Canadian preacher jailed in Myanmar for holding services during virus ban

By Shoon Naing

 

Burmese-Canadian preacher David Lah, who is accused of organising prayers in defiance of restrictions on gatherings imposed by the government during a lockdown due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, arrives at a court in Yangon, Myanmar August 6, 2020. REUTERS/Myat Thu Kyaw

 

YANGON (Reuters) - A Myanmar court on Thursday sentenced a Canadian preacher who said Christians were immune to the novel coronavirus to jail with hard labour for three months for holding church services in defiance of a ban on gatherings during the outbreak.

 

David Lah, a Canadian of Burmese origin, and another man, Myanmar national Wai Tun, were detained under a disaster management law over services they held in the city of Yangon in April.

A ban on public gatherings in the commercial capital took effect in mid-March.

 

Judge Moe Swe told reporters both men had been convicted of breaking administrative rules.

 

The lawyer for both men, Aung Kyi Win, confirmed that both of them had been jailed for three months. He did not elaborate.

 

In a sermon posted online in late March, Lah had told followers: “If you hear the sermon of God, the virus will never come to you. I declare it with the soul of Jesus Christ.”

 

About 20 people who took part in Lah's gatherings in April, including Lah himself, later tested positive for the coronavirus, an official said at the time.

 

This led to a cluster of 67 cases, according to Thar Tun Kyaw, a spokesman for the health ministry. The cluster was one of the largest in Myanmar, which has only reported 357 cases and six deaths related to the virus.

 

Religious gatherings across the world have at times been triggers for the spread of the virus, which has infected more than 18 million people globally and killed nearly 700,000.

 

Myanmar is predominantly Buddhist though it has small Christian communities.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-08-06

 

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16 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

In a sermon posted online in late March, Lah had told followers: “If you hear the sermon of God, the virus will never come to you. I declare it with the soul of Jesus Christ.”

 

About 20 people who took part in Lah's gatherings in April, including Lah himself, later tested positive for the coronavirus, an official said at the time.

 What's he doing in Myanmar?  He belongs back in the U.S. where he'll be in good (but crazy) company....

 

13 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 What's he doing in Myanmar?  He belongs back in the U.S. where he'll be in good (but crazy) company....

 

He's Canadian. Maybe you missed that

19 hours ago, Emdog said:

He's Canadian. Maybe you missed that

 

I didn't miss that at all.. But the religious crazy types believing they're immune from the CV seems to be an especially (but not exclusively) U.S. phenomenon....

This kind of fundamentalist  religion (Chistian, Muslim, Orthodox Jew etc etc) is a disease just like Covid-19. Sad ignorant fanatics spread their nutty creeds round the world, and turn the brains of the innocent to cabbages. No surprise that they think their fantasy sky fairy will protect them from Covid.

2 minutes ago, Nigel Garvie said:

This kind of fundamentalist  religion (Chistian, Muslim, Orthodox Jew etc etc) is a disease just like Covid-19. Sad ignorant fanatics spread their nutty creeds round the world, and turn the brains of the innocent to cabbages. No surprise that they think their fantasy sky fairy will protect them from Covid.

Absolutely right.

Unfortunately, these fundamentalists and their supporters will never respond to your post or the like. That itself is proof of the authenticity of their preaching. 

everyone is entitled to believe what they want, but when your belief endangers the lives of others then that entitlement is forfeited, he's lucky it's only a jail sentence as the relatives of the sick could have sought retribution..   

21 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

He belongs back in the U.S. where

 

3 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

I didn't miss that at all.. But the religious crazy types believing they're immune from the CV seems to be

 

But you said back in the US implying the Canadian has been there before which the news story never stated as a fact?

15 hours ago, MJKT2014 said:

 

 

But you said back in the US implying the Canadian has been there before which the news story never stated as a fact?

 

Back from Mynamar to the U.S....

Just doing God's work in the country of his birth. The authorities did not approve.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/myanmar-canadian-pastor-jailed-1.5676124