Police yesterday arrested two monks in two separate provinces who were caught drinking alcohol on Buddhist Lent, which cabinet declared an alcohol-free day.
Phra Palwisit Payawalo, 31, was caught in Wat Dhamma Pratheep in Surat Thani’s Phunphin district after a villager complained about loud noise from the temple. [...]
A second monk was arrested in Pathum Thani’s Thanyaburi district when a railway official told police he spotted the monk drinking alcohol with a woman near the railway tracks in the Rangsit area.
Phra Somporn Tapasilo, 59, fled and hid in a nearby toilet when he saw police. However, he was later detained and disrobed.
The monk, who had been ordained at a temple in Saraburi, admitted he often came and stayed at a house belonging to Lek Buakaew, 35. [...]
Drinking alcohol is prohibited in Buddhist monks’ 227 precepts. Breaking those vows is considered a serious offence and leads to disrobing – being expelled from the monkhood. (Bangkok Post).
It’s surely wrong for a monk to drink alcohol… But what’s the point to arrest them… and treat them like criminals ?
I get where you’re going with this but you have to know Buddhism is higher than the law in Thailand. If it’s illegal for farangs to drink and you think nothing about them fining a farang for boozing it up then why are you surprised when they arrest a monk for doing the same?
I think the police must apprehend them to ensure they are properly identified and disrobed.