Confused Forgiveness: The Tragedy of Charles Bo
On December 23, Charles Bo, the Archbishop of Yangon, met with coup leader Min Aung Hlaing, to overwhelming criticism. The General cut a Christmas cake with him and donated $11,000 to his mission. The move horrified not only the international community, but many worldwide Catholic groups as well, who were unified in condemning the photo op. As I saw the news, I reached out to Alan Clements to hear his thoughts. I recalled that in our discussion on The Power of Ethical Spiritual Intelligence, in which he discussed his recently released book Burma: Voices of Freedom, Charles Bo was one of the many diverse voices Alan had spoken to. So I was curious if Alan thought that there was something more to the story that I had missed, or if this truly was a stunning, sickening turn. In what follows I have included part of Alan’s introduction to Alan in Volume II of his book, followed by one Question & Answer exchange, to provide some background on his prior conversation with the Archbishop. Following this are Alan’s recent comments yesterday.
“His behaviour is not only cowardly — it is the most egregious act of betrayal to the people — all the people; the murdered, the imprisoned, the tortured, the raped, the traumatized— the entire nation. And betrayal of his fellow Catholics.”
Charles Bo, Archbishop of Yangon and Burma’s first cardinal, heads a Roman Catholic order of 450,000 in the country’s capital. A prominent advocate of democratic reform, peace, justice and sustainable ecology, Cardinal Bo is known around the world as a voice of freedom…. He talks of corruption and the erosion of moral values after independence, and of his role in being an outspoken advocate of democratic reform, offering guidance on interfaith dialogue and the nature of spirituality in an ethnically diverse and violent climate.
ALAN CLEMENTS: Sir, as an Archbishop of a large cathedral here in Yangon, you have a unique role among the people. Members of your congregation confess to you.
ARCHBISHOP CHARLES BO: Yes, in church we have the sacramental confession.
AC: As such, you’ve had a unique window into the soul of Myanmar citizen, so to speak, and for decades, and in many areas of the country. You’ve come to know intimate things about their inner life—their concerns, their fears, their aberrations, their immoralities, their transgressions. And, I hope it is not too personal to ask, what are the main issues that ordinary Burmese citizens have struggled with under decades of dictatorship?
ACB: During these five decades under military rule many people lost their facilities and privileges. Four generations have been unable to develop their capacities. Opportunities have been denied. Some have become prisoners of silence, controlled by military intelligence. Five decades where many young people, and older people too, feel numb. They don’t know of a world outside of their own enclosed space. Many children think that life in Myanmar is normal everywhere else in the world. They don’t see the world outside and they don't see opportunities.
Then again, I think Buddhism, somewhat, gives direction to the minds of the people. Our Burmese people, when I have a conversation with them, you hear that our present life is because of what we’ve done in a previous life. So, the present situation, the poverty here and the situation with the government, the political situation, is because of what we have done in a previous life. And if we are to have a better life next time we'd better bear up, have patience with the government, with the situation, to have a happier life with promoted status—women to become men, men to become all these angels or what have you.
These past years, because of the situation since 1965 when all the schools were internationalized, there are things like cheating. Before that there were missionary schools and other schools where children were given a moral education for character formation. After internationalization, these past 40 years, the moral classes, the character formation, has gone. It’s been replaced by cheating and stealing and doing whatever you want, provided you are not caught. These transgressions are common at every level.
Following are Alan’s comments yesterday on this meeting between the Archbishop and the General:
Tragic.
But Mr Bo has done exactly what Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and others after each of their releases from detention or prison. They — the People —had a policy of reconciliation even for their oppressors. Both noble and courageous. I so respected it. And still do. But now they are imprisoned.
And today… Is anything really different? Is it more back and white? How many degrees of mass murder are there? How many degrees of inflicting terror and tyranny are there upon a population? How many degrees of genocide are there? How many times can you make a country scream before it decides to fight back?
Well. Today is different. We have the mass persecution and imprisonment and wholesale murder of many thousands. And this time the people have spoken, clearly and unambiguously —- There is NO future with dictatorship. There is NO future with MAH SAC. The people have declared a national defensive war on the evil MAH SAC. There is NO future under this tyranny.
He and his cronies have lost all credibility — they are satanic greed driven terrorists. This is obvious to anyone who even remotely studies the situation.
So are things different than they were for the ten years prior to the coup? Unambiguously— YES. It is the darkest of dark times. And only getter darker by the minute.
Does Mr Bo not know this? Of course he does. How could he not hear the screams of his fellow Catholics? Or is he suffering acute sycophantic Stockholm Syndrome?
So to me say that his behaviour is not only cowardly — it is the most egregious act of betrayal to the people — all the people; the murdered, the imprisoned, the tortured, the raped, the traumatized— the entire nation. And betrayal of his fellow Catholics.
I want to say I’m sorry to be so harsh but sometimes frank and direct honesty is a higher moral consideration rather than upsetting another’s status quo, especially in this context — the mass scale genocide of democracy by the terrorist MAH SAC, and the rampant, equally, large scale murder and torture and imprisonment of anyone who stands up for global human rights, and peace.
Burma is my spiritual home. The people are my family. They provided the greatest gift of my life— The Dhamma within a Monastic Setting. This crisis breaks my heart. It should break everyone’s heart.
That’s the tragedy of Charles Bo: He’s utterly confused forgiveness with the moral imperative of conscience, responsibility and justice. Cutting a cake with Burma’s Terrorist at large is tantamount to applauding as your daughter is raped. Do you not hear, Mr. Bo, the tormented anguish of the traumatized masses, the Catholics, Buddhists, Muslims Jews, Atheists, Animists Christians and the scores of other faithful communities in every region and village throughout our blessed Burma? Everyone is screaming for their lives. Do you not see and hear this reality?
I suggest Mr. Bo read the famous words of the Lutheran Priest, Martin Niemöller who —mind you —was a religious sympathizer with the rise of Hitler and his 3rd Reich, who, wrote his famous confessional only after —unexpectedly being taken away by the very man he symbolically cut cake with —to spend five years in Auschwitz.
“First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.”
We want more from you, Mr Bo. How about an apology to the people? And a bold statement to MAH SAC — “Stop your killing. Stop it now. Release all prisoners of conscience. Support the immediate return of the civilian government.”
And for you Sir — go to China with all whom you wish to go with you and leave our precious Burma for those of us who love freedom rule of law peace justice and democracy. A future without fear of your Evil until you do as Angulimala did and overcame his evil and became an Arahant. I truly wish you would say this and it would become headlines all throughout Myanmar. And then we will forgive you. Or at least I will.