Showing 1 - 10 of 14
Saffron swindlers
Oped, Editorial, Published on 22/03/2024
» The news of the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct this week handing a 480-year-plus jail term to a former abbot for embezzling temple donations is shocking enough. But the story gets even more convoluted.
Temple graft must stop
Oped, Editorial, Published on 03/10/2023
» The recent violent confrontation at Bang Khlan Temple in Pichit province was caused by one thing and one thing only: money. Last month, clerics, divided into two factions, protested in front of the famous temple.
Monk treated too harshly
News, Editorial, Published on 01/08/2023
» The warning that the National Office of Buddhism (NOB) gave to a senior monk over his political comments has raised a few eyebrows.
Temple row needs fixing
Oped, Editorial, Published on 04/07/2023
» A long-standing row between the abbot of Wat Kalaya and the noble Pravitra family demonstrates loopholes in conservation laws and poor enforcement as several heritage places are being threatened in the name of development.
Clergy reform long overdue
Oped, Editorial, Published on 09/05/2023
» The recent downfall of a well-known monk has again exposed a darker reality beneath the serene surface of Thai Buddhism: monks' sexual misconduct and the theft of temple funds.
Temples of temptation
Oped, Editorial, Published on 14/05/2022
» Reports of Buddhist monks being caught having sexual relationships or embezzling temple money have become daily staples of local news stories. The controversies are serious enough to make the relatively quiet and inert authorities revise some laws regarding the Buddhist clergy.
Men of cloth, not paper
Oped, Editorial, Published on 09/04/2022
» The latest case of embezzlement at Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara in Bangkok and its branches upcountry should send alarm bells ringing about an existing flaw in the way Buddhist temples are financially managed.
Chatty monks not an issue
Oped, Editorial, Published on 08/09/2021
» The controversy over two celebrity monks who landed in hot water following a live-streaming conversation full of puns and political wisecracking is a test of where Buddhism is going.
Protect us from greed, Amen
News, Editorial, Published on 19/01/2020
» The Sangha Supreme Council (SSC)'s decision to regulate the leasing of land or buildings owned by temples to prevent the misuse of monastic property is commendable, at least in principle.
Another one bites the dust
News, Editorial, Published on 20/06/2019
» Another chief of a local administration agency has fallen victim to the regime's absolute and authoritarian power.