Rev. Danny Fisher

This from the Irrawaddy today:

Speaking with The Irrawaddy on Monday, a leader of the All Burma Monks Alliance, U Pyinya Zawta, said, “We strongly condemn the Chinese government for their crackdown on Tibet’s monks. We appeal to the Chinese government to stop their suppression of monks and initiate peaceful negotiations.”

The All Burma Monks Alliance is an underground monk’s organization inside Burma founded by Buddhist monks in September at the time protests broke out nationwide.

[...]

Meanwhile, a statement released on Sunday by the International Burmese Monks Organization criticized the Chinese government for insulting Tibet’s Buddhist monks and urged dialogue between the Chinese government and the Tibetan leadership.

In their statement, the monks said, “We strongly urge the Chinese authorities to stop the violent crackdown and to initiate as soon as possible a dialogue which can give rise to the fulfillment of the true wishes of the Tibetans.”

[...]

The International Burmese Monks Organization said they commiserated with their fellow Tibetan monks and are deeply concerned about the future of Sasana, meaning the “dispensation of Buddha.”

However, despite the condemnations, no report covering the Chinese crackdown appeared in state-run newspapers in Burma.

Observers in Rangoon suggested that the Tibetan and Burmese monks have strong links. “The Saffron Revolution and the news images in September inspired the Tibetan monks,” said a journalist in Rangoon.