On the afternoon of December 12, 2013, reporters called the religious management departments at all levels in Fujian Province and Fuzhou City to learn about the Ruiyun Temple demolition incident.

Yang Zhiying, director of the Fujian Provincial Department of Ethnic and Religious Affairs, answered the call from the author and said: After the Ruiyun Temple demolition incident, the provincial department attached great importance to it and has given the Fuzhou Civil and Religious Affairs Bureau three handling opinions. They are working on It is being processed and the specific situation is unclear. If you want to know the relevant situation, please communicate with the Fuzhou Civil and Ethnic Affairs Bureau.

Chen Guisong, director of the Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau of Jin'an District, Fuzhou City, did not answer the author's call.

Rao Chungui, deputy director of the Fuzhou Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau in charge of Buddhism, answered the author’s call. Deputy Director Rao and the author exchanged views on several key issues regarding the demolition of Ruiyun Temple:

1. Is the demolition agreement of Ruiyun Temple legal?

Deputy Director Rao: On December 9 (2013), Deputy Director Lin of the Provincial (Ethnic and Religious Affairs) Department came to the scene, and I was also there. We believe that this demolition agreement is best signed by the religious group (Buddhist Association) and the religious site (Ruiyun Temple) together, then the agreement will be more complete. Next, we asked Jin'an District to improve the demolition agreement and sign the agreement with Master Mingcan (abbot of Ruiyun Temple).

Deputy Director Rao emphasized that it is absolutely impossible to abandon Ruiyun Temple in the demolition agreement.

2. Ruiyun Temple does not have a public bank account, and the Buddhist Association collects the demolition compensation on its behalf

Deputy Director Rao: The 756,000 yuan compensation for the demolition of Ruiyun Temple has arrived in Shanxi The account of the An District Buddhist Association. We have demolished many religious places in Fuzhou City. Why did the compensation for the demolition of Ruiyun Temple go to the Buddhist Association and not to Ruiyun Temple? There are two reasons:

First, Ruiyun Temple does not have a bank account with the public, and we do not So that the money can be transferred to the temple. There is no way to transfer the money to the temple's private account.

Second, this agreement is temporarily signed by the Jin'an District Buddhist Association, which has a public account as a legal person. Therefore, we first transfer the money to the account of the Buddhist Association, and then based on the application and usage of Ruiyun Temple, we will allocate the money to the temple in a timely manner. The Buddhist Association will definitely not withhold this money.

3. The identity of Master Mingcan, the abbot of Ruiyun Temple, remains unchanged

Deputy Director Rao: Regarding the resettlement of the Sangha, the opinion of our Ethnic and Religious Affairs Department is that this is demolition, not Involving changes in the person in charge of a religious site.

4. Director Chen Guisong of Jin'an District has made no mistakes in his work and has been safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the religious community

Deputy Director Rao: We don't know about the demolition agreement negotiated by the District Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau. On the day Ruiyun Temple was demolished, we were not at the scene. The demolition party absolutely did not notify us. As for whether the District Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau knows anything about it, you'd better ask Director Chen Guisong.

You also have to make some considerations for religious cadres. As far as Director Chen of Jin'an District is concerned, he must be safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the religious community.

5. Deputy Director Rao pointed out that Ruiyun Temple’s intervention in the media to defend religious rights has harmed the Buddhist community

Deputy Director Rao: This morning I mentioned the deputy secretary-general of the Fuzhou Buddhist Association and above People, including these great monks, all gathered together and had heart-to-heart exchanges and discussions about the demolition of Ruiyun Temple. These great monks all expressed that they did not want to protect their rights through the Internet. This is actually a kind of harm to our Buddhism. harm.

According to the situation introduced by Deputy Director Rao, the reporter launched an investigation. The situation is as follows:

1. Ruiyun Temple has already opened a bank "public account" (pictured)

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Fuzhou Ruiyun Temple is a temple registered according to law in accordance with the "Regulations on Religious Affairs" of the State Council. It is a legal temple that has obtained the registration certificate for religious activity sites issued by the religious affairs department of the people's government. According to the "Notice on Matters Related to the Opening of Institutional Bank Settlement Accounts for Religious Activity Venues" jointly issued by the State Administration of Religious Affairs and the People's Bank of China in May 2011, Ruiyun Temple has already opened an "entity bank settlement account" at Fuzhou Industrial Bank (public account). Opening public accounts is also an accounting management system that legal religious sites must implement.

2. The Master of the Fuzhou Buddhist Association asked: Since the religious department has done so well, why did things like Ruiyun Temple happen?

According to insiders, Deputy Director Rao convened a meeting this morning with leaders above the deputy secretary-general of the Fuzhou Buddhist Association (including the vice-president, executive directors, and advisory committee of the Fuzhou Buddhist Association). There should be 30-40 people present at the meeting, but about 10 people actually showed up. At the meeting, Deputy Director Rao first thanked everyone for not participating in the demolition of Ruiyun Temple, and then Deputy Director Rao introduced the incident. Most of the great monks present at the meeting were silent. Only one master asked: Since you have done so well, why did something like this happen to Ruiyun Temple?

3. The great monks in Fuzhou Buddhist circles were collectively speechless about the Ruiyun Temple incident

According to Deputy Director Rao’s suggestion, the reporter tried to contact the great monks in Fuzhou Buddhist circles and asked them to talk They discussed the Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau’s efforts to safeguard the rights and interests of the Buddhist community during the forced demolition of Ruiyun Temple. However, the masters, including the president of the Fuzhou Buddhist Association, expressed that they were inconvenient to make any comments on the matter.

4. Master Mingcan said that he is in a "living hell"

Master Mingcan, the abbot of Ruiyun Temple, is under house arrest on the second floor of the new temple, with several street arrangements living upstairs. people. There are guards in front of the new site of Ruiyun Temple, and no one is allowed in or out. Master Mingcan can't go out, and the masters and lay people who visit her can't come in either.

Master Mingcan said: This is a "living hell".