A Buddhist monk and 300 of his supporters erected a pagoda on Monday on the grounds of an Anglican church in eastern Myanmar’s Karen state, adding to religious tensions in the area, a local Anglican bishop said.
Influential monk Myaing Kyee Ngu, also known as U Thuzana, who has been building pagodas—also called stupas—near churches and mosques in the state, erected another dome-shaped Buddhist shrine at St. Mark Anglican church in Kondawgyi village of Hlaingbwe township.
“About 300 people, including Myaing Kyee Ngu and other monks, came to the church grounds and cleared the trees last night and built the second pagoda today,” said Anglican Bishop Saw Stylo, who oversees Karen state and neighboring regions.
The monk, who is spiritual adviser to an armed ethnic Karen group, built his first pagoda on the church property on April 23 despite objections by religious authorities.
He has also built pagodas on church compounds in Hpa-an township and near a mosque in Mya Pyi village, prompting many people to condemn his actions on social media, according to the online journal The Irrawaddy. (Courtesy of RFA)
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