With the people of Myanmar heading to the polls later this year, there are troubling signs that some extremists are intent on stirring up trouble.
Last month, one such extremist held a rally in Yangon. Ashin Wirathu gave a vitriolic speech that attacked U.N. human rights envoy Yanghee Lee.
"Don't assume you are a respectable person, just because you have a position in the U.N. In our country, you are just a whore," he said. "If you are so willing, you may offer your arse to the kalar [a racist term meaning 'blacks' that is commonly used to denigrate Muslims in Myanmar]. But you will never sell off our Arakan State!" Remarkably, Wirathu is a monk.