Ashin Wirathu

Wirathu (born Win Khaing Oo; 10 July 1968) is a Burmese Buddhist monk and militant who is the leader of the 969 Movement in Myanmar.

Dubbed the "face of Buddhist terror", he has incited the persecution of Muslims in Myanmar, especially the Rohingya minority, through his speeches.

Background Wirathu was born as Win Khaing Oo in 1968 in Myinsaing village, Kyaukse, near Mandalay. He left school at the age of 14 to become a monk, becoming a Samanera in 1985 and a Bhikkhu in 1988. Two years later, in 2003, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his sermons, but was released in 2012 along with many other political prisoners. Since the government reforms of 2011, he has been especially active on YouTube and other forms of social media. After repeated warnings not to post religiously inflammatory content, Facebook banned his page for spreading religious hatred towards other communities. One month later, more violence broke out in Rakhine State. At least two people, including a Burmese Buddhist monk, Shin Thawbita, and a Muslim man were reportedly assaulted and tortured by mobs in Meiktila on 5 March.

Wirathu is mentioned on the cover story of Time magazine as "The Face of Buddhist Terror" on 1 July 2013. "You can be full of kindness and love, but you cannot sleep next to a mad dog," Wirathu said, referring to Muslims. "If we are weak," he said, "our land will become Muslim." Referring to Muslim violence and domination in neighbouring nations and the example of the spread of Islam in Indonesia, Wirathu claims that his Muslim opponents labelled him the "Burmese Bin Laden" after the Time article incorrectly reported he described himself in this manner. He said he "abhorred violence" and "opposes terrorism".

Thein Sein accused Time of slandering the Buddhist religion and harming the national reconciliation process by accusing the outspoken cleric of stoking anti-Muslim violence in Myanmar. Describing him as a "son of Buddha", the president defended Wirathu as a "noble person" committed to peace. "The article in Time Magazine can cause misunderstanding about the Buddhist religion, which has existed for millennia and is followed by the majority of Burmese citizens," Thein Sein said. In an interview with DVB, Wirathu accused Time of committing a "serious human rights violation" by refusing to present his views in a verbatim question and answer format. "Before I had heard [rumours] of the Arab world dominating the global media," he said, "but this time, I've seen it for myself."

On 21 July 2013, he was the apparent target of a bomb explosion, but he remained unscathed. Five people were slightly injured in the blast, including a novice monk. Wirathu claimed that the bombing was an attempt by Muslim extremists to silence his voice.

He has called for restrictions on marriages between Buddhists and Muslims, and for boycotts of Muslim-owned businesses. But shortly after, in January 2014, people formerly involved in the 969 movement established the Patriotic Association of Myanmar, known by its Burmese initials Ma Ba Tha, that carried on promoting the ideas of protection of race. This association again renamed to the Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation in 2017 after a similar ban. Wirathu reacted to these bans by pointing that the Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee was controlled by the military and took its decision "under the gun". As such, he participated in Ma Ba Tha's campaign in favor of laws limiting the civil rights of Muslims, and preventing them to have multiple wives, to marry Buddhist women or to have large families. after she publicly reacted to the legislative lobbying campaign, and invited her to "offer your arse to the kalars" (a derogatory term for Muslims).

Wirathu led a prayer and protest at the Mahamuni Buddha Temple in Mandalay on 23 February 2017 to condemn the Thai government's raid on the Wat Phra Dhammakaya in Bangkok.

Ayeyarwady Region's religious council, the region's Sangha Maha Nayaka, banned Wirathu from preaching in the region on 10 March 2017.

Arrest and release After the ban ended, he continued his religious alertness speeches. He hinted at overthrowing Aung San Suu Kyi by trying to drive a wedge between her and the military according to the Myanmar Times, "People should worship military MPs as if they are worshipping Buddha...", and further likened Suu Kyi to "a prostitute sucking up to foreign interests" at a speech in Myeik that went viral. An arrest warrant was issued for that speech in May 2019 on grounds of sedition and slander. After a year and a half of evading arrest, he surrendered to the police in Yangon a week before the 2020 Myanmar general election, and got arrested.

In September 2021, the sedition charges against Wirathu were dismissed by the military junta, and he was subsequently released. In November 2022, he was awarded the title of Thiri Pyanchi, one of the country’s highest honors.