Buddhist demand to be state religion as date of papal visit approaches

Militant Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka are demanding Buddhism become the state religion, ahead of the visit to the country by Pope Francis on 13-14 January next year, writes Hannah Roberts.

The nationalist Buddhist group Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), or Buddhist Power Force, who are said to be behind a series of recent attacks on mosques and churches, have announced “a policy framework” for making Sri Lanka “a Sinhala Buddhist state”. Last week at a conference that brought together Buddhist religious leaders from all over southern Asia, including Burma’s infamous and violent 969 movement, the BBS announced the proposal.