Controversial Buddhist monk Wirathu, foreground, who is accused of instigating sectarian violence between Buddhists and Muslims through his sermons, smiles as he leaves a monastery after an assembly of Myanmar's powerful Buddhist clergy in Hmawbi, outskirts of Yangon, Myanmar, on Friday. — AP YANGON — Senior monks in Myanmar on Friday appealed for peace following a surge in religious bloodshed in the former junta-ruled nation, in a joint statement that stopped short of condemning a wave of anti-Muslim attacks. After two days of talks between more than 200 monks at a monastery near Yangon, the Buddhist clerics accused media of tarnishing their image with allegations that monks were at the forefront of the violence. “All Buddhist leaders and Buddhists want to live peacefully, without any conflict,” they said in a statement read out by senior monk Dhammapiya. Describing Buddhism as one of the “best religions in the world,” he said that “all citizens of Myanmar support policies that encourage living peacefully.” Sectarian bloodshed — mostly targeting Muslims — has laid bare deep divides that were largely suppressed under decades of military rule which ended two years ago in the Buddhist-majority country. Dozens of people were killed in religious riots in March in central Myanmar. Dhammapiya said that while several monks had taken part in anti-Muslim attacks, others were mistaken for perpetrators as they tried to intervene to halt the mob violence. “We denounce reports (in the media) that wrongly accuse and harm the dignity of Buddhists and Buddhist monks,” he said. At the same time, senior clerics distanced themselves from a call from controversial Mandalay monk Wirathu for restrictions on inter-faith marriage. Under the proposal, which Wirathu said he plans to submit to President Thein Sein and other officials, non-Buddhists wishing to marry Buddhist women would have to convert with approval from the government — and gain permission from her parents to wed — or risk 10 years in jail. Meanwhilw, A UN-led convoy of trucks in Myanmar has for the first time in nearly a year been allowed to deliver food and household supplies to areas beyond government control in the country's northernmost region. The UN humanitarian office said Friday that a 10-truck convoy was delivering food, special nutrients for children, household and hygiene kits and water purification tablets to 5,100 of the estimated 100,000 people driven from their homes due to fighting between the government and rebels in Kachin state. The region in Myanmar borders China. Jens Laerke, a spokesman for the UN Office for Humanitarian Affairs in Geneva, said it was the first time Myanmar's government has allowed a UN-led convoy to enter Kachin state since July 2012. — Agencies
