HISTORICAL P ERSPECTIVES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF R ELIGIOUS NATIONALISM UNDER U NU AND ITS I MPLI - CATIONS FOR F REEDOM OF R ELIGION IN MODERN B URMA Av TORKEL BREKKE * Abstract: The subject of this article is the religious nationalism that developed in early independent Bur- ma and its consequences for freedom of religion. U Nu and the political elites of early independent Bur- ma faced considerable pressure to promote Buddhism at the expense of other religious traditions. This pressure came from two directions. Firstly, there was internal pressure from the Buddhist Order. The monks became more politically assertive during the colonial period. Secondly, there was external pres- sure from ethnic minorities that challenged the political legitimacy of the centre. U Nu tended to see minority rights as an obstacle to national unity much in the same way as the present military government. Keywords: Burma, U Nu, religious nationalism, freedom of religion, Buddhism. Human rights abuses by the military government of Burma, especially in the period after 1988, are well documented. Violations against freedom of religion is but one of a range of human rights violations in the country. The present situation for religious minorities (i.e. non- Burmans) is difficult in many areas of the country, especially in areas where guerrilla and government forces clash. It is well known that members of the Buddhist establishment, i.e. the order of monks or the Sangha, also suffer from the imposition by the military regime of severe restrictions and have been subjected to harassment and violence under the regime. 1 At the same time, relations between the government and the Buddhist monks are actually ambiva- lent. On the one hand, there is repression and control. On the other, the government supports and offers patronage for Buddhist proselytizing and other religious activities when deemed beneficial to the state in its struggle to maintain national unity and political integrity. For instance, in 1994 the State Law and Order Council (SLORC) staged a forty-five-day-long pro- cession of a Chinese tooth relic and enjoined millions of citizens and foreigners to take part in rituals of highly politicized relic veneration. Thus, they used traditional Buddhist practices to foster cultural unity and political stability and to dramatize SLORC’s authority and legitima- 41 * Torkel Brekke (b. 1970), D. Phil. (Oxford), postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Oslo. His most recent books and articles deal with the relationship between religion and politics. Email: torkel.brekke@iks.uio.no 1 See for instance Mya Maung: Totalitarianism in Burma (New York: Paragon House 1992). NORDISK TIDSSKRIFT FOR MENNESKERETTIGHETER – VOL. 22, NR 1, S. 41–52. ISSN 1503-6480 (C) UNIVERSITETSFORLAGET 2004