The Pulse | Society | South Asia

When Buddhist Robes Meet Sri Lankan Law

Recently, the chief prelate or custodian of eight sacred sites in Sri Lanka was arrested on charges of sexually assaulting and raping a child. He is out on bail.

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumar Dissanayake, then the leader of the National People’s Power, offers alms to the Venerable Pallegama Hemarathana Thero and seeks his blessings ahead of the presidential elections, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, Aug. 20, 2024.

The chief prelate of the Atamasthana (the eight sacred Buddhist sites in the ancient Sri Lankan city of Anuradhapura), the Venerable Pallegama Hemarathana Thero was arrested recently in connection with allegations of sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl.

The child’s mother was also arrested for aiding and abetting the abuse. The court has imposed a foreign travel ban on the monk. He was later released on strict bail conditions.

The case has drawn intense public attention in Sri Lanka. Atamasthana is one of the most revered Buddhist institutions and its chief prelate occupies a position in a sacred site tied to national memory and Buddhist authority. But public concern is not limited to the allegations or the post Hemarathana Thero holds. The conduct of institutions around the case has also come under scrutiny.

The Anuradhapura Magistrate’s Court ordered the arrests after the National Child Protection Authority informed the court that police had delayed acting on complaints.

Sri Lankan law does not place Buddhist monks above other citizens. A monk accused of a criminal offense is subject to the same criminal law as anyone else. But in practice, police hesitate to take action against senior religious figures, and politicians fear they will be criticized for supposedly acting against Buddhism. This is not formal immunity, but immunity produced by deference.

The case has also placed President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in a difficult position. Speaking at the National Vesak Festival on May 27, he said the government would promptly enact laws to maintain discipline among Buddhist monks. He said the government would amend the Buddhist Temporalities Ordinance of 1931 and re-establish a Dharmadhikaranaya, a body with authority to handle disciplinary matters concerning monks.

Dissanayake made the announcement on the eve of Vesak, the most important Buddhist festival, and framed the move as a response to requests from the highest Buddhist prelates. He was not presenting himself as a secular ruler disciplining the Sangha from outside, but claimed to act with the sanction of Buddhist authority.

Sri Lanka does not lack rules governing monks. The Buddhist monastic order has its own disciplinary tradition, rooted in the vinaya (foundational code of conduct for Buddhist monks). The nikayas or monastic fraternities have their own rules and hierarchies. Temple property and office-holding are regulated by law, including the Buddhist temporalities framework. Reformers have also debated the katikavatas (monastic constitutions) as a way of codifying discipline within the Sangha.

This is also a problem of legal pluralism: several legal and moral orders operate at once, and they do not always point in the same direction. And often, they do not always point in the same direction. When a monk is accused of misconduct, one question is whether he has violated the vinaya and/or expectations of his nikaya. Another question is whether he has committed an offense under general law.

A Dharmadhikaranaya may be able to deal with questions of monastic conduct, robes, titles, temple office, financial propriety, or breaches of religious discipline. It cannot replace the police, the attorney general, or the courts when serious criminal allegations arise. If the government presents monastic discipline as the answer to criminal misconduct, reform could become a diversion. But, the state can respect the Sangha’s internal........

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