, and that the ritual slaughter of same year, Wirathu began preaching about senior-most general. He met “often” to dis- animals by Shi’ite Muslims makes it easier 969, and the U.S. State Department re- cuss religion with ex-dictator Than Shwe, for them to kill humans. ported “a sharp increase in anti-Muslim who retired in March 2011 and has been Among the monks Kyaw Lwin met dur- violence” in Myanmar. Anti-Muslim sen- out of the public eye since then. ing his time as DPPS chief was Wiseitta timent was stoked in March 2001 by the “The Best Buddhist” is out of print, but Biwuntha, who hailed from the town of Taliban’s destruction of Buddhist statues in

SPECIAL REPORT 4 MYANMAR BUDDHISTS THE 969 MOVEMENT

Bamiyan, Afghanistan, and in September the three numbers signifies a Muslim plan central Myanmar. Most are concentrated in by al Qaeda’s attacks in the United States. for world domination in the 21st century. camps guarded by the security forces with Two years later, Wirathu was arrested and It is possible to understand why some little hope of returning to their old lives. sentenced to 25 years in jail for distributing Buddhists might believe this. Religious A few prominent monks have publicly anti-Muslim pamphlets that incited com- and dietary customs prohibit Muslims criticized the 969 movement, and some munal riots in his hometown. At least 10 from frequenting Buddhist restaurants, Facebook users have launched a campaign Muslims were killed by a Buddhist mob, ac- for example. Muslims also dominate some to boycott taxis displaying its stickers. Some cording to a State Department report. The small- and medium-sized business sectors. Yangon street stalls have started selling 969 969 movement had spilled its first blood. The names of Muslim-owned construction CDs more discreetly since the Meikhtila companies — Naing Group, Motherland, bloodbath. The backlash has otherwise 969 VERSUS 786 Fatherland — are winning extra promi- been muted. Wirathu was freed in 2011 during an am- nence now that Yangon is experiencing a Wimala, the Mon monk, shrugged nesty for political prisoners. While the self- reform-era building boom. off criticism from fellow monks. “They styled “Burmese bin Laden” has become the However, the biggest construction firms - shouldn’t try to stop us from doing good militant face of 969, the movement derives those involved in multi-billion-dollar infra- things,” he said. evangelical energy from monks in Mon, structure projects - are run by tycoons linked In mid-June, he and Wirathu attended a coastal state where people pride them- to members of the former dictatorship. They a hundreds-strong monastic convention selves on being Myanmar’s first Buddhists. are Buddhists. near Yangon, where Wirathu presented a Since last year’s violence they have orga- proposal to restrict Buddhist women from nized a network across the nation. They marrying Muslim men. It has yet to be in- led a boycott last year of a Muslim-owned It’s like building a fence to troduced in parliament. bus company in Moulmein, Mon’s capital. protect our religion. In another sign 969 is going main- Extending that boycott nationwide has be- stream, Wirathu’s bid was supported by come a central 969 goal. Aung Lwin Tun Dhammapiya, a U.S.-educated professor Muslims held many senior government son of the 969 creator, about at the International Theravada Buddhist positions after Myanmar gained indepen- the movement’s purpose Missionary University in Yangon, a re- dence from Britain in 1948. That changed spected institution with links to other in 1962, when the military seized power Buddhist clients have canceled contracts Buddhist universities in Asia. and stymied the hiring and promoting with Muslim-owned construction compa- Dhammapiya described 969 as a peace- of Muslim officials. The military drew on nies in northern Yangon, fearing attacks ful movement that is helping Myanmar popular prejudices that Muslims dominat- by 969 followers on the finished buildings, through a potentially turbulent transi- ed business and used their profits to build said Shwe Muang, a Muslim MP with the tion. “The 969 issue for us is no issue,” mosques, buy Buddhist wives and spread ruling Union Solidarity and Development Dhammapiya told Reuters. “Buddhists al- Islamic teachings. Party. “I worry that if this starts in one ways long to live in peace and harmony.” All this justified the current boycott of township it will infect others,” he said. The only mass movement to rival 969 is the Muslim businesses, said Zarni Win Tun, a For Zarni Win Tun, the 969 devo- National League for Democracy. Their relation- 31-year-old lawyer and 969 devotee, who said tee, shunning Muslims is a means of en- ship is both antagonistic and complementary. Muslims had long shunned Buddhist busi- suring sectarian peace. She points to the In a speech posted on YouTube in nesses. “We didn’t start the boycott - they did,” Meikhtila violence, which was sparked by late March, Wirathu said the party and she said. “We’re just using their methods.” an argument between Buddhist customers Suu Kyi’s inner circle were dominated by By that she means the number 786, and a Muslim gold-shop owner. “If they’d Muslims. “If you look at NLD offices in any which Muslims of South Asian origin of- bought from their own people, the problem town, you will see bearded people,” he said. ten display on their homes and business- wouldn’t have happened,” she said. (The 15-member NLD executive com- es. It is a numerical representation of the Her conviction that segregation is the mittee is made up mostly of Buddhists). Islamic blessing, “In the Name of Allah, solution to sectarian strife is echoed in Followers of Wimala told Reuters they had the Compassionate and Merciful”. But national policy. A total of at least 153,000 removed photos of Suu Kyi — a devout Buddhists in Myanmar - a country ob- Muslims have been displaced in the past Buddhist — from their homes to protest sessed by numerology - claim the sum of year after the violence in Rakhine and in her apparent reluctance to speak up for

SPECIAL REPORT 5 MYANMAR BUDDHISTS THE 969 MOVEMENT

Buddhists affected by last year’s violence in working-class Yangon township known for mosque here,” said Min Thet Lin. Rakhine. Suu Kyi’s reticence on sectarian anti-Muslim sentiment. As he spoke, 969’s pop anthem, “Song violence has also angered Muslims. In February, Buddhist residents of to Whip Up Religious Blood,” rang over The Burmese Muslim Association has Thaketa descended upon an Islamic school the rooftops. A nearby monastic school was accused NLD members of handing out 969 in Min Thet Lin’s neighborhood which playing the song for enrolling pupils. materials in Yangon. they claimed was being secretly converted Party spokesman Nyan Win said “some into a mosque. Riot police were deployed NLD members” were involved in the while the structure was demolished. movement. “But the NLD cannot interfere A month later, Wimala and two oth- with the freedoms or rights of members,” er Mon monks visited Thaketa to give he said. “They all have the right to do what Buddhists what a promotional leaflet called they want in terms of social affairs.” “dhamma medicine” - that is, three days Min Thet Lin, 36, a taxi driver, is exercis- of 969 sermons. “Don’t give up the fight,” ing that right. The front and back windows urged the leaflet. of his car are plastered with 969 stickers. Today, the property is sealed off and Reporting by Andrew R.C. Marshall; editing by He is also an NLD leader in Thaketa, a guarded by police. “People don’t want a Bill Tarrant and Michael Williams

LYNCH MOBS: Religious rioters have killed nearly 200 people and forced more than 150,000, mostly Muslims, from their homes. REUTERS/SOE ZEYA TUN

SPECIAL REPORT 6 MYANMAR BUDDHISTS THE 969 MOVEMENT

The 969 catechism

Wimala Biwuntha is a pint-sized monk with boyish features who could barely see over the lectern during his recent sermon to a mesmerized crowd at a Yangon monastery. Yet his stature in Myanmar grows daily, thanks to his stark message to fellow Buddhists: “We are digging our own graves.” Wimala’s sermon in the low-rent suburb of Insein was billed as an “introduction to the Buddhist logo”. To warm up the crowd, a catchy pop tune called “Song to Whip Up Religious Blood” was played at high volume on a continuous loop on the monastery’s loudspeakers. “Buddhists should not stay calm anymore,” ran the lyrics. Wimala hails from Mon, a coastal state CALM NO MORE: Wimala Biwuntha pointing to a map showing Buddhist Myanmar adjacent to near Yangon. The Mon pride themselves Muslim-majority countries, such as Bangladesh. REUTERS/SOE ZEYA TUN on being Myanmar’s earliest converts to Buddhism. In October, with violence raging in Rakhine, he and fellow Mon monks set “When you go?” younger audience. He and other abbots are up the “Gana Wasaka Sangha” network to “Nine six nine!” promoting compulsory religious education propagate 969 teachings. “When you buy?” for Buddhist children. It distributes a map showing Myanmar “Nine six nine!” The Mon monks plan to teach 60,000 surrounded by Muslim-majority countries “When you wake up?” children at more than 160 schools in Yangon where Buddhism once flourished, such as “Nine six nine!” and Moulmein, said Yin Yin Htwe, 34, a Indonesia. “If necessary,” runs its slogan, “we “When you sleep? Wimala donor and disciple who runs a will build a fence with our bones.” “Nine six nine!” jewelry business. “I want children to learn Wimala arrived for his sermon barefoot, Afterwards, Wimala spoke approvingly the dhamma (Buddhist teachings), improve his shaven head shielded from the searing of monks in Karen State who fine Buddhists their manners and protect the nation and pre-monsoon sun by white umbrellas held caught buying from Muslims. religion,” she said. aloft by disciples. His sermon was filmed by The Mon monks have delivered dozens of Outside, waiting to greet Wimala, are two cameramen, who later burned it onto sermons in known sectarian trouble-spots. dozens of primary schoolchildren with 969 DVDs that are distributed across Myanmar. Wimala’s speech in the Bago farming town logos pinned to their shirts. Now that junta-era controls on the Internet of Minhla in February was followed by rising Reporting by Andrew R.C. Marshall; editing by have gone, 969 speeches are also widely communal tensions, Muslim residents told Bill Tarrant and Michael Williams disseminated on Facebook and YouTube. Reuters. Four weeks later, a Buddhist mob Wimala’s preaching style is by turns destroyed mosques and Muslim houses in the FOR MORE INFORMATION intimate and hectoring. He cracks jokes. Often, town. Many of Minhla’s 500 Muslims fled. Andrew R.C. Marshall, Southeast Asia he closes his eyes and intones like a revivalist In an interview, Wimala said 969 might Special Correspondent preacher. Unfurling a poster of the 969 logo, have inspired followers to commit anti-Muslim [email protected] he led the audience through the first of many violence. But they were an ill-educated minority Bill Tarrant, Enterprise Editor renditions of the movement’s catechism. whose actions had been exaggerated by [email protected] “When you eat?” he asked. “Muslim-owned media”, he said. Michael Williams, Global Enterprise Editor “Nine six nine!” shouted his followers. Emboldened, Wimala wants to reach a [email protected]

© Thomson Reuters 2013. All rights reserved. 47001073 0310. Republication or redistribution of Thomson Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. ‘Thomson Reuters’ and the Thomson Reuters logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of Thomson reuters and its affiliated companies.

SPECIAL REPORT 7