Buddhist monks and nuns ‘discouraged’ by negative comments about land ownership

Buddhist monks and nuns living in eastern Prince Edward Island say they were disappointed to hear some of the concerns raised at a planning meeting last week in the town of Three Rivers.

The monks and nuns say they own just over 500 hectares (1,247 acres) of land in eastern PEI. Some residents have long been unhappy about this and speculate that Buddhists – or interests close to them – actually control many more properties.

Tensions were evident at Wednesday’s planning board meeting, for which the city hired security guards after someone posted on social media that it was “time to get out the guns and sharpen the knives” regarding municipal land ownership .

“It was actually quite disheartening,” said Sabrina Chiang, a frequent spokeswoman for the 600 Buddhist nuns, who are mainly from Taiwan.

She also referred to negative Facebook comments about the groups, some of which call for Buddhists to be sent “back overseas” and claim they are tools of the Chinese Communist Party.

“It’s a really strong accusation. And we’re not part of the Communist Party, we’re just students of the Buddha,” Chiang said. “We have no political ties to any group.”

“It’s surprising, I think, to see some of the comments that I’ve seen,” added nun Joanna Ho. She said they were “grateful” for PEI to provide them with a safe and stable place to study, offering freedom of religion and respect for individual human rights.

“Baseless accusations”

Eli Kingston, who was born and raised on the island, has been a Buddhist monk for 12 years.

“I’m from PEI so I get it, I get it,” Kingston said. “But every time there are acts of violence, attacks, personal attacks, it discourages me.

“There is fear and genuine concern is good, but now we all know with the help of social media how information can spread … baseless accusations, misinformation.”

These are no longer just verbal attacks. In fact, this escalates into a violation of one’s privacy, and people may not feel as safe.— Eli Kingston, Buddhist monk

He said that as the online rhetoric heated up recently, more people stopped by the monks’ properties in Little Sands and Heatherdale, where 700 monks live and study. Some take photos from the road, he said, but some actually drive onto the property and “snoop.”

“We had a monk pulled over on the side of the road and kind of harassed,” Kingston said. “This is no longer just verbal attacks. This actually becomes an escalation in the invasion of someone’s privacy, and people don’t feel, perhaps, as safe.”

Both nuns and monks say rumors and misinformation abound about what they do in the area and welcome dialogue with anyone with concerns.

The nuns say they are not worried about their safety as long as the threatening comments remain in the online realm.

“The kind people and kindness of PEI make PEI the beautiful place it is,” said Chiang. “Even if there is this negativity on social media, I don’t think it represents Prince Edward Island.”

“Gated Communities”

At Wednesday’s planning meeting, Victoria Cross resident Janice MacBeth rose to speak about zoning issues — specifically, concerns about institutional zoning in areas where Buddhists and nuns live communally.

This was widely talked about online, allowing groups to build their own hospitals and police stations in the future.

“Our provincial government and our municipality support the development of gated communities that are not open to the general public,” MacBeth told planning board members.

“The divide between wealthy newcomers and poor Islanders has never been greater as homes and property values ​​continue to rise and undermine the ability of our young families to live in Three Rivers in the future.”

Ho said the nuns’ organization owns 670 acres of land in Vernon Bridge and Brudenell, while about 10 individual nuns and their families have purchased a total of about 270 acres.

Kingston said the GEBIS monks own 577 acres of land in the area, plus an unknown amount purchased by individual monks and their families or followers.

“There are allegations that there is one entity that controls all of this land. There is not,” Kingston said. He said it was within provincial land boundaries and “I don’t feel like I did anything wrong.”

“We don’t want to create any discord”

The organizations say they chose rural PEI because it is quiet and peaceful, a good place to try to keep alive the declining heritage of Tibetan Buddhism.

Regarding the “gated communities” comment, Ho said there is a fence around the nuns’ residence – for the women’s safety.

“I don’t know what they mean by these closed gates and they’ll never be able to get in,” Kingston said. “I look at it as UPEI.”

Last July, the nuns held an open house at their new convent to try to dispel any misconceptions about what they do, and Chiang said about 1,600 people attended. The nuns’ plan is to eventually have a million dollar monastic complex which could accommodate up to 1,400 nuns.

As Buddhists, we do not want to create any discord. We certainly wouldn’t want our presence to bring negativity to the community.— Sabrina Chiang, Buddhist nun

The nuns and monks say they want to preserve the peace and beauty of the countryside. They do organic farming and plan for lots of green space, and say they don’t plan to build police or fire infrastructure, as online critics fear.

Both groups say their funds come from donations — from parents, followers and supporters of their members — and not from political parties or organizations.

“As Buddhists, we don’t want to create any discord,” Chiang said. “We certainly wouldn’t want our presence to bring negativity to the community.”

She said she was optimistic that the rumors would pass and the nuns’ presence would “ultimately bring goodness to the people and the world.”