Buddhist abbot detained, beaten for defying Myanmar junta ally in Kachin State

Myanmar’s military has been holding a Buddhist abbot in custody since last week after he refused to allow an ethnic militia allied with the regime to use his monastery in Kachin State’s Mogaung Township, according to local and resistance sources. U Kay Thara was arrested on May 14 after he repeatedly denied requests by the Shanni Nationalities Army (SNA) to station troops at his monastery in Ingyinkone, a village about 23 miles south of the town of Mogaung, a resistance source told Myanmar Now. “They asked him two or three times to let them camp at the monastery, but he wouldn’t allow it,” the source said. “He told them to leave, and they did. But then at around 11 that night, they came back with cars, broke the door lock, arrested the abbot, and took him away.” The abbot was first taken to the village of Kahnyinmyaing, where the SNA’s Brigade 565 is based, but was later transferred to the junta’s Military Operations Command 3 headquarters in Mogaung, the source added. Resistance and local sources say the monk was forced to disrobe and has been subjected to beatings while under interrogation inside the military compound. On social media, supporters of the SNA claimed that Spring Lottery tickets and a walkie-talkie were confiscated from the monastery during the arrest. The Spring Lottery is widely associated with fundraising efforts for the anti-regime resistance movement. The abbot is also reportedly suspected of having ties to the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), which is also active in the area. However, a source close to the KIA said that U Kay Thara, 54, has no affiliation with the group. “He has no connection with the KIA,” the source said, noting that the senior monk, who ordained more than 30 years ago, was known as a supporter of Myanmar’s ousted ruling party, the National League for Democracy. “Before the coup, during the 2015 and 2020 elections, he urged people to vote for the NLD,” the source said. The SNA, which is active in parts of Kachin State and Sagaing Region, has aligned itself with Myanmar’s military since it seized power in 2021, and has since conducted joint military operations with junta forces, according to local residents and resistance groups. Mogaung Township is considered a stronghold of the SNA. In addition to the Brigade 565 headquarters in Kahnyinmyaing, it operates multiple battalions along the Shwebo-Myitkyina road, residents said. Locals also accused the SNA of carrying out forced recruitment, collecting taxes from residents, and arresting and interrogating suspected opponents of military rule.

Buddhist abbot detained, beaten for defying Myanmar junta ally in Kachin State

The abbot was taken into regime custody last week for refusing to allow the Shanni Nationalities Army to station troops at his monastery

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