declared he was imposing control over the vast temple complex.
With political
parties and many activists silenced since a coup in 2014, the scandal-hit
Dhammakaya Temple is a rare institution in defying the junta, which has so far
trodden warily in confronting a group that claims millions of followers.
"Authorities
have already started a search operation seeking the individual under arrest
warrants," Paisit Wongmuang, chief of the Department of Special
Investigation, told reporters.
They went in
hours after Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha used a security measure that
critics dub "the dictator's law" to give forces a free hand to
arrest, search, demolish or do anything else they see fit to apprehend Phra
Dhammachayo.
The former
abbot, 72, faces charges of conspiracy to launder money and receive stolen
goods, as well as taking over land unlawfully to build meditation centers. His
aides dismiss the accusations as politically motivated.
The
controversy in part reflects more than a decade of divisive politics in
Thailand, which have penetrated all aspects of life - including the religion
followed by some 95 percent of Thais.
Although the
temple has no overt political affiliation, the abbot is widely believed to have
had links with populist former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was
overthrown in 2006. Prayuth became leader after a government led by Thaksin's
sister was toppled in 2014.
PRAYING
DEVOTEES
Thousands of
black-clad police and personnel in combat uniforms deployed before dawn around
the temple compound, which at 1,000 acres (400 hectares) is nearly 10 times the
size of the Vatican City. Facing off against them were monks in saffron robes
and devotees, who sat on the ground in prayer.
Police have
tried several times over the past year to question the abbot and get into the
temple, without success. They said the operation could end on Thursday if the
monks cooperated.
Phra Sanitwong
Wuttiwangso, the temple's head of public relations, told Reuters monks were
willing to cooperate.
"But I
cannot force praying devotees to make way for them," he said.
Phra Sanitwong
told Reuters on Wednesday the abbot had not been seen since May and had not
gone to the police because he was gravely ill.
The Dhammakaya
Temple differs from traditional temples not only in its size and its
flying-saucer shaped golden stupa.
A brash
approach to winning followers - it has its own television station - jars on
conservatives. They say it exploits its followers and uses religion to make
money. It says it is as committed to Buddhist values as they are.
The new move
against the temple comes days after the appointment of a new supreme patriarch
to head Thailand's 300,000 monks.
Somdet Phra
Maha Muniwong, from the most austere of two Thai Buddhist fraternities, was
chosen by the king after a change in the law allowed him to ignore the choice
of a religious council, which had recommended a monk with links to Dhammakaya.
*REUTERS*
0 Comments