By LAWI WENG/ SANKHLABURI
The Irrawaddy News - www.irrawaddy.org
February 25, 2008 - Mining work by a Burmese government-owned cement factory is destroying ancient Buddha images and votive tablets in a cave near Hpa-an, capital of Karen State, according to historians and local residents.
The Kawgun cave—a natural lime stone cavern, 200ft high and 300ft long—is located near a village of the same name, two miles from Hpa-an. It contains many images and artifacts that historians say date from the Pyu era, spanning the period from the first century to the ninth century AD.
Although the department of archeology of Burma’s Ministry of Culture has prohibited mining and excavations near religious sites, residents say the government-owned Myaingkalay cement factory, situated on the west bank of the Salween River, routinely blasts the mountains of the Kawgun area to extract material.
Residents say the blasting dislodges the Kawgun cave’s Buddha statuettes and other historical objects. "Buddha statues are broken day after day, and we feel very frustrated,” a monk told The Irrawaddy. “We want to repair the damage, but it should be the responsibility of the department of archeology."
The Irrawaddy was unable to obtain any reaction from the Naypyidaw-based department.
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