Watt Botum VateyBy Saing Soenthrith
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
A priceless, 748-year-old, bronze statue of Buddha was stolen from Phnom Penh's Botum Vatey pagoda in the early hours of Friday morning, chief monk Non Nget said Tuesday. "The bronze Buddha was built in the year 1258," he said. "It was so heavy at least four strong thieves must have taken it" While the monks were busy with Pchum Ben festivities, the thieves entered the Daun Penh district pagoda by cutting a lock on a door, he said. Non Nget said he suspected the 100kg statue would be sold in a foreign country and that he had complained directly to Interior Minister Sar Kheng. Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak could not be reached for comment. "We are very sorry that our Buddha statue is missing," Non Nget said.
2 comments:
ahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahah!
Even Lord Buddha is not safe from AH HUN SEN regime!
The Department of Bodyguards of the Ministry of Interior is just a few steps from Wat Botum Vatey. I don't want to speculate but it could also be an inside job. The well-built and muscular bodyguards should be strong enough to lift this Buddha statue.
Buddhist monks have been caught in the karaoke parlours, some also have girlfriends. Others, especially some prominent abbots, enjoy life in luxury with fancy mobile phones, Landcruisers, bodyguards and generous donations from rich CPP members. Check their villas for the missing artefact. I am sure some other priceless objects from the Royal Palace may also be found there.
There are undoubtedly good Buddhist monks following the principles of Buddhism to the letters. But, there are also bad ones who are corrupted by money. It is pure sloppiness to allow such a priceless artefact to be stolen under their very nose. The statue has survived many centuries through the upheaval of Cambodia's history, only to be stolen now. What a shame!
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