Hundreds Of Buddhist Monks To Spend Buddhist Lent In Violence-wrecked Southern Thailand

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Hundreds Of Buddhist Monks To Spend Buddhist Lent In Violence-wrecked Southern Thailand

Updated:2007-07-25 18:19:50 MYT

Hundreds of yellow-robed Buddhist monks arrived in Muslim-dominated southern Thailand on Wednesday (July 25th) at the start of Buddhist Lent in the hope their presence will promote peace in the insurgency-wracked region.

Buddhist Lent _ a three-month period _ marks the beginning of the rainy season in Thailand, a time when villagers present offerings of food and flowers to monks who must remain on temple grounds. The age-old practice is traditionally to prevent them from trampling new plants and insects.

"The 346 monks will spend this time in various temples in the area to boost morale among the Buddhist population there and to bring a message of peace to a place torn apart by the insurgency," said Air Force Commander Chalit Pukbhasuk who saw the monks off from Bangkok.

The monks traveled by air force plane to the south and will be spending their time at temples in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, Thailand's three southernmost provinces where 2,300 have been killed since an Islamic insurgency flared in January 2004.

e.sinchew-i.com

[donna]

brave fellas. i hope they stay safe.

[EnSvenskTiger]

Islamic insurgency it is not! It’s a dispute over territory in the south of Thailand with cultural ,racial and, off course, religious arguments that have existed for soon a hundred years so don’t ever make this another Al Quida lie!

And since the poster was smart or cowardly enough not to quote the end of that article and to probably reveal the true case of that insurgency I will.

“Up to 10 percent of Thailand's 65 million people are Muslims, most of whom live in the three southern provinces where they are a majority. Muslims have long complained they are treated as second-class citizens in predominantly Buddhist Thailand.”

Money and respect! It’s not harder than that.

Sending down thousands of Buddhist monks will get things better? Think not!

Tiger!

[Mid]

And since the poster was smart or cowardly enough not to quote the end of that article

none of the above , simply Tv / Bk Post , policy / agreement ,

which apparently had the desired effect of sending you to the complete article .

the message not the messanger .

............... .................... ..................... .....................

meanwhile

Thai soldiers injured in Pattani bombing

snip

Following the latest violence in the region, Narathiwat Governor Karan Supakijwilekarn reassured that security has been beefed up as monks arrived in the southern border province for the Lent period; part of a programme to instill peace within the region.

“Security will be provided for monks as they go on their alms-round or visit temples to conduct religious ceremonies,” he said.

The Post Publishing Public Co