New Abbot fails flock

PHANG NGA: The new Abbot of Wat Yan Yao is on temporary leave after some 150 villagers staged an angry protest calling for him to step down. The reason? He banned gambling and drinking at the temple, famous for its former tsunami victim identification center. The monk, Wichjit Phuttawichito, agreed to temporarily step down to appease the villagers, who were outraged when he contacted police to force them to stop gambling and drinking during an all-night funeral session. At 11am on July 11 they gathered, calling for the Abbot to find a new temple on which to impose his harsh regulations. One protester, Sompong Tiewbamrung, said, “This Abbot doesn’t understand that drinking and gambling ‘to keep the corpse company’ is a time-honored tradition among villagers here. He has put too many regulations in place so we are dissatisfied.”