Myanmar cardinal calls for end to violence after church attack
YANGON : Myanmar's Roman Catholic leader has called for attacks on places of worship to end after he said four people had died and more than eight were wounded when a group of mainly women and children sought refuge in a church during fighting this week.
"It is with immense sorrow and pain, we record our anguish at the attack on innocent civilians, who sought refuge in Sacred Heart Church, Kayanthayar," said Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, who is the archbishop of Yangon.
The church in the district of Loikaw, the capital of Kayah state bordering Thailand, suffered extensive damage during the Sunday night attack, he said.
Myanmar is predominantly Buddhist, but some areas have large Christian communities.
"The violent acts, including continuous shelling, using heavy weaponry on a frightened group of largely women and children" had resulted in the casualties, he said.
"This needs to stop. We plead with you... kindly do not escalate the war," he said.
A resident in the area said "all the churches have put up white flags in order to stop the shelling".
Myanmar has been in chaos since the army took power on Feb 1 with daily protests, marches and strikes nationwide against the junta. - REUTERS
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