Census for monks in Arakan

October 19, Narinjara News

A census is on for the monk population in Arakan State, Burma by the junta
since last week. The idea is to monitor the activities of monks' in the
future, said an abbot on the border.

A team of Nasaka border security officers came to his monastery in
Maungdaw Township yesterday to collect the names of monks in the
monastery. Later, the Nasaka team went to another monastery to get names
there, the abbot said.

The authorities are collecting the names, ages, address, family names, and
photographs of each monk in every monastery in Arakan, according to a monk
source.

The census for monks in Arakan is part of the regime's plan to keep a
check on monks and many township authorities in the state are now going
about preparing the lists.

General Thura Shwe Man, the third most powerful man in Burma, is handling
the affairs of monks in the country directly, and he is likely to have
ordered the collection of information on the monk population in Arakan, a
source said.

In Rathidaung, 20 miles north of Arakan State capital Sittwe, the township
authorities and police are jointly making the list of monks in every
monastery in the township.

Authorities investigated many monks who recently returned to Sittwe after
the demonstrations by monks, asking them several questions about the
demonstrations in the capital, said a monk from the city.

It has also been learnt that monks in Arakan State are now facing
restrictions in travelling freely in Burma, and it seems that authorities
will be continuing to restrict travel by monks in the future, said the
abbot.