Child Sex Abuse in Buddhism
Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2011 5:30 pm
I don't know whether to post this on the pedophilia board, or the religion board.
Pedophilia is rampant in Buddhist monasteries in Asia. The custom of giving small children away to monasteries full of celibate adults is a recipe for disaster. The children aren't allowed to leave the monasteries once they're admitted, until they're 21. In Tibetan monasteries, if the boys try to run away to escape chronic rape and molestation, they're hunted down by "warrior monks", and forcibly returned to the monastery. Their parents have no idea what goes on, and trust the monks and lamas completely. In Sri Lanka and Taiwan there have been lawsuits filed by groups of child-novices against their monk- or abbot-tormentors, yet the problem continues.
Even more alarming is the news that Southeast Asian monks in the US have enticed children into private quarters for sexual molestation, and in spite of complaints and even criminal charges filed, the perps have avoided sanction. One monk's m.o. was to set up a tutoring service for grade-school kids. He avoided legal authorities by leaving the US, then returning to a different State, and starting his illicit activities over again. The US monasteries harboring these criminals are uncooperative with police. Where is the FBI when you need them?
How can anyone believe that Buddhism is the much-vaunted "religion of kindness" when thinking about the trauma children suffer as a result of living in (or near) monasteries full of pedophiles? As adults, the ex-monks suffer from unresolved Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, arrested emotional and intellectual development, and a slew of other problems. We may not be able to do anything about the monastic abuse going on in Asia, but these monk-perverts shouldn't have access to kids in Western countries, nor should they be able to avoid prosecution if they do commit these crimes.
http://lamashree.org/dalailama_08_child ... teries.htm
Pedophilia is rampant in Buddhist monasteries in Asia. The custom of giving small children away to monasteries full of celibate adults is a recipe for disaster. The children aren't allowed to leave the monasteries once they're admitted, until they're 21. In Tibetan monasteries, if the boys try to run away to escape chronic rape and molestation, they're hunted down by "warrior monks", and forcibly returned to the monastery. Their parents have no idea what goes on, and trust the monks and lamas completely. In Sri Lanka and Taiwan there have been lawsuits filed by groups of child-novices against their monk- or abbot-tormentors, yet the problem continues.
Even more alarming is the news that Southeast Asian monks in the US have enticed children into private quarters for sexual molestation, and in spite of complaints and even criminal charges filed, the perps have avoided sanction. One monk's m.o. was to set up a tutoring service for grade-school kids. He avoided legal authorities by leaving the US, then returning to a different State, and starting his illicit activities over again. The US monasteries harboring these criminals are uncooperative with police. Where is the FBI when you need them?
How can anyone believe that Buddhism is the much-vaunted "religion of kindness" when thinking about the trauma children suffer as a result of living in (or near) monasteries full of pedophiles? As adults, the ex-monks suffer from unresolved Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, arrested emotional and intellectual development, and a slew of other problems. We may not be able to do anything about the monastic abuse going on in Asia, but these monk-perverts shouldn't have access to kids in Western countries, nor should they be able to avoid prosecution if they do commit these crimes.
http://lamashree.org/dalailama_08_child ... teries.htm