Thai govt seeks to force temples to open their finances

[webfact]

Thai junta seeks to force temples to open their finances

By Panarat Thepgumpanat and Patpicha Tanakasempipat

 

FILE PHOTO: Buddhist monks receive food from people while soldiers watch on outside Dhammakaya temple in Pathum Thani province, Thailand February 23, 2017. REUTERS/Jorge Silva/File Photo

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's military government will propose a law to force its tens of thousands of Buddhist temples to declare their finances, the head of the National Office of Buddhism told Reuters.

 

Temples get billions of dollars in annual donations and have been hit by scandals ranging from murder to sex to drugs to improper financial dealings. They have also largely eluded the junta's control as it has stamped its authority on other aspects of Thai life since a 2014 coup.

 

Pongporn Pramsaneh, a former policeman appointed to head the government's National Office of Buddhism this year, said reform was essential to stamp out corruption.

 

"It's a crisis of faith," Pongporn told Reuters in an interview on Thursday. "If we don't do it today, more damage will be done in future."

 

Efforts to bring greater control over Buddhism have intensified since March, when the influential Dhammakaya Temple defied a three-week siege by police searching for its former abbot on money-laundering charges. He is still on the run.

 

The temples get an estimated $3.5 billion a year in donations, according to a 2014 study. The government provides a further 4.67 billion baht ($137 million) to support temples and more than 300,000 monks.

 

Pongporn said he would propose measures to the military-appointed parliament next week to make it a law for temples to report their assets and financial records, as well as make them publicly available for scrutiny.

 

"It will be greatly beneficial in preventing corruption," said Pongporn, whose agency liaises with the Sangha Supreme Council, Buddhism's governing body in Thailand.

 

But one of the senior monks on the council, Phra Phrom Moli, said corruption should be addressed case by case and temple finances kept private.

 

"If someone asks to know your salary, will you tell them?" he asked.

 

MURDER AND CORRUPTION

 

The need for action had been highlighted by the recent exhumation of a 17-year-old novice murdered in a quarrel over money as well as the discovery of past corruption involving the Buddhist office itself, Pongporn said.

 

Buddhism is one of the three traditional pillars of Thai society alongside the nation and monarchy. Theravada Buddhism is followed - to varying degrees - by more than 90 percent of people in the country of more than 67 million.

 

Pongporn said about 80 percent of the 40,758 temples in Thailand submit their annual financial reports for archive purposes, but authorities are not allowed to scrutinize them.

 

The Dhammakaya Temple, which is Thailand's biggest, is among those that do not, he said.

 

Another junta-appointed body, the National Reform Steering Assembly, is also pushing for financial reform of temples.

 

"It's not enough for temples to submit their accounts, but they must be scrutinized and audited," Borvornvate Rungrujee, one of the assembly members, told Reuters.

 

A separate bill that appears to significantly reduce the say of the Sangha Supreme Council is also making its way through government.

 

It would give monks chosen by the Sangha Council only three of 29 seats on the committee. Among the committee's duties would be to appoint "monk police" with legal authority to report misbehaving monks.

 

The bill has been approved by the council of monks and is being considered by the cabinet, Pongporn said. After that, it would need to go to parliament.

 

"If Buddhism becomes too decadent, it will affect national security," Pongporn said.

 

($1 = 34.00 baht)

 

(Writing by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-06-19

[Somtamnication]

You wish!

[clockman]

Centre for money laundering.

[YetAnother]

i knew they could fly; lousy formation tho

[colinneil]

2 hours ago, Somtamnication said:

You wish!

 

Government seek to force temples to open their finances.

As above pigs might fly, no way will any temple open up their finances/ill gotten gains to scrutiny.

Most temple funds have been salted away in off-shore accounts, and other inaccessable places.

[halloween]

The Buddhists could teach the Catholics a thing or two about extracting money from the poor. Then again, they've had longer to practice. You can bet that they will resist any attempt to keep track of where that money goes.

[sweatalot]

Good and necessary plan.

 

Don't be so pessimistic

[lungmi]

3 hours ago, halloween said:

The Buddhists could teach the Catholics a thing or two about extracting money from the poor. Then again, they've had longer to practice. You can bet that they will resist any attempt to keep track of where that money goes.

80% of Buddhist monks dont know what they have to do.

15% know but they sell the Teaching of The Buddha.

5% know ,my kalyana mitta told me.

(The highest crimininal tax per capita in the world has the Vatican)

[graemeaylward]

If the Government blindly give them 4.67 billion baht annually, without checking how this is used, then it is hardly surprising that it is being misused! If I give money to some body or other I want to know exactly what the money is used for. Simple solution, government refuse to give any more money until temple accounts submitted!

Sent from my Lenovo A3000-H using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[YetAnother]

keeping thai buddhism exactly the way it is is vital to keeping thailand 3rd world

[gk10002000]

17 hours ago, webfact said:

"If someone asks to know your salary, will you tell them?" he asked.

Well, if a government employee, yes.  But being a soldier and a member of the coup, unlikely to happen

[halloween]

Anybody else suspect that the 3.5 billion annually in donations might be a tad under-reported?

Edited June 20, 2017 by halloween

[Stargeezr]

Starting with the Temples may be a good thing.  It seems that too many have people in them that

are not the greatest people around. If this Dhammakaya temple would just turn in its former

abbot. Maybe the Thai people and foreignors would believe that the temples are all good places.

555

Geezer

[TheFishman1]

Why not have all High Government employees do the same starting with the PM THEN THE HIGHER COPS THEN THE GOVERNOR O wait that wouldn't work TIT

[Juan B Tong]

[ddavidovsky]

" about 80 percent of the 40,758 temples in Thailand submit their annual financial reports for archive purposes, but authorities are not allowed to scrutinize them. "

 

Oh F F S.

The unaccountability of the temples is clearly officially sanctioned.

Edited June 20, 2017 by ddavidovsky

[khunPer]

What was the end of the story with Wat Phra Dhammakaya..?

[seajae]

the last thing any of the head monks want is for anyone else to know exactly how much they are stashing away for themselves, they go against all the buddhist teachings on wealth as well as many other aspects of it. It should be mandatory for all finances of every temple to be declared and audited by govt officers each year, the way its going religion is becoming a huge joke in Thailand with all the corrupt temples being outed 

[Eric Loh]

Will the government do the same and force all generals and police chiefs to open their finance? A flying pig just flew past my window.

[halloween]

9 minutes ago, Eric Loh said:

Will the government do the same and force all generals and police chiefs to open their finance? A flying pig just flew past my window.

The junta have come up with a sound idea. Quick, find something else to moan about.

[SABloke]

Since most (if not all) laws proposed by the government usually get passed with voting in the range of 197 - 0, it will be interesting to see how this pans out. :D