Blood Tribe Department of Health to close White Calf Shelter in Standoff, Alta.
People sleeping at the White Calf Shelter in Standoff, Alta., will soon need to find a new place to go. Shelter users were informed it will close on June 16.
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CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Toronto should allow sixplexes to bring 'gentle density' to city, council committee says
Toronto has moved one step closer to allowing fiveplexes and sixplexes in neighbourhoods across the city. At its meeting on Thursday, the city's planning and housing committee approved recommendations from city staff to allow multiplexes with five and six dwelling units in detached residential buildings in low-rise neighbourhoods city-wide. A report to the committee said the move would help to bring "gentle density" to residential neighbourhoods in Toronto. Coun. Gord Perks, who represents Parkdale High Park and is committee chair, said the city is trying to add different housing types to neighbourhoods. He said most of the housing stock in Toronto is either single-family dwellings or apartment and condo units. "We're trying to build more of this sort of intermediate type housing," he said. "I think it's very important that we arrange to have a whole array of different housing types in our neighbourhoods. We need places for young families. We need places for people who are getting their first apartment. We need places for seniors who maybe can't maintain a big place all by themselves and want to stay in the same neighbourhood in a smaller unit. It's very important for the health of our neighbourhoods that we have a variety of housing types." The sixplexes would not be allowed in semi-detached houses or townhouses. A large group of Torontonians turned up to express their views at the committee meeting. Many said they were in favour of the changes, but some said the changes would be too much too fast. Last September, council decided to permit multiplex housing across the city. In February in Ward 23 as part of a pilot project, staff studied the potential of permitting low-rise multiplexes with up to six dwelling units and with heights of up to four storeys. As part of the sixplex item, the committee approved a recommendation on the height permissions of multiplex buildings. The committee will recommend to council that the city amend its zoning rules to increase the maximum height of buildings containing multiplexes from 10 metres to 10.5 metres. Such a move would allow an increase in basement ceiling heights "to improve liveability and access to daylight" for basement units that will be part of the fiveplexes and sixplexes, city staff said. "Expanding multiplex permissions will increase new low-rise housing options for Torontonians. New residents in low-rise neighbourhoods can help stabilize declining populations, optimize the use of existing infrastructure, and support local retail establishments and services," a report by the chief planner Jason Thorne says. Adopting the recommendations would mark a "significant milestone" in meeting Toronto's commitments under the federal Housing Accelerator Fund to allow more low-rise, multi-unit housing development through as-of-right zoning bylaws in its neighbourhoods, according to the report. As-of-right means developers do not need obtain individual zoning approvals in these areas. 'This is about housing equity and liveability' Residents came to the committee meeting with prepared statements. Blair Scorgie, a registered professional planner, urban designer and managing principal of Scourgie Planning, told the committee he supports the recommendations from city staff. "These reforms are a natural and necessary evolution of the city's existing multiplex framework," he said. The recommendations respond "to what residents, planners and housing providers across the city have all recognized — that our low-rise neighbourhoods must evolve if we are to remain equitable, liveable and resilient," he said. "This is about housing equity and liveability. Allowing up to six units in detached buildings will unlock ground-related homes for families, seniors, newcomers and multigenerational households — people who are too often excluded from neighbourhoods built around a single housing type." 'Sixplex in a sea of bungalows sticks out like a sore thumb' Natalie Pihura, a Toronto resident, told the committee that approving sixplexes is not a good idea because residents already have many issues with multiplexes, including parking, privacy, flooding, "neighbourhood fabric deterioration" and school enrolment problems. Residents of Martin Grove Gardens in Etobicoke have gathered 500 signatures on a petition opposed to multiplexes and sixplexes, which Pihura said she will resubmit the petition to council. "A sixplex in a sea of bungalows sticks out like a sore thumb," she said. "Using the as-of-right paintbrush rams the wants of developers who only care about making money over the actual residents who have already invested in their community," she continued. "Right sized housing in the right areas is the right decision." Carolyn Whitzman, a senior housing researcher at the University of Toronto's school of cities, said in an interview after the meeting that the changes being proposed to council are in step with the moves made by city councils across Ontario and Canada. "I think that it's becoming increasingly obvious to city councils across Canada, including Toronto, that there's no way that they are going to be able to meet their housing targets without making fairly radical changes to zoning," Whitzman said. Council will consider the sixplex item at its meeting that begins on June 25.
CBC
3 hours ago
- CBC
Border city of Lloydminster united through gardening
Just a block away from the border of Alberta and Saskatchewan there's a garden uniting green thumbs in Lloydminster. The Lloyd Public Gardens Society has established a green space on the Alberta side on 49th Street at 51st Avenue where fresh fruits and vegetables are starting to sprout out of raised beds dotting a vacant lot. "I had never started a community garden before but I knew I didn't want to organize plots for people to rent individually," said Amy Roper of the society. The goal was to be open to all, said the mother-of-two who's lived in the neighbourhood for the past 20 years and sits on the Downtown Redevelopment Committee to promote the city's core. "I wanted us to tend this land together, to have it very open and see what happens when neighbours just come together and practise gardening." The not-for-profit organization, established a year ago, rents the space for $1 a month from the local business next door, Red Bicycle Communications. Roper said getting the garden off the ground took about $40,000 in seed money in the way of grants and community donations. Then they needed to find volunteers to keep it running. Roper, an artisan weaver, enlisted a couple of friends, Brandi Hofer's and Stephanie Lindsay, who shared her passion for all things leafy and penchant for creativity to pitch in. "There is something almost magical that happens when you get your hands in the dirt and you actually connect with the plant," said Lindsay, who is the operations manager at Pioneer Landscaping. "It's just a really nice calm space to hang out in," she said, pointing to the apple tree in blossom, the potato patch and the garden trellis archway with twinkle lights perfect for selfies. Lindsay extended that connection past plants, through a Kindness Rock Garden where you can take a painted stone for inspiration or motivation and leave one to help the garden grow. She's also established the Lloydminster Keychain Library where "you can leave a trinket or another keychain, or you can take them off the board there." She takes things like toy cars and building blocks left behind and turns them into more community keychains, "in a revolving door of little art." Local artist and educator Brandi Hofer contribution frames the space in the form of a colourful mural on the two-storey wall. "It's two little girls playing in the park, pretending to be fairies in a garden," said Hofer, who drew on the inspiration of Indigenous photographer Randi Noble for her work. The mother-of-three said it's art imitating life now that kids like hers are playing in the space while half a dozen volunteers putter, plant and water. "They run around and you hear laughter, it's the essence of play," she said. The group also manages a number of flower boxes in front of businesses in the downtown core and has partnered with the Lloydminster Public Library to give gardening talks. "It's a way for our community to slow down and step back into that togetherness," said Hofer. Wallie Barnsley said it's not just children enjoying the space. The 86-year-old said the raised boxes are kid-friendly and senior-friendly. "It means you don't have to break your back to help out." Barnsley says volunteering here takes her back to her youth when she belonged to 4H in Marsden, Sask. She says she often meets another senior in the garden for a coffee and a muffin. "We pick up our deck chairs and meet here and have our visits. I think more of that will happen as the garden catches on."
CBC
3 hours ago
- CBC
Trouble on the island A Buddhist group on P.E.I. with ties to China has become a flashpoint in a battle over religion and land. Your browser does not support the video tag. Pause
By Brigitte Bureau and Rachel Dugas Jun. 14, 2025 Located deep in the countryside near Montague, P.E.I., Heatherdale Road is bordered by wooded areas, vast fields and a few tractors left idle as the day fades away. Amid this rustic setting, one entrance stands out with its iron gate, intercom and surveillance cameras. It's the home of Teacher Zhen-Ru, the controversial spiritual leader of the Bliss and Wisdom movement. Originally from China, Zhen-Ru (whose real name is Mengrong Jin) lives here with monks from her inner circle. Close by on the same road, an imposing Asian-style building with a high-pitched roof and curved tips emerges above the treetops. It's one of two sites belonging to the approximately 700 monks of the Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute Society (GEBIS); the other is located at Little Sands. Around 600 nuns of the Great Wisdom Buddhist Institute (GWBI) live separately from the men elsewhere in eastern P.E.I., mostly in Brudenell but also in Vernon Bridge. All building entrances are equipped with surveillance systems and some display signs prohibiting access to unauthorized persons. Automatic lift gates occasionally let in white school buses. On the island, people have come to recognize them. They transport Buddhists from one site to another, including close to 150 pupils aged 12 to 17 enrolled in the private schools run by the monasteries. The children, like the monks and nuns, come largely from Taiwan, but also from countries such as China, Singapore and the United States. They are all under the spiritual direction of Teacher Zhen-Ru, a laywoman who has never been ordained. She leads a movement that claims to be in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition — but she isn't recognized by the Dalai Lama, an official spokesperson for Tibet's top spiritual leader told Radio-Canada. Zhen-Ru spends six months a year on P.E.I. The rest of the time, she travels around the world teaching her followers, according to the nuns interviewed by Radio-Canada. Monasteries, associations or businesses linked to Bliss and Wisdom can be found elsewhere in Canada, including Montreal, the Greater Toronto Area, British Columbia and Nova Scotia, as well as in the United States and several Asian countries. Bliss and Wisdom has ties to the Chinese government, according to information obtained by Radio-Canada, and these ties warrant an RCMP investigation, say two former federal investigators. On the island, the monasteries are already under a provincial investigation to determine whether they have acquired more territory than is legally permitted. Part 1: Links with China 'Canada! That's where Teacher Zhen-Ru lives!' exclaimed a volunteer at Bliss and Wisdom's Fengshan Temple in Hukou, Taiwan, where Radio-Canada went earlier this year. The elderly woman was proud to say she had made a pilgrimage to P.E.I. in honour of the spiritual leader. Praying before an altar decorated with flowers, candles and multiple golden statues of Buddha, a young woman who had travelled to Taiwan from Singapore said she, too, had made the journey to P.E.I., where her brother is a monk. She says she lived there for four years as a volunteer for Bliss and Wisdom. This religious movement, which has some 100,000 followers worldwide, comes from Taiwan, a small island separated from China by a strait only 180 kilometres wide. China has long threatened to invade independent, democratic Taiwan to achieve what it calls "national reunification." Chien Tuan-liang, an assistant professor of Buddhist studies at the National Yunlin University of Science and Technology in Taiwan, says this pressure is felt within the Buddhist community. 'Many Buddhist organizations in Taiwan have already been infiltrated by what we can call pro-PRC [People's Republic of China] force,' said Chien, who is a staunch defender of Taiwan's sovereignty. He says these associations believe that by supporting China, they will be allowed to continue practising their religion under a possible future communist government. Chien says you can see this when Buddhist organizations repeat mottoes from the Chinese government, such as the notion that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are "one family." This also holds true for Bliss and Wisdom, says Chien. Through research conducted in Mandarin on websites based in Taiwan and China, Radio-Canada found many examples of Bliss and Wisdom participating in religious meetings organized by Chinese government agencies. Controlled religious meetings In 2023, a high-ranking Bliss and Wisdom monk in Taiwan travelled between his home country, Prince Edward Island and China, according to the group's Taiwanese website. The article goes on to say the monk was invited by the Buddhist Association of China to give a lecture at a forum under the theme "One Chinese Family Hand in Hand to the Future." The Buddhist Association of China reports directly to the United Front Work Department, considered by numerous national security experts to be the Chinese Communist Party's main interference tool both at home and abroad. 'Bliss and Wisdom, by participating in that event, especially with that kind of slogan, demonstrates that it's totally in agreement with the Communist Party,' said André Laliberté. A specialist in religions in Taiwan and China, Laliberté is a professor at the University of Ottawa's school of political studies, where his office is lined with books on religions and Asia, some of which he has authored. "The Buddhist Association of China is trying to convince Buddhists, particularly in Taiwan but also in Canada, that the Communist Party has the well-being of their community at heart," said Laliberté. As early as 2014, Bliss and Wisdom took part in a religious gathering in China organized by the Chinese government. At this meeting, the director of the State Administration of Religious Affairs of China, an agency that has since been absorbed by the United Front Work Department, said: 'Before the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are connected, religions are connected first; before religions are connected, Buddhism is connected.' Bliss and Wisdom published the director's remarks on its Taiwanese website. "It's a profession of faith by Bliss and Wisdom of its allegiance to the Chinese government," said Michel Juneau-Katsuya, a former chief of the Asia-Pacific unit of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). He said China expects this kind of public support from the people it controls. The organization vehemently denies this. While Teacher Zhen-Ru refused Radio-Canada's request for an interview, three GEBIS monks were delegated to speak on her behalf. We reached them by video conference in Singapore, where they were accompanying their leader on her Asian tour. One of them was Venerable Xing-En, known in P.E.I. as Walter Tsai, an English translation of his name. The monk is part of the leader's close circle and lives in the same house. He first denied all links to the Buddhist Association of China. "Bliss and Wisdom, I believe, has no connection with the Buddhist Association in China," he said. "No connection." When asked about the meetings that Radio-Canada dug up, Xing-En said they were simply religious exchanges, like many others the organization regularly participates in around the world. 'Using the exchanges as evidence to support or to claim that GEBIS, well, Bliss and Wisdom, is controlled or under the influence of the Chinese government or Chinese Communist Party, it's baseless,' he said. 'It's completely false." Xing-En, who is originally from Taiwan, would not say whether he recognizes his homeland's independence from China. 'Bliss and Wisdom is not involved in any political issues. We're purely a religious organization. So I cannot give you an answer to that,' said the monk. Michel Juneau-Katsuya isn't buying it. He says 'the arrival of an organization like Bliss and Wisdom is a Trojan horse coming to Canada manipulated by the Chinese government.' Juneau-Katsuya and Garry Clement, a former national director of the RCMP's proceeds of crime program, recently co-wrote Canada Under Siege, which deals with what the authors describe as Chinese interference in P.E.I. In the book, which is due out in July, they devote entire chapters to Bliss and Wisdom. He and Clement are calling on the RCMP to conduct a national security investigation into the religious group. The RCMP told Radio-Canada it does not comment on potential or ongoing investigations. China versus the Dalai Lama Four nuns in Brudenell, P.E.I., agreed to meet with Radio-Canada. They had coffee waiting in the visitor centre where the interview took place. Just behind them stood their vast monastery, a place of residence and study for the nuns. Radio-Canada was not allowed in, even without a camera. The nuns also reject having any links with the Chinese government. 'We're preserving Tibetan Buddhism and we are students of His Holiness the Dalai Lama,' insisted Venerable Jingli Wang. The Chinese government regards the Dalai Lama as an enemy, accusing him of promoting Tibetan independence and undermining Chinese unity. The exiled Dalai Lama, who currently lives in India, instead calls for Tibetan autonomy within Chinese territory. During the interview, the nuns suggested the political tensions with China contributed to Teacher Zhen-Ru's decision to settle on P.E.I. The GWBI spokespeople described this quiet corner of the Maritimes as the perfect environment for learning and practising Buddhist values. The nuns stressed that in order to propagate Tibetan scriptures, an important part of their work involves translating them into Mandarin. The Chinese Communist Party allows these organizations to exist on the condition they support the party's directives. Prof. Laliberté said it's "a bad-faith argument, pardon the pun.' He pointed out that China has a plan for the "Sinicization" of religions, which includes the translation of Tibetan scriptures into Mandarin, as a means of gradually erasing the language of Tibet. He explained that Buddhism — even Tibetan Buddhism — is permitted in China, where the government has realized it is easier to control major religions than to eradicate them. 'The Chinese Communist Party allows these organizations to exist on the condition they support the party's directives,' he said. Back in 2017, a number of monks left Bliss and Wisdom and publicly denounced Teacher Zhen-Ru's leadership. One of them was Venerable Fan-Yin, who long held the second-highest rank in the group. He accused Bliss and Wisdom of being infiltrated by the Chinese Communist Party — comments the monk repeated when Radio-Canada met him at the modest apartment he shares with his mother on the outskirts of Taipei. '[Zhen-Ru's] most important mission was to undermine Tibetan Buddhism and the faith in the Dalai Lama,' Fan-Yin said, noting she was very close to Buddhist leaders associated with the Chinese government. Prof. Chien Tuan-liang says he personally attended courses offered by Bliss and Wisdom for several months but quit because they didn't reflect Tibetan Buddhism. 'What's taught inside the Bliss and Wisdom system is very similar to what is being taught in a Confucius Institute,' Chien said, referring to the Chinese cultural body suspected by several governments of being a propaganda tool. The Chinese embassy in Ottawa did not respond to Radio-Canada's request for comment. 'Those who become monks in Bliss and Wisdom are mostly kind-hearted individuals. But even such good people can't always tell whether the system they serve is driven by an authoritarian power," Chien said. "The Canadian government should be concerned that their leader is building that same system in Canada." Vast business network Bliss and Wisdom is more than a religious group. From the peaceful capital of P.E.I. to the hectic streets of Taipei, one can find natural products sold by the Leezen chain. In downtown Taipei, Radio-Canada stopped in at one of these shops, located right next to a Bliss and Wisdom urban temple. Cranberry juice and blueberry powder from P.E.I. were displayed on shelves stacked with healthy foods. Also on view: Teacher Zhen-Ru's books. Bliss and Wisdom's foray into business dates back to its founder, the late Master Jih-Chang. A vegetarian, he believed in the need for a healthy diet aligned with Buddhist values of harmony with nature. In the late '90s, close disciples of the leader launched the Tse-Xin Organic Agriculture Foundation in Taiwan, an organization dedicated to raising awareness of the benefits of organic farming. Shortly after, they set up Leezen to bridge the gap between producers and consumers. Upon the founder's death in 2004, Teacher Zhen-Ru took over the reins of Bliss and Wisdom, claiming the responsibility had been entrusted to her by the founder himself. Zhen-Ru has never hidden her international ambitions. She proposed in 2013 to spread their Buddhist courses, because where they are 'deployed in the world, the corporate business will follow and so will the educational philosophy." In 2016, the Leezen banner expanded to Prince Edward Island. That same year, a first store opened in China, later replaced by the Yes Natural China chain. Zhen-Ru was one of the directors of the Chinese subsidiary in 2018 and a major shareholder for several years. 'Many Chinese people, and even Westerners, operate private companies in China. That doesn't mean they are funded or controlled by the Chinese government,' said spokesperson Venerable Xing-En. For its investigation, Radio-Canada conducted research in French, English and Mandarin, in business registries in Canada, the United States, Taiwan, Singapore and China, as well as in the charitable registries of the Canada Revenue Agency, the IRS in the United States and equivalent agencies in Asia. The Radio-Canada team also went to P.E.I. and Taiwan. But he did not explain why the leader continued to do business in China if she felt she had to leave the country, as the nuns suggested. In fact, from at least 2008 — the year she arrived in the Maritimes — until 2023, Teacher Zhen-Ru was part of the management of at least four other Chinese companies. The network of businesses associated with Bliss and Wisdom now extends well beyond natural products. On Prince Edward Island, leaders and supporters of the group are also involved in hotels, construction and travel agencies. Part 2: The battle over land Your browser does not support the video tag. Pause Bliss and Wisdom's expanding interests have many locals in P.E.I. worried. Douglas Campbell, the outgoing district director of the National Farmers' Union, is one of them. Standing on a red dirt road typical of P.E.I., he shared his concerns about the future of the province. 'As an island, you only have so much land. Land is a very, very sensitive issue,' he said. 'As a farmer, owning your own land is basically your security." On this beautiful day, tractors were zipping up and down large fields. But some farmers now struggle to purchase land, because the influx of wealthy buyers has contributed to a rise in prices, he says. He accuses the provincial government of having turned a blind eye for too long to the land being accumulated by Bliss and Wisdom followers. 'Who's buying the land, where is the money coming from, and is there direct and indirect control of what the Buddhist groups already own?' Campbell asked. While many island residents appreciate the Buddhists' presence, others have become disillusioned. 'In the early years, the Buddhists were welcomed by the community. They were seen as compassionate and a good fit into smalltown P.E.I.,' said a neighbour of one of the monasteries. Radio-Canada agreed to withhold his name because he says he fears for his safety. 'I still believe that the regular monks and nuns are sincere in their beliefs, but it has become apparent to me that, for their leaders, it's a big business. Bliss and Wisdom is a powerful group, with business links to China, that seeks to acquire more and more land through its followers,' he said. In the face of mounting discontent, the province ordered an investigation by the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission (IRAC) on Feb. 4, 2025, to determine whether the two organizations that own the monasteries have acquired more land than permitted. IRAC, a provincial quasi-judicial tribunal, is charged with administering the Lands Protection Act. The Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute Society (GEBIS), which owns the monks' monastery, and the Great Wisdom Buddhist Institute (GWBI), which owns the nuns' monastery, have assets totalling over $434 million, including more than $162 million in land and buildings. Source: Canada Revenue Agency charity registry, 2023 filings In Canada's smallest province, the total amount of land a company can hold, directly or indirectly, is limited by law to 3,000 acres (1,214 hectares). 'They are well over 6,000 acres,' Campbell insisted. He arrived at this number by adding up the lots belonging to certain groups, leaders, monks and nuns associated with Bliss and Wisdom. Radio-Canada was able to confirm Campbell's math by using GeoLinc, the P.E.I. land registry. But the two Buddhist organizations claim to only control the land owned in their names, which is well below the authorized limit: 578 acres (234 hectares) for GEBIS and 670 acres (271 hectares) for GWBI. 'We have always said they are not over their land limits when it comes to the individual groups,' said Campbell. 'However, it's when you do the connecting of the dots that shows where they are all connected to the one group, Bliss and Wisdom. That is what puts them over their limits." The investigation hinges on this key question of indirect control. WATCH | A look at one of the companies with links to Bliss and Wisdom: The law states that 'two or more corporations that are directly or indirectly controlled by the same person, corporation, group or other organization are deemed to be one corporation." A corporation that contravenes the act can be forced to divest the excess land and its directors may be fined. But untangling the ramifications between different leaders and groups associated with the island's Buddhists, and the land they purchase, can be mind-boggling. Your browser does not support the video tag. Pause The monks and nuns argue that Bliss and Wisdom is a 'community' that shares the same values, with no control over affiliated groups, which are independent from one another. Bliss and Wisdom 'is a loose term," said Venerable Xing-En. 'GEBIS has no director overlap nor is it funded by any organization that's associated with Bliss and Wisdom Taiwan. So we are an independent organization that operates from Bliss and Wisdom.' Official documents contradict this statement. GEBIS's certificate of registration in 2016, obtained from the province of P.E.I., describes the organization as "an overseas operation of Bliss and Wisdom Monastery Corporation in Taiwan." Bliss and Wisdom in Taiwan has also been closely involved in the construction of the nuns' monastery in P.E.I. Announcing the completion of the first phase in 2017 on its website, Bliss and Wisdom in Taiwan wrote, 'Expenditures totaling roughly CAD11.3 million covered the first set of dormitories for monastics, sewage plants, fire ponds, roads, electricity and other infrastructure needs.' The exchange of funds and directors is also common practice between the different components of Bliss and Wisdom. For example, Venerable Joanna Ho, one of the nuns Radio-Canada interviewed, is the former president of GWBI California. During her tenure, she approved nearly $200,000 in donations to GWBI P.E.I. before moving to Canada. Minister wants to 'close the doors' The man who ordered the investigation into the two Buddhist organizations' properties is Steven Myers, the provincial minister of Housing, Lands and Communities. In an office in Charlottetown's historic district, he spoke to Radio-Canada about the pressure he feels not to get this file wrong. 'I don't think we've ever questioned that [the groups and their followers] are all linked to one another. We question whether or not the law governs it the way we want it to,' he said. Under the law, the decision to issue an order requiring a corporation to divest excess land rests with him. 'Obviously there's people with lots of money, because they bought lots of land. They can afford lots of lawyers, go to court, have my ruling struck down. Then the doors are wide open and Islanders have absolutely no protection," he said. "That's what I'm up against," he stated candidly. 'Do I want to be the guy that opened the doors wide open [to greater land purchases], or do I want to be the guy who closed them?" he said. "I want to be the guy who closed them.' The minister promises to make IRAC's report public once the investigation is completed. An initial investigation into five Buddhist groups, including the two targeted by the current investigation, ended in 2018 without the results being made public. Myers wrote to IRAC in November 2024, shortly after taking office, to request a copy of their report. Seven months later, he's still waiting. Meanwhile, IRAC refuses to comment on the scope of the ongoing investigation. It won't say, for instance, if the individual properties of Buddhists are included. The three venerable monks we interviewed all own land in P.E.I. None of them sees this as a contradiction of their Buddhist vow to renounce material possessions. Xing-En said he acquired a property for his parents in Taiwan, who plan to retire in P.E.I. Xing-Chang (Dan Huang) said he bought farmland to convert it to organic farming. And Xing-Shu (Eli Kingston) said he already owned a house on P.E.I. before becoming a monk and sees no reason to give it up. "I find that a bit astounding," said Prof. André Laliberté. "What I've encountered over the years is that when you're a monk, nothing belongs to you. Everything belongs to the community." The monks and nuns insist that the monasteries have no control over their land. However, Radio-Canada has obtained numerous emails indicating the monasteries have often taken charge of purchasing and maintaining properties on behalf of members and their relatives. 'There are lots of rumours just because we look so foreign and it's a completely different religion,' said Venerable Xing-Chang. 'A lot of people do have their concerns, and we hear that." The allusion to xenophobia doesn't sit well with Douglas Campbell. 'We have always been shot down with the word racism. This has never been about race. It's always been about the land. It doesn't matter who owns it,' he said. 'The law states a corporation can have 3,000 acres. Whether it's the Irving Group or whether it's the nuns and the monks, we're just asking that the law be followed.' 'If a charge is not laid, the floodgates are going to open here,' Campbell warned. The Buddhists are thinking big. The GWBI nuns want to turn their monastery into an international site for religious tourism. 'Religious centres such as Jerusalem, Rome, Tibet and Mecca continue to attract millions of visitors each annually,' the group wrote in a plan it submitted to the province in 2018, which is still in effect. The plan highlights the billions of dollars generated annually by this type of tourism. 'The proposed GWBI monastery has the potential to significantly increase PEI tourism from Asia and from other Buddhist locations,' it says. The plan calls for the construction of dormitories with a capacity of 1,400 people, as well as parking lots to accommodate 300 vehicles, all in quiet Brudenell. Dalai Lama does not recognize Zhen-Ru Teacher Zhen-Ru has already attracted many international followers to P.E.I., where they dream of catching a glimpse of their leader. Yet she does not have the approval of the Dalai Lama. The head of Tibetan Buddhism does not recognize her as the spiritual leader of the Bliss and Wisdom group, says Kelsang Gyaltsen, the official representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Taiwan. 'Zhen-Ru is a layperson who has not undergone monastic ordination. Someone without formal ordination and precept training cannot be recognized as the leader of the monastic community.' Gyaltsen worked closely with the Dalai Lama in India, before becoming his special envoy to various countries. The interview in Taiwan unfolded under the gaze of a large photo of the Tibetan spiritual leader in a room decorated with lanterns, woven tapestries and depictions of Buddha. Zhen-Ru can still run the administrative side of Bliss and Wisdom and even teach if she has a solid base in Buddhism, he said. In the past, Zhen-Ru's supporters have accused her detractors of sexism. 'It's not that we don't recognize her because she's a woman,' said Gyaltsen. 'As a layperson, she cannot be the spiritual leader. This would be a violation of Buddhist religion.' Gyaltsen added that the Dalai Lama recognizes the nuns and monks of Bliss and Wisdom. Regarding religious exchanges with China, Gyaltsen treaded carefully. He said the Dalai Lama has always encouraged the spread of Buddhism in China, but condemns China's tight control over religious institutions. 'By controlling these organizations, they regulate not only religious activities, but also voices advocating for freedom and democracy," Gyaltsen said. One of the voices the Chinese government wants to silence is that of the Dalai Lama himself. The country has already announced that upon the death of the current spiritual leader, who is 89, it will appoint his successor. The nuns and monks Radio-Canada spoke to in P.E.I. expressed surprise at the disavowal of Zhen-Ru by the Dalai Lama's official representative. They also reiterated their commitment to the Tibetan spiritual leader. When asked whether the island's Buddhists will support or reject China's future replacement of the Dalai Lama, Venerable Xing-En again refused to comment. 'We will not be involved in any political issues. We are a pure religious institute that only focuses on Buddhist education," he said. The Dalai Lama has publicly said he has made detailed plans for the process of identifying his replacement. His official representative stressed that the head of Tibetan Buddhism has consistently urged the world to reject China's choice for his succession. Drone videos: Michel Aspirot/Radio-Canada | Editing: Andre Mayer Footer Links My Account Profile CBC Gem Newsletters Connect with CBC Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Mobile RSS Podcasts Contact CBC Submit Feedback Help Centre Audience Relations, CBC P.O. Box 500 Station A Toronto, ON Canada, M5W 1E6 Toll-free (Canada only): 1-866-306-4636 TTY/Teletype writer: 1-866-220-6045 About CBC Corporate Info Sitemap Reuse & Permission Terms of Use Privacy Jobs Our Unions Independent Producers Political Ads Registry AdChoices Services Ombudsman Public Appearances Commercial Services CBC Shop Doing Business with Us Renting Facilities Accessibility It is a priority for CBC to create a website that is accessible to all Canadians including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. 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