Cambodian monks rally amid rumors of leasing Buddhist Institute's land to casino

 

Approximately 100 Buddhist monks on Friday marched in the capital Phnom Penh amid rumors that the Ministry of Cults and Religion has leased a parcel of the iconic Buddhist Institute's land to a nearby NagaWorld hotel and casino.

PHNOM PENH (Xinhua) -- Approximately 100 Buddhist monks on Friday marched in the capital Phnom Penh amid rumors that the Ministry of Cults and Religion has leased a parcel of the iconic Buddhist Institute's land to a nearby NagaWorld hotel and casino.

After marching, the protesting monks rallied on the pavement of a street in front of the Royal Palace and called on the Ministry of Cults and Religion to stop either demolishing the complex of the Buddhist Institute or leasing the parcel of the Buddhist Institute's land to the NagaWorld hotel and casino.

Hundreds of anti-riot police, armed with batons and shields, were deployed to prevent the protesters from moving nearer to the Royal Palace. There was no any report of clashes between the two sides.

"The lease of the religion-owned land to NagaWorld casino has not provided any benefits to the religion; instead, it affects the value of the Buddhism and the fame of the nation," a protest leader Venerable But Buntenh, head of the Independent Monk Network for Social Justice, said during the rally.

However, the Ministry of Cults and Religion vehemently denied that it leased or sold any part of the Buddhist Institute's land to the NagaWorld or other companies.

"The Ministry of Cults and Religion has never had any plan to invest or sell the Buddhist Institute since it serves as both a repository of sacred Buddhist texts and a research center for Buddhist studies," the ministry said in a statement last month. 

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