In Kanma Township, Magwe Region, Myanmar, its mosque, houses and properties of ten Myanmar Muslims were demolished on 13th April 2012.
“At night, they are still destroying Thein Lwin’s house in Yaenantthar Village near Kanma Township,” Nyi Nyi Lwin and Maung Maung Ni, victim Myanmar Muslims, said.
“While men were demolishing Al-hajjah Wah Wah’s house, women took her valuable goods away lawlessly and forcefully, and so she lost 0.7 Viss of gold (more than 1 kg of gold) and about 7 million Kyats (Myanmar currency,) during attack,” Nyi Nyi Lwin, who is now evading, narrated.
“And they attacked the Mosque too, leaving nothing at all,” he continued.
The main triggering factor for this terrible attack is competition for business between Wah Wah, a Myanmar Muslim business woman, and other non-Muslim business group supported by local authorities of USDP, the major political party of the present Myanmar government.
In the beginning of April, Wah Wah won fairly and officially the auction for business ferry licence which was formerly monopolized by the group who has a strong relation to USDP.
But this group did not want to transfer the business to her and requested her to hire these boats for a week. Thus she accepted their request and asked them to give the boats back when a week completed.
At that time, they refused to transfer the business to her and asked her by force to continue this hire.
Moreover, Win Naing, a USDP politician at Hluttaw(Myanmar Parliament), threatened her to transfer this business to his group, telling that if not, they would create a Muslim-Burma riot.
That is why, she unwillingly transfered this boats to this group again. After this event, on 13th April, two non- Muslim local guys started to fight a Muslim visitor, and so Muslims reported and charged this case to local police station but the police force took no action.
“At this night, the local people start to attack Muslims’ houses, shops and the Mosque,” Nyi Nyi Lwin added.
On this day, houses of Jabbar, Habilay, Zay Zay Oo, Pishow, Wah Wah, Eisop, Aung Moe Lwin and Raja’s shop had been destroyed.
Up to now, the local authorities announce nothing and take no action for this sorrowful transgression. The transgressors continued destroying, attacking to Habilay’s shop and Thein Lwin’s house who is Wah Wah’s brother on 14th April.
For negligence of the government authorities to victims and some USDP authorities’ involvement in this riot, Myanmar Muslims are feeling very unhappy for their helpless situation and unsatisfied due to such unlawful act in the newly democratized country.
