By YAN NAING ZAW WIN - DVB
29 May 2017
The Association for the Protection of Race and Religion,
a hardline Buddhist organisation that is better known by its Burmese acronym ma-ba-tha,
has hit back at the Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, the highest order of Buddhist
clergy in the country, which recently outlawed the group.
A Ma Ba Tha statement came following a “special
conference” held at Aung San Tawra Monastery in the Rangoon suburb of Insein on
27-28 May, which was reportedly attended by some 10,000 devotees including
monks and nuns from abroad.
“The Ma Ba Tha was founded four years ago,” it said. “Ma
Ba Tha is not an unlawful organisation. Since its inception, it has undertaken
activities of goodwill, such as providing assistance to victims of natural
disasters in this country, and conducting training workshops to spread the
teachings of Lord Buddha.”
The response came after the 47 members of the Sangha
Maha Nayaka Committee declared on 23 May that the use of the acronym
ma-ba-tha be banned, and that the organisation be deemed illegal. It also ruled
that use of the Ma Ba Tha banner by individuals or groups for any purpose would
be prohibited as of 15 July. Read here: http://www.dvb.no/news/burmas-highest-buddhist-authority-deals-potentially-crippling-blow-ma-ba-tha/75655
“The ma-ha-na decision is not in accordance with the
Sangha’s basic principles,” said the Ma Ba Tha statement, referring to the
Buddhist clergy by its own acronym. “However, the Ma Ba Tha accepts the
decision because it is worried that the unity of the Sangha will be affected.”
Following its two-day “special conference,” the group
also announced that it would hereby adopt a new name – the Buddha Dhamma
Parahita Foundation.
https://youtu.be/7mlRWof4DCY
The hardline group, which is led by controversial
firebrand monk Wirathu, said it urged all its members to continue their
activities of faith under the new name.
Speaking to DVB following the rally in Insein, Sayadaw U
Pa Mauk Kha, one of the group leaders, said, “The name is not the main thing. I
do not want the association to come to an end. I want the Ma Ba Tha to last a
long time. However, the most important thing is for the Ma Ba Tha to exist as
an independent organisation that works to protect people’s race and religion
without any connections with the government, political parties or other
organisations.
“No matter whether
we are called the Ma Ba Tha or by our new name, Buddha Dhamma Parahita
Foundation, our members will be exactly the same. The name is just a relative
term.”
Senior monk Par Mauk
Kha confirmed that he had officially resigned from the Ma Ba Tha and taken a
position as one of the leaders of the newly formed “Committee for Reporting
Grievances”.
Read more
about Wirathu and the Ma Ba Tha: http://www.dvb.no/?s=Wirathu