Police alerted after ‘monks’ reportedly sought cash rather than food at Bugis

SINGAPORE: Members of the public have seen a group of men dressed as monks on the first and second days of the Lunar New Year at Bugis.

The police were called in to Waterloo Street after the alleged monks were begging for money but said they did not want food, according to a Feb 19 (Thursday) report in Shin Min Daily News.

The men are believed to be from another country and are not locals, the report added. It also said that a fight had broken out on Feb 17 between the monks and a group of locals. The police came and told the men to disperse.

A concerned reader had informed the Chinese daily after seeing two monks who were begging for alms instead of food. Shin Min Daily News sent in a journalist, who attempted to speak to one of the men who carried a bag for alms.

When the journalist began asking questions, and when the man saw that photos were being taken, he rushed away in a hurry.

Before he left, he told the journalist that he had only arrived in Singapore the week before, and that he was staying at a hotel. He did not tell the journalist, however, which religious group he belonged to and whether he was there just to collect alms.

Under the Destitute Persons Act of 1989, begging is illegal in Singapore, especially if it causes public nuisance or annoyance. Individuals who are found guilty of begging may face a fine of as much as S$3,000, a jail term of up to two years, or both.

Foreign beggars are often sent back to their home countries.

However, it is not unusual for people to ask for donations during the Lunar New Year season, a volunteer from the area named Mr Chen told Shin Min Daily News.

Mr Chen added that he has seen a number of men dressed in monks’ robes asking passersby for donations while seated on benches in the neighbourhood.

He surmised that the men are likely to come from Thailand, adding that they come yearly in the hopes of trying their luck, even when more police officers have been around to patrol the area.

The President of Singapore’s Buddhist Federation told the Chinese daily that, usually, temples do not have monks go out to ask the public for money.

Monks who find themselves in need can look to charitable organisations for financial assistance, and not go begging in the streets.

He also told the public to be wary of giving donations to people who present themselves as monks. /TISG

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