Non-Christian locals of 56 miles point, Tuiding trek of Mindat Township, southern Chin state, Burma have been opposing the construction of a Christian pastor quarters since the first week of February.
The local people have accused Christians of being behind the problems that arise between Buddhists and Muslims.
“They should not make groundless remarks. The local people should avoid such accusation and not relate it to the construction of Pastor quarter’s building because there are no Muslims here,” said a leader of local Christian community.
The local Buddhists of 56 miles point have been issuing threats over the construction Christian Pastor’s quarter which has been permitted by the local authority. The building is being constructed since December 2012.
The carpenters and workers at the construction site were threatened with stabbing by U Ngai Law on 27 December 2012 and posters demanding a stop to construction were pasted.
Moreover, U Zaw Ki, a Pastor of 56 Miles point of Tuiding trek was abused and asked to stop the construction of the building by U Shein Ling on 8 January. The carpenters were also threatened by five local people brandishing swords on 6 February.
The local administrative office of Mindat Town of Chin state has submitted a letter demanding a fair judgment on this issue by local Christian authorities.
The local Christian authorities also requested verification whether a Buddhist monastery is registered legally. It was built in 2005 and a Catholic Church was built in 2008-09. The local Christian leaders have been demanding to verify the registration permit of the two buildings of Buddhist religion, which were built between 2009 and 2012 in the 56 Miles point village.
“Most of buildings of rural areas are not registered. But now, it should be done legally and fairly by the authority for all local people, ” said a local.
56 Mile point village comprises 27 households of which 14 households are Christians, 4 are Catholics and 9 are Buddhists.