Time magazine’s decision to label Burmese monk Ashin Wirathu as “the face of Buddhist terror” in its July cover has drawn criticism from all sides.
Wirathu, a proponent of Buddhist nationalism, is known for controversial statements comparing Muslims to "African carp" and describing them as quick-breeding and violent. Some have blamed his speeches for the rise in anti-Muslim violence in the newly democratising nation-state. The government of Myanmarissued a press releasecondemning Time’s cover story, and Wirathu was quoted as saying, “This is being done because the Islamic extremists want my downfall.”
The ICG’s 2013 In Pursuit of Peace award for President Thein Sein, which was handed to Minister Aung Min in New York on April 22. (Photo: The President’s Office website)
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