power to influence judicial cases at a higher level, including attacking interfaith activists. For example, Zaw Zaw Latt, an inter faith activist, was arrested in 2015 for a photograph oh himself with a firearm in Kachin, two years prior to the arrest.223 He was charged for being in association with 'unlawful groups;’ Latt's family claims that Ma Ba Tha members showed up at his court hearings. 224 In addition, he was targeted by at least one Ma Ba Tha magazine. 225 Many prominent monks with large follower bases regularly travel across the country to attend sermons, rallies, and events. For example, Wirathu appears to maintain a grueling travel schedule. According to the data collected by the Burmese Muslim Association, he made a total of 24 public appearances across the country in just one month in March 2015, including in Mandalay, Yangon, Kachin, Mon, Karen, and Rakhine states. 226 During these visits, he is alleged to have cultivated relationships with various hardline political parties and armed groups around the country. According to available imagery from Rakhine State, Wirathu met with Aye Maung, the leader of a major Rakhine nationalist party, and Maung Maung Ohn, the then-Chief Minister.227 In Karen State, he met with leaders from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, an anti-Muslim breakaway group from the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), as seen in the left-hand image below.228 Members of the Ma Ba Tha also appear to maintain friendly relations with the Tatamadaw, or the Burmese Armed Forces. This was particularly evident during the flood relief efforts in August 2015, when Ma Ba Tha monks and soldiers were seen coordinating and distributing aid together. On the right-hand image below, Ashin Thaddhamma is pictured on a social media post meeting with soldiers from the garrison in Mawchi in Shan state in September 2015 as part of flood relief efforts. The post accompanying the imagery stated that, “The military and monks are always the first to help whenever the people face problems.”229 Image 28: Wirathu seen visiting leaders of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army. Image timestamp says March 6, 2015 Image 29: Ashin Thadhamma seen visiting soldiers in Mawchi Township in Shan State in 2015 as part of flood relief efforts, as seen on social media posts Channels At the heart of the Ma Ba Tha��s power is its highly effective communications apparatus, which is one of the most powerful mobilizing forces in the country today. In 2014, the first petition by the Ma Ba Tha in support of the Race and Religion bills, which was sent to President Thein Sein, was reported to have 1.3 million signatures. 230 By February 2014, the Ma Ba Tha claimed an additional 3 million signatures in support of the laws,231 or nearly 8 percent of the country’s population. To engage and maintain this large base of support, the Ma Ba Tha uses a variety of dissemination channels, both online and offline. Among these are a range of publications, including a magazine that is likely to have one of the largest circulations of any such publication in the country; a cable TV deal to broadcast sermons throughout 28