Writer denied bail in religion-insulting case

Chaung-U Township court denied him bail when he made first appearance on December 17.

 “I was summoned to appear in the court to face the trial. But it amounts to arresting me. Do all courts in Myanmar have a habit of doing like this? I am not a defendant. I am innocent until proven guilty. All of you can imagine the situation our citizens are facing if this is called the rule of law.”

"Now I am in a position to perform the purification of the Buddha Sasana as well as to ensure the rule of law. I will continue doing what I should do.”

Monks from "Organisation for Protection of National Race and Religion" (Mabatha) attended the hearing. Hin Lin Oo was sent to Monyawa jail afterwards.

Tun Khaing, head of township immigration department, filed a lawsuit against him under Article 295 (a) and 298 of the penal code on November 20. He accused the writer of insulting the religion through a speech at a literary event in Thone-pan-hla model village in Chaung-U Township, Sagaing Region on October 23.

Tun Khaing said the Township Sangha Nayaka committee held a meeting and thereafter assigned the township management committee to take a legal action. 

In his speech, Htin Lin Oo challenged those linking Buddhism with race and nationality.

"If you want to be an extreme nationalist and if you love to maintain your race that much, don't believe in Buddhism," he said, according to a translation by The Irrawaddy, a Myanmar focused magazine and website.

The 10-minute excerpt from a 1.40-hour speech was widely shared in social media.

“My speech is 1:40 hours long. But only a 10-minute excerpt is taken out of the context,” Htin Lin Oo said. “The 10-minute CDs are distributed among the public. I don’t exactly know which organisations distributed the copies. My words like "Buddhism is not our national race," "If you want to be an extreme nationalist, don’t be Buddhist," were highlighted in the CDs, along with “Will all monks do and say be right?" Why will we worship the Buddha without knowing whether or not he has big eyes or sharp nose?”

“What I meant to say is "We are not worshipping a person but we have faith in the Buddha's teachings. This is crystal clear for intelligent people.’’

Htin Lin Oo's lawyer, Thein Than Oo, said the segment was purposefully misinterpreted by extremists.

"His intention was to expose things that are bad for Buddhism, like extremism and racism," Thein Than Oo told Reuters. "His actual intention was to ask for more tolerance."

According to Ko Hsan Tun, a younger brother of Htin Lin Oo, Judge Hsan Tint from Myinmu Township court – who presides over the trial - told Htin Lin Oo to apply for bail. But when the bail application was filed, the judge denied the request upon the plaintiff lawyer’s complaint that the application is not valid.

"The trial is at the beginning stage. The court cannot grant bail under the section 295 (a),” said Judge Hsan Tint.

Htin Lin Oo was an information officer for the National League for Democracy (NLD). He was dismissed from the post after the excerpt was shared widely online, prompting accusations he had attacked Buddhism. 

Reuters quoted an official with the NLD as saying earlier this week that the party relieved Htin Lin Oo of his position because he went too far in his speech.