After having a bowl of rice with vegetables as breakfast, Win Thura was browsing through the pages of newspaper in his private chamber on the second floor of the monastery. As the sky was still clear, the residents of Mandalay rushed towards their work places in any manner they could. Win Thura was very fond of this sight, but that day he was busy glancing at the headlines of a very popular national newspaper for the news of the Rakhain state. None of the headlines succeeded in arousing his interest. However, one news attracted his attention. According to the news, a general who happened to be the spokesperson of Tatmadaw, said that within the next six months they were going to find a final solution to the Rohingya problem. From Rakhain, already Win Thura received a number of quite interesting news. The news of the Rohingyas in the northern part of Aung Syke raised his confidence to a new height. He expected same kind of steps against the Rohingyas everywhere in the country, or else this cyst could never be uprooted.

Unexpectedly, Win Thura felt an urge for a cup of red tea. He fetched his secretary for tea and only a few minutes after his secretary had left, the cocktail bomb flew through the open window, and landed right at the center of the chamber. The panic-stricken people inside the premises of the monastery began running around for shelter, as the loud bang of explosion shook the whole building. Part of Win Thura’s bed caught fire. Subsequently, the entire chamber was engulfed in smoke. When the priest ran out of his chamber, one end of his robe was on fire. He rolled on the ground and stood up after the fire had been extinguished.

With two jute sacks full of documents and relevant papers, by nine in the morning, Su was on her way to Sittwe. The previous night she hired an auto rickshaw for her journey back to Sittwe. As the interior of the auto was quite spacious, the two jute sacks, the two Buddhist youths and Su, all of them fit into the auto comfortably. Their plan had been to travel on an intercity bus from Sittwe to Yangon the next day. However, in front of Hin Kao’s temple, Su stopped the auto and told the driver and the two Buddhist youths to wait for her. Inside the temple she found Than Kin discussing daily issues with a bunch of young monks. When he had noticed her approaching him, he beckoned the young monks too move away from there. Couple of weeks earlier they had met each other during a meeting at the temple. In that meeting, Brigadier Lee and Ban La were present.

Su wore a light blue Taipon over a navy-blue skirt. Her hair wasn’t tied but she had a black hair band over it. She had planned to have Than Kin’s interview, so she put on her lipstick and a quick facial. Very politely she conveyed to him why she had come to his temple. Than Kin was aware, she worked for a pro government online news portal. He also knew about the government project she had been working on. This is why he didn’t have any objection about the interview. Su put her smart phone on a tripod and prepared herself for the interview.

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The interview began with formal exchange of greetings, and then she asked the priest, “What do you think of Tatmadaw’s drive against the Rohingyas in the state of Arakan?”

“It’s Tatmadaw’s business. What they think needs to be done, they’re doing it. I’ve nothing to say about it.”

“Do you think it should be allowed to continue, the way it’s being executed?”

“What I think is not important, what most of our citizens think is the most important factor.”

“And what do you think people have been taking this drive?”

“Those I’ve met, so far all of them support it.”

“Personally, do you support it?”

“As their spiritual representative, I always respect their will.”

“Does it mean that you support what Tatmadaw has been doing in Arakan?”

“Why do you keep repeating the name of the state as Arakan? The name of the state is Rakhain.”

“Only five years ago the name was Arakan, right?”

“In the last five years, so many things in this world have changed. You have to accept the change.”

“The kind of atmosphere which has been created in the state of Rakhain, what’s your role in it?”

“We are spiritual figures. Spreading Buddha’s message of peace and fraternity is our motto.”

“Is it possible to effectively spread Buddha’s message by inciting hatred?”

The cheerful look from Than Kin’s countenance disappeared after this question. He said, “Why do you ask this question?”

“Many members of the minority community have complained to me that you people have been inciting the ordinary citizens against the Rohingyas. Is it true?”

“This is not true at all. There’s no reason for us to incite people. However, we cannot just ignore the ground reality. It is clear as daylight that those mosques where the Rohingyas congregate have become the hot bed of terror. The situation demands that we close them down.”

“Do you have solid evidence to support your claim?”

“Of course, we have information that in the mosque of the Mollah clan people are encouraged to commit treason. We’ve demanded to the authority to shut down that mosque. Apart from that, the Rohingyas are intruders, it is not right to consider them as minorities. Most of our miseries will disappear overnight if they leave.”

“Where will they go?”

“The land their ancestors have come from.”

“And where is that land?”

“You know very well which country I’m talking about,”

At this point the arrival of one of his disciples interrupted the conversation. After whispering something into Than Kin’s ear, he left as he had come. Then with a somber face, the priest said to Su, “We’ve just received a sad news. There has been an assault on our spiritual leader Win Thura. The assailants could not be apprehended or identified. The good news is, he’s unhurt and in sound condition.”

Su remained silent for a few moments, and then said to the priest, “Thanks for giving us your valuable time.”