Attack On Buddhists Probarana Purnima to be sombre this yr

Your Right To Know
Friday, October 26, 2012

Tribeni Chakma

Exactly a month into the Ramu attack, the Buddhists will celebrate one of their biggest religious festivals, Shubho Probarana Purnima, across the country on October 29.

The celebration this year however will be marked by a pall of gloom. In some places, the minority people will observe the festival in a subdued manner as a sign of protest against the communal onslaught on them.

It was also the night of another festival of Buddhists, Madhu Purnima, on September 29 when Muslim zealots launched the attacks on Buddhist pagodas and houses in Ramu.

The unprecedented communal onslaught has forced Buddhist leaders in some places to curtail celebratory programmes of Probarana Purnima.

Earlier Buddhists leaders in Chittagong had decided not to fly paper lanterns (fanus), the most attractive celebratory event of Probarana Purnima, to protest the Ramu attack. They however called off the decision later after security assurance from the government.

Though the Buddhists in Bandarban, Rangamati and Khagrachhari will fly fanus, they have curtailed their other colourful traditional cultural programmes.

In some other places, the community leaders have chalked out different protest programmes on the occasion of Probarana Purnima.

Probarana Udjapan Parisad in Dhaka has decided to hold a solidarity rally on October 28 in front of TSC of Dhaka University to protest the attack. They will also fly fanus dedicating them to the ruined Buddhist pagodas in Ramu and elsewhere.

On September 29, the attackers torched 12 pagodas, ransacked six more in Ramu and ravaged six Buddhist pagodas and a Hindu temple in Ukhia the next day. They also destroyed more than 50 Buddhist houses in Ramu and Teknaf of Cox's Bazar.