In a statement released from the President’s Office on Sunday night, he decried the article as insensitive, saying that it has “damaged the reputation of Buddhism, which has been Myanmar’s main religion for thousands of years.”

The TIME article, entitled “The Face of Buddhist Terror” features a portrait of controversial monk U Wirathu. The monk has been accused of inciting anti-Muslim hatred through his ‘969’ movement that calls on Buddhist communities to boycott Muslim shops and businesses.

More recently, Wirathu was behind draft legislation that would require Buddhist women to seek permission from their parents and local authorities before they were able to marry Muslim men. The law would also require the Muslim groom to convert to Buddhism. The legislation caused outcry among human rights groups and was denounced by opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as “a violation of women’s and human rights.”

The statement from the President’s Office defended U Wirathu’s position in the Buddhist religion, claiming that monks are all subject to the 277 “moral rules or precepts.” He also reiterated Myanmar’s acknowledgement of the rightful existence of multiple religions, including Islam and Christianity.

In an interview with The Irrawaddy, U Wirathu reacted to the TIME article claiming that it was the work of Islamists who want him discredited. He went on to claim that he did not endorse the violence of the 969 movement, and that Muslims were “sacrificing their own mosques, shops and homes” and then “putting the blame for these events on my sermons.”

While the President has not offered direct support for the controversial monk, his statement is being seen by many observers as a defense of Buddhism.
 
U Wirathu—no stranger to religious controversy—was sentenced to a 25-year prison sentence in 2003 for inciting anti-Muslim hatred. He was released last year during a general amnesty for political prisoners.