Myanmar’s Cardinal Charles Bo has pleaded for an end to violence in the country following the brutal massacre of dozens of villagers on Christmas Day.
“The massacre of at least 35 innocent civilians in Mo So village, Hpruso, Kayah (Karenni) State is a heart-breaking and horrific atrocity which I condemn fully and unreservedly with all my heart,” Cardinal Bo said in a Twitter post Monday. “Grieving, I pray fervently for the victims, their loved ones and the survivors of this unspeakable and despicable act of inhumane barbarity.”
“The fact that the bodies of those killed, burned and mutilated were found on Christmas Day makes this appalling tragedy even more poignant and sickening,” the cardinal said in a separate tweet. “As much of the world celebrated the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, the people of Mo So village suffered the terrible shock and grief of an outrageous act of inhumanity.”
The cardinal’s appeal follows a military attack on Christmas day that left at least 38 people dead as of this writing, including women and children, in the eastern state of Kayah.
Myanmar (Burma) has been in upheaval since a violent military coup d’état deposed the government of Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1. Militias opposing the takeover have sprung up across the country to combat the junta, and some of the bloodiest fighting has occurred in Christian-majority areas.
Newly appointed cardinal Myanmar Archbishop Charles Maung Bo arrives at St. Peter’s Basilica for a Mass celebrated by Pope Francis on February 15, 2015 in Vatican City, Vatican. (Franco Origlia/Getty Images)
“The whole of our beloved Myanmar is now a war zone,” Bo lamented, decrying other recent air strikes as well as “repeated bombardment, shelling, and destruction.”
“I appeal to all those holding guns to put down their weapons,” he continued. “I urge Myanmar’s military, the Tatmadaw, to stop bombing and shelling innocent people, to stop destroying homes and churches, schools and clinics, and to begin a dialogue with the democracy movement and the ethnic armed groups.”
“When will this end?” the cardinal asked. “When will decades of civil war in Myanmar cease? When will we be able to enjoy true peace, with justice and true freedom? When will we stop killing one other?”
“I call on the military to stop bombing, shelling and killing,” Cardinal Bo said in a further post. “I call on the democracy movement and the ethnic armed groups to strive earnestly for peace. And I pray from the very depths of my heart for an end to the tragedies we have seen in recent days and weeks and for too many years and decades.”
“Let a new dawn for Myanmar and may the souls of those so brutally murdered rest in peace,” he said.
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