Buddhist Monks in Sri Lanka
Tempest in his report from Colombo has typically failed to understand the role of the Buddhist monks in the current turmoil in Sri Lanka.
Tempest calls the monks “extremists” when all they did was exercise their fundamental right of protesting--in this case, a dangerous treaty that threatens the very existence of the Sinhalese who are a minority in the Indian sub-continent.
Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka inherit this historical role of protecting their religion and ethnic identity against foreign domination.
More specifically, at this time, the monks are providing a human shield to the unarmed demonstrators against armed assault by the police and army.
Christian priests and nuns have been playing a similar role in Central and South America and more recently in South Korea.
HASSINA LEELARATHNA
Los Angeles
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