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Monasteries shell out bribe to get land


IMNA
September 19, 2008


To be able to use land for monasteries monks are having to bribe Mon State authorities under the Ministry of Religious Affairs.

According to a monk from a monastery in Kyonekaroat village Thanpyuzayart, His monastery paid about 70,000 Kyat to get a signature from the chairman of the Mon State Peace and Development Council in Moulmein (Mawlamyine) , the capital.


The monk said despite paying, the chairman has been delaying signing. The chairman is a retired as a major from the army.


The monk said that they formally applied to for the land for use as Buddhist land before the senior monk died. When he was alive, he applied for the land but the issue is still to be resolved.


"We applied last November and were told by the higher ups in the Religious Affairs Department not to pay bribes at the state level but given the delay in the arrival of the proposal we gave money to the vice chairman of the Religious Affairs Department to have the proposal passed," said the monk.


After that they went to the Moulmein District Peace and Development Council (DPDC) and then went back to the Religious Affairs Department in Mon State. However he was not sure when the proposal will be cleared, the monk added.


He got involved as no response was forthcoming from the authorities after the donors who sponsored building the monastery had tried a lot.


To get Buddhist land, the monasteries need to negotiate with the Village Peace and Development Council, Township Peace and Development Council, Land-surveying Department, DPDC, before the proposal can reach the State level. After which the state reports to the central of Religious Affair Department in Kabaraye.
A monk who used to stay in Rangoon said Kabaraye center decides the cases of monk such as trails and land problems. "For example, while you are in trial, you go to his temple (Nyaungdon Sayadaw) and donate something before the judgment day".

On land cases, the monks have to go to the officers in Kabaraye and they tell the monks where to go and how much to bribe. It depends on how much money the officer needs at that time. And then they help.

The monks should go to Kabaraye directly and they will give the information needed in the case. It is better than to go at the State Religious Affairs Department.


According to senior monk, the other monasteries are watching the monastery in Kyonekaroat village because they will approach the authorities, if Kyonekaroat monastery gets the permission.


The vice senior monk said that the abbots would like the government to grant land to avoid confiscation by the Burmese Army which puts up signs saying "army land" on land belonging to residents.