Senior Sri Lankan Monk Suspended Over Child Sex Abuse Allegation

Sri Lanka’s Buddhist hierarchy has taken disciplinary action against a prominent senior monk accused of child abuse. Pallegama Hemarathana, 71, has been suspended as chief custodian of the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi temple in Anuradhapura, where allegations of sexual abuse against an 11-year-old girl surfaced in 2022.

The Council of Monks of the Malwatte Chapter made the decision to suspend Hemarathana until the completion of the legal proceedings against him. Police arrested Hemarathana on May 9 following the allegations, and he was detained at a private hospital in Colombo while awaiting trial.

Hemarathana’s arrest also led to the detention of the victim’s mother, who has been charged with aiding and abetting the monk. He has since been granted bail, but a court order prohibits him from traveling abroad.

The temple, which attracts thousands of visitors daily, is significant in Buddhist tradition as it is believed to be connected to the same Ficus tree that sheltered the Buddha during his enlightenment. Hemarathana’s suspension occurred on the same day Sri Lanka celebrated Vesak, the anniversary of the Buddha’s birth and death.

This incident marks one of the most senior monks to be accused of child abuse in Sri Lanka. In recent months, 22 monks were arrested at Colombo’s international airport after cannabis was found hidden in their bags, but they have not been suspended from the priesthood.

Source: Al Jazeera