Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Pressure Continues In Thailand For Buddhism As State Religion

In Thailand, pressure continues for drafters of the country's new Constitution to include in it a provision making Buddhism the nation's official religion. (See prior posting.) A march today by 500 saffron-robed monks-- along with nine elephants-- and a demonstration by 1400 people outside of Parliament pressed the demand, according to a report by Reuters. Thailand's Council for National Security-- the group that instituted last September's coup-- apparently is willing to accede to these demands, even though the Council's chairman is a Muslim.