Why are buddhist monks attacking muslims.

[downbeatplumb]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22356306

Of all the moral precepts instilled in Buddhist monks the promise not to kill comes first, and the principle of non-violence is arguably more central to Buddhism than any other major religion. So why have monks been using hate speech against Muslims and joining mobs that have left dozens dead?

[Gooders1002]

My hypothesis is that that are at human breaking point and sometimes react violently despite their religion, humans can only take so much. Besides It tells the religion of peace that Buddhists are not going down without a fight. It seems the most logical one to me.

[Anomalocaris]

Whatever a religion purports to teach, it is first and foremost a religion, and a religion, whatever it teaches, is a social construct evolved for segregating "us" from "them", and in the process makes it more fundamentally convenient to kill "them" to sooth "us", regardly of superficial drivel about "peace and Love".

[Angrboda]

Buddhists have persuaded themselves that they know the ultimate nature of reality, and, they believe that as a result of this knowledge, they can make morally and ontologically superior beings out of themselves by practicing the traditions which are based on this "knowledge." This is not unlike the Christians who believe that their superior view of ultimate reality, and the practice of traditions based on this "knowledge" will make them morally superior human beings. The invitation to abuse, hypocrisy, and self delusion is likely the same, and also likely much of the reason for such "seeming" paradoxes.

[Minimalist]

I think they are just fed up with the muslims' bullshit.

I know how they feel.

[Angrboda]

I think they are just fed up with the muslims' bullshit.

I know how they feel.

2012 Rakhine State riots
The 2012 Rakhine State riots are a series of ongoing conflicts primarily between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in northern Rakhine State, Myanmar, though by October Muslims of all ethnicities had begun to be targeted. The riots came after weeks of sectarian disputes and have been condemned by most people on both sides of the conflict. The immediate cause of the riots was unclear, with many commentators citing the rape and murder of a Rakhine woman and the following killing of ten Burmese Muslims by ethnic Rakhine as the main cause. The Myanmar government responded by imposing curfews and by deploying troops in the regions. On 10 June, state of emergency was declared in Rakhine, allowing military to participate in administration of the region. As of 22 August, officially there had been 88 casualties – 57 Muslims and 31 Buddhists. An estimated 90,000 people have been displaced by the violence. About 2,528 houses were burned, and of those, 1,336 belonged to Rohingyas and 1,192 belonged to Rakhines. The Burmese army and police were accused of playing a leading role in targeting Rohingyas through mass arrests and arbitrary violence.

While the government response was praised by the United States and European Union, Amnesty International and other human rights groups were critical, stating that the Rohingya were fleeing arbitrary arrests by the Burmese government, and that the Rohingyas had faced systemic discrimination by the government for decades. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and several human rights groups rejected the President Thein Sein's proposal to resettle the Rohingya abroad. Some aid groups criticized the Myanmar government for creating a humanitarian crisis for Rohingya, for isolating them in camps, "abusive treatment," and preventing access to humanitarian aid, including arrests of aid workers.

Fighting broke out again in October, resulting in at least 80 deaths, the displacement of more than 20,000 people, and the burning of thousands of homes. Rohingyas have also suffered enforced segregation, are not allowed to leave their settlements, and are the subject of a campaign of commercial boycott led by Buddhist monks - with serious threats against those who trade with Muslims.

According to The Economist, later Burmese Buddhist mob violence against Muslims in such places as Meiktila, Okpho and Gyobingauk Township "follows on from, and is clearly inspired by, the massacres of Rohingya Muslims around Sittwe".