Myanmar closes mosque and seminary in Yangon

By Kyaw Ye Lynn

YANGON, Myanmar

Authorities closed a mosque and a seminary in Myanmar’s commercial region of Yangon, said a media report on Thursday.

A local newspaper the Voice Daily claimed that three buildings were chained shut on Wednesday, after it was found that they were being used as a mosque and seminary, without official permission, at Kywe Pone Lay village in Okkan Township, about 100 kilometres north of Yangon.

Township administrator Myo Lwin told the newspaper that the closure was to prevent problems in Okkan area which had seen an anti-Muslim riot in 2013.

The riot had begun after a Muslim woman accidentally bumped into a monk, breaking his begging bowl in Okkan town.

Hundreds of rampaging Buddhists armed with bricks stormed into Muslim villages, calling the accident an assault.

A Muslim man was killed in the attack.

Also, two mosques and 150 houses and shops owned by Muslims were destroyed by the mob.