Showing 1 - 10 of 63
Parties silent on temple corruption
Editorial, Published on 18/01/2026
» The monk scandals that shocked Thailand in 2025 are not the result of moral lapses among clerics. They are the outcome of decades of governance failure. Addressing them requires political solutions. As the country prepares to form a new government in the coming months, there is hope for policy, not religious excuses.
PC Plod visits female monks
Oped, Editorial, Published on 30/11/2025
» Barely a week after the Anutin government issued its new ministerial regulations to "protect" Buddhism, police last week showed up at a Bhikkhuni monastery in Songkhla.
Patients lost in temple scandal
Editorial, Published on 14/09/2025
» For the patients at Wat Phra Bat Namphu, the scandal around its former abbot has revived an old fear: being abandoned all over again.
Court backs fairness
Oped, Editorial, Published on 10/09/2025
» The focus of the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions ruling on the "14th-floor saga" should not be seen as merely marking Thaksin Shinawatra's final fall from grace.
Abbot's dramatic fall from grace
Oped, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 01/09/2025
» Faith built his empire. Fraud destroyed it. Luang Por Alongkot's fall from grace leaves Thai Buddhism reeling, demanding long-overdue reform.
Unholy identity crisis
Oped, Editorial, Published on 27/08/2025
» Allegations against Phra Alongkot -- the former abbot of the famous Wat Phrabat Namphu in Lop Buri -- have not only revealed a crisis of faith in Thai Buddhism, but have brought the issues of identity theft and impersonation to the forefront.
Reform clergy with your wallet
Editorial, Published on 03/08/2025
» The recent sex scandal involving high-ranking monks has shaken public faith to the core. But the responses from the clergy, the state, and the public all miss the point. This crisis in Thai Buddhism is not about monks and sex -- it's about monks and money. Address the problem incorrectly, and the sex scandals and temple corruption will never end.
Clergy in need of control, not reform
Editorial, Published on 20/07/2025
» After a long silence during Thailand's biggest sex scandal in the clergy, the Ecclesiastical Council and the National Office of Buddhism (NOB) have finally spoken out. Their big idea? A new law to imprison the offending monks and women involved in the scandal.
Corrupt monks have lost their way
Oped, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 14/07/2025
» Just as Thailand was about to celebrate Asalha Bucha Day and the start of Buddhist Lent, the nation was gripped by the biggest sex scandal ever to rock its clergy. How irony.
Time for Asean to tackle scam trade
Samady Ou, Published on 21/06/2025
» In April, China's President, Xi Jinping, undertook a tour of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member countries in an effort to shore up his country's relationships amidst rising tensions and fears of a full-blown trade war with the United States. While these visits sought to tighten diplomatic ties and deepen economic collaborations, a troubling issue continues to fester in many countries: the growing proliferation of cybercrime and multi-billion-dollar cyber scam networks.