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Annual Buddhist monk congress held in Cambodia

Xinhua, December 29, 2015 Adjust font size:

The 24th Buddhist monk congress was held here on Tuesday, bringing together about 800 senior monks from across the country to review the achievements this year and to set out an action plan for next year.

Cambodia's Buddhist monks comprise two sects. One is the Mohanikaya Buddhist sect led by Great Supreme Patriarch Tep Vong, and the other is the Thammayut Buddhist sect headed by Supreme Patriarch Bou Kry.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the two-day congress, National Assembly President Heng Samrin said monks had been playing a very important role in educating people to behave well and to walk on the right track in the society.

"The congress is a good opportunity for Buddhist monks to meet and exchange views on developing and enhancing Buddhism,"he said.

According to Cults and Religion Minister Min Khin, the Southeast Asian country has 4,755 pagodas with 59,516 monks.

Of the figures, the Mohanikaya Buddhist sect has 4,551 pagodas with 54,762 monks, while the Thammayut Buddhist sect has 204 pagodas with 4,754 monks.

Buddhism is the state religion in Cambodia, where more than 90 percent of the population are Buddhists. Endit