Security Tightened at Buddhist Sites Following Bodha Gaya Blasts
PHOTO: JPAING / THE IRRAWADDY
Myanmar’s government tightened security at the country’s main Buddhist sites, including Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, the Maha Myat Muni Pagoda in Mandalay and the historical temple complex of Bagan, following a series of bomb blasts on July 7 at Bodh Gaya in northern India, one of Buddhism’s holiest sites. Around 70 armed police were sent to guard the entrances to the upper terrace surrounding Shwedagon, according to the pagoda’s trustees. The security measures were taken after a series of bomb blasts injured two people at Bodh Gaya, a Unesco World heritage site in India’s Bihar State, where the Buddha is believed to have gained enlightenment. Some Indian media reports claim that the attacks were
conducted by radical Muslim groups seeking to avenge violence committed against Muslims by Myanmar Buddhists.
Armed policemen guard the eastern entrance to the upper terrace of Shwedagon Pagoda following blasts at Bodh Gaya, a sacred Buddhist site in India. Govt Signs Pact with Wa Army to Ease Tensions Myanmar’s government signed an agreement with the United Wa State Army (UWSA), the country’s largest and best-equipped ethnic armed group, on July 12 in an effort to defuse recent tensions in Shan State. Since late June, when the
UWSA rejected demands from Myanmar’s army that it abandon some of its positions, the two sides have reportedly been on the verge of open conflict. State media reported that the agreement includes clauses calling for prompt meetings between the two armies whenever military issues arise and committing the UWSA not to secede. The Wa, who once served as a major fighting force for the now defunct Communist Party of Burma, reached a peace agreement with Myanmar’s former military regime in 1989.
near Meikhtila in Mandalay Region when their vehicle, driven by Ko Than Win Hlaing, 32, blew a tire, skidded out of control, crashed through a fence and then fell 5 meters. Soe Tay, 23, was sent to Mandalay Hospital to receive treatment for lifethreatening head injuries. His wife Ma Chaw Chaw, 22, died before reaching the hospital. The driver and another passenger, Ma Sabel Mon, 18, sustained minor injuries.
Car Crash Injures Singer, Kills Wife
Myanmar’s government announced on July 14 that a special border guard force operating along the Bangladeshi border has been abolished. The force, known as Nasaka, comprised army and police officers and customs and immigration department officials. A brief announcement on the website of the President’s Office gave no explanation for the move. However, U Zaw Aye Maung, the minister for Rakhine ethnic affairs, said the Nasaka was dismantled because the Rakhine Investigation Commission, a team tasked with investigating last year’s outbreaks of communal violence in Rakhine State, found that the border guard force had not effectively performed its duties. Rights groups also say that the Nasaka had a record of human rights violations against the Rohingya Muslim minority living in the northern part of the state.
Well-known Myanmar singer Soe Tay was injured and his wife was killed in a crash on the Yangon-Mandalay Highway on July 14. Staterun newspaper The New Light of Myanmar reported that the accident happened
UK Offers to Restore Military Ties during President’s Visit
PHOTO: JPAING / THE IRRAWADDY
August 2013
PHOTO: REUTERS
Britain’s Ministry of Defense extended an offer to restore military ties with Myanmar during a threeday visit to the United Kingdom by President U Thein Sein that ended on July 17. “The focus of our defense engagement will be on developing democratic accountability in a modern armed forces,” said British Defense Secretary Philip Hammond. U Thein Sein, who was the first Myanmar head of state to visit the UK in more than 25 years, had earlier declared that a nationwide ceasefire was possible within weeks, and that “the guns will go silent everywhere in Myanmar for the first time in more than 60 years.”
Nasaka Border Guard Force Abolished
British Prime Minister David Cameron, left, shakes hands with Myanmar President U Thein Sein in front of 10 Downing Street in London on July 15, 2013. Critics said both the UK government’s offer and the president’s pronouncement
were premature, given the instability of existing ceasefire agreements.
Nasaka members stand outside the headquarters of the border guard force in Maungdaw Township, Rakhine State
TheIrrawaddy
9