Buddhists under jihadist threat: Radical Myanmarese cleric

COLOMBO: A radical cleric from Myanmar, accused of fanning religious tensions, today said he will join hands with Sri Lanka's main Buddhist group to protect Buddhism from jihadist threats.

The controversial cleric Ashin Wirathu addressed a convention, organised by the hardline Bodu Bala Sena ( BBS) or Forces of Buddhist Power, attended by about 5,000 monks at a packed stadium in Colombo.

"The patience of Buddhists is seen as a weakness. Buddhist temples have been destroyed. There is a jihadist threat against Buddhist monks," said Wirathu.

"Media organisations along with world powers are using technology to carry out a campaign against Buddhists," the cleric said.

Like Wirathu's anti-Muslim 969 movement in Myanmar, Sri Lanka's BBS too has been accused of instigating a string of hate attacks -- mainly against Sri Lanka's 7 per cent minority Muslims since 2012. The BBS, however, denies the charges.

The 969 movement is a nationalist movement opposed to what they see as Islam's expansion in predominantly-Buddhist Myanmar.

Wirathu said he was thankful to President Mahinda Rajapaksa for allowing him to enter the country, despite pressure from the Muslim extremists.

BBS president Kirama Wimalajothi, a leading Buddhist monk, said that Sri Lanka is a country for the Sinhalese-Buddhists and not a multi-religious country.

Sri Lanka and Myanmar share a common Buddhist heritage and have close cultural ties.