Bad abbot: Thai temple left empty after monks fail drug tests

Agence France-Presse 

BANGKOK –– A Buddhist temple in central Thailand has been left without monks after all its holy men failed drug tests and were defrocked, a local official said Tuesday.Four monks including an abbot at a temple in Phetchabun province&#x27;s Bung Sam Phan district tested positive for methamphetamine on Monday, district official Boonlert Thintapthai told AFP.The monks have been sent to a health clinic to undergo drug rehabilitation, the official said.&quot;The temple is now empty of monks and nearby villagers are concerned they cannot do any merit-making,&quot; he said.Merit-making involves worshippers donating food to monks as a good deed.Boonlert said more monks will be sent to the temple to allow villagers to practice their religious obligations.Thailand is a major transit country for methamphetamine flooding in from Myanmar&#x27;s troubled Shan state via Laos, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. On the street, pills sell for less than 20 baht (around P31).<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/10/26/22/bangkok-police-nab-200-tourists-in-karaoke-bar-drugs-bust">Bangkok police nab 200 tourists in karaoke bar drugs bust</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/04/03/18/thailand-makes-one-of-its-largest-ever-crystal-meth-busts">Thailand makes one of its &#x27;largest ever&#x27; crystal meth busts</a></li></ul>Authorities across Southeast Asia have made record meth seizures in recent years.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/06/30/21/illegal-drugs-shabu-golden-triangle-asia">What COVID-19? Synthetic drug trade thrives in Mekong Region</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/05/30/22/1-billion-meth-pills-seized-in-east-southeast-asia-in-2021-un">1 billion meth pills seized in East, Southeast Asia in 2021: UN</a></li></ul><div>© Agence France-Presse</div>

A Buddhist temple in Thailand has been left without monks after all its holy men failed drug tests and were defrocked, a local official said Tuesday.

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Bad abbot: Thai temple left empty after monks fail drug tests

Bad abbot: Thai temple left empty after monks fail drug tests

Agence France-Presse

Published Nov 29, 2022 02:18 PM PHT

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Thailand

drugs

religion

crime

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