ICJ Genocide Case Lays Bare Buddhism’s Moral Crisis in Myanmar

While Buddhist monks on one side of the world are walking thousands of kilometers for peace and compassion, the image of Buddhism in Myanmar has again been severely tarnished, with a number of influential monks being accused at the top UN court of encouraging acts of killing.

The goal of the monks in the US who are taking part in the Walk for Peace is to promote the safety of all living beings. Since last year, they have endured the physical hardships of a transcontinental journey for global peace, rather than thinking of personal gain, highlighting the nobility of the religion universally known for wishing Metta (loving kindness) for others.

But the sermons of certain monks in Myanmar, especially senior figures like Sitagu Sayadaw, the supreme head of Shwe Kyin, one of Myanmar’s nine Buddhist sects, stand in stark contrast to those values. To the shame of Buddhist practitioners in Myanmar—a Buddhist majority country—and around the world, portions of one of his sermons were submitted to the International Court of Justice last week as evidence of “genocidal intent” in the Myanmar military’s crackdown on Rohingya Muslim communities in 2017.