Myanmar to host Buddhist summit

Myanmar to host Buddhist summit

MYANMAR: More than 1,700 participants from over 20 countries have
confirmed attendance at the fourth World Buddhist Summit to be
held in the Myanmar capital in December, a semiofficial newspaper
said on Sunday.

Official media earlier reported the conference was being held
"to forge unity among Buddhist orders of the world, for the
flourishing of Buddhism, and for Buddhist countries to make
collective efforts in helping ensure a peaceful world."

The December meeting is being jointly organized by the
Nenbutsushu Buddhist sect of Japan and Myanmar's Religious
Affairs Ministry, the Myanmar Times said.

The ruling junta has spent lavishly to renovate the main
venues for the summit, including the Kaya Aye pagoda and the
International Theravada Buddhist Missionary University.

According to the latest official figures, 89.2 percent of
Myanmar's 53 million people adhere to Buddhism. --AP