‘Buddhist bin Laden’: Hardline monk hands himself over to police in Myanmar after a year on the run

Ashin Wirathu waves to his supporters as he hands himself in to the police

Credit: n/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock/Lynn Bo

A fugitive hardline Buddhist monk once dubbed the “Buddhist bin Laden” for stirring up religious hatred has turned himself over to the Myanmar authorities less than one week before the Southeast Asian nation goes to the polls. 

Analysts say the timing of the unexpected surrender may indicate he is trying to influence the November 8 election. 

Ashin Wirathu, 52, has been on the run from the authorities since May 2019 after being accused of sedition under a law which prohibits “hatred or contempt” or exciting disaffection towards the government. It carries a prison sentence of up to three years.

The firebrand monk rose to earlier notoriety for his rhetoric against minority Muslims, particularly the Rohingya community, many of whom were forced to flee their home state of Rakhine during a brutal military crackdown in 2017. 

But he has also been critical of the government of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who rose to power in a landslide victory in 2015 and who is expected to return to power in Sunday’s nationwide election despite widespread discontent among ethnic minorities. 

Aung San Suu Kyi is expected to win Sunday's election

Credit: Soe Zeya Tun /Reuters

The charges against him came after his outbursts against Ms Suu Kyi and her National League of Democracy (NLD) party. 

Before handing himself over on Monday, Mr Wirathu said the government had disrespected a “son of Buddha” by its legal action against him, urging citizens to vote against the “evil” NLD. 

Yangon-based International Crisis Group researcher Richard Horsey told AFP that the Mr Wirathu’s reappearance just six days before the election was no coincidence. 

“By grabbing headlines just before elections (he) will hope to portray the NLD government as the enemy of Buddhist nationalism,” Mr Horsey said, adding the monk’s message would be unlikely to resonate beyond a small coterie of hardcore nationalists.

In 2017, Myanmar’s highest Buddhist authority banned the monk from preaching for one year over his tirades although he made a comeback after the ban was lifted and became a regular speaker at nationalist rallies where he accused the government of corruption.