Ultra-nationalist monk U Wirathu has been accused of sedition for speeches attacking Myanmar’s State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, with a local court reportedly already having issued a warrant for his arrest.

U Wirathu has also railed against religious minorities and especially Muslims, deepening the social divide in the Buddhist-majority Southeast Asian nation where Rohingya Muslims have been persecuted by mobs and the military.

Ashin Ariya Wun Tha Bhiwun Sa, a Buddhist monk from Mandalay, said he should have been put behind bars years ago, calling his criticism of both Muslims and Suu Kyi “unacceptable.”

“Due to his notorious hate speech, Buddhism in Myanmar has been tarnished,” said Ashin Bhiwan Sa, who regularly joins interfaith activities in a bid to help reconcile the nation’s fragile society.

“He undermines all the good work monks have done both here and in the international community.”

A government official filed the suit against U Wirathu at the Yangon Western district court on May 28, according to police spokesman Myo Thu Soe.

This came just days after Myanmar’s religious and cultural affairs said officials were gathering evidence against the controversial monk.

The Bangladeshi government’s unprecedented two-month sea fishing ban has hit thousands of fishermen in the country’s long southern coastal zone.

Lamenting their loss of livelihood and pondering alternative means of survival, many have taken to the streets to protest against the ban in recent days. Protesters have demanded the ban be shortened and fishermen get allowances from the government while they cannot go fishing.

The government imposed a ban on fishing from May 20 to July 23 in the Bay of Bengal in line with Marine Fisheries Ordinance 1883 (amended in 2015) to ensure the smooth breeding of fish.

In April, the Department of Fisheries sent out an order to fisheries officers in 19 coastal districts to implement the ban and take action against those who violate it.

Although a praiseworthy move in terms of conservation and increasing fish stocks, the ban has faced criticism for having no apparent rehabilitation program for thousands of vulnerable fishermen.

It came into force just weeks before Muslim-majority Bangladesh is to celebrate the Eid-ul-Fitr festival in the first week of June.

Cardinal Charles Bo of Myanmar has asked Church leaders in Asia to preach peace, not vengeance.

The 71-year-old president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences urged his fellow prelates to follow leader of India’s freedom struggle Mahatma Gandhi who is revered as the apostle of non-violence.

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who was born on October 2, 1969, practiced non-violence to defeat British brutality and colonialism.

“Remember Gandhi who said ‘an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind,’” Cardinal Bo said while addressing delegates of the Bible and Evangelization seminar held on May 16 in Bangkok’s Camillian Pastoral Centre.

The meeting took place 25 days after bomb blasts in churches and hotels claimed 258 lives in Sri Lanka.

Cardinal Bo said Easter Sunday turned out to be Good Friday “for our brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka, who sit at the graves on Holy Saturday awaiting the streaks of hope of resurrection amidst the silence of the graves.”

The cardinal also lamented that Christians have become “the most persecuted religious group in the world,” especially in China, Egypt, India, Libya, Middle East, and Sri Lanka among other places.

“Christians have become the scapegoats,” the cardinal said. “In many Middle Eastern countries, the once flourishing Christian communities have disappeared. Too many innocents lost their lives and their blood cries out.”

“I come from a country where religious extremism saw violence and tears of the thousands,” said the cardinal recalling the words of Pope Francis, who visited Myanmar and left a mandate saying, “Do not repay hatred with hatred. Be an instrument of peace.”

The Asian Church leader called on Catholics and their leaders to become people of Hope.

“We cannot allow ourselves to be gripped by fear and paralysis. These are the moments the shepherds need to walk through the way of the Cross – never losing the hope of a better tomorrow – not only for our people but those who fell victim to evil,” Cardinal Bo said.

Duterte wants to reintroduce cumpulsory Reserved Officers’ Training Corps program in all schools

Child rights groups and church leaders in the Philippines have voiced concern over a move to reintroduce compulsory military training for schoolchildren.

The Lower House of Congress last week approved a bill making the Reserved Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program mandatory for Grade 11 and 12.

The proposed law states military training “shall apply to all students … in all senior high schools, both public and private.”

It added that the aim of the training program is to “instill patriotism, love of country, moral and spiritual virtues, and respect for human rights and adherence to the Constitution.”

Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo, however, warned against abuses that might result from the program.