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| Thursday, 10 June 2004 |
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| No physical violence on JHU monks in Parliament - Ven. Apparekke Punnananda Thera M.P. Ven. Aparekke Punnananda Thera, the dissident Jathika Hela Urumaya MP in a letter addressed to JHU MP Ven. Ellawala Medhananda Thera yesterday expressed his immense distress and sorrow on the turmoil that took place in Parliament on June 8 when Ven. Akmeemana Dayaratana Thera was due to take oaths as a JHU MP, and stated that he was ashamed to see the Buddhist monks' behaviour in defiance of a Court Order and in violation of the Buddha's teaching "Anujanami Bhikkawe Rajano Anuwattitun" which means that "Obedience to the rule of law, Bhikku, I do approve". The letter said that the ugly incident was caused by the JHU when the Government Party protested against Ven. Dayaratana Thera taking oaths as an MP while a Court Order was in force to the contrary and added that the JHU, as a party pledged to uphold the law should not have taken Ven. Dayaratana Thera to the Parliament in connivance with the UNP, an affiliate of the missionary action against Buddhism. By now, two of our priests, Ven. Akmeemana Dayaratana Thera and Ven. Kolonnawe Sumangala Thera are in hospital, though there was no physical violence on them in Thera Parliament on that occasion, I cannot understand whether to fulfil whose contract, the letter said. "Our Party is manifestly fulfilling a contract with the missionary forces to weaken Buddhism. I was shocked and ashamed to see on the TV screen, our Venerable monks abusing the rival MPs in obscene language befitting rowdies. I appeal to Ven. Ellawala Medhananda Thera, as the JHU MP for Gampaha District to retrieve our party from this wrong track," stated Ven. Punnananda Thera. |
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