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Buddhist monks seek sanctuary in France

2010-01-02 【Share to Friend】 【Print Friendly】
Source: The Advertiser, Ben Stocking

HANOI  - Followers of a famous Buddhist monk have abandoned the temple in southern Vietnam where they had sought sanctuary and are on the run.

Police have been pressuring them for months to break up their monastic community and return them to their home villages.

The students of Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, who helped popularise Buddhism in the West and sold millions of books worldwide, slipped away from the Phuoc Hue temple under cover of darkness earlier this week, a spokeswoman for the monks and nuns said by phone on Thursday.

``There's no-one left there,'' said Sister Natasha, speaking from the Plum Village monastery in southern France, where Nhat Hanh is based. ``They've gone into hiding.''

They departed just days before a December 31 deadline set by Vietnam's communist government to vacate Phuoc Hue and return to their home provinces.

The government says Nhat Hanh's followers have violated Vietnam's laws on religion and created conflict in the communities where they practise. The monks and nuns say they have respected all Vietnamese laws and are being persecuted because Nhat Hanh counselled Vietnam's president to end government control of religion.

On December 17, Nhat Hanh's followers asked the French government for temporary status as refugees. They are still awaiting a reply. It is not clear whether Vietnamese authorities would allow them to leave even if France welcomed them.

Police and government officials could not be reached for comment on Thursday. A government spokeswoman has previously described the conflict at Phuoc Hue as a fight between two Buddhist factions. But leaked documents indicate the government has directed the efforts to break up Nhat Hanh's Vietnamese followers.

Hanoi refused offers from two chapters of the officially-sanctioned Vietnam Buddhist Church to let Nhat Hanh's followers practise at local pagodas.
 

Tag： vietnam Rating：3/5 Views：84

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