Minutes from the meeting

Thanks go to Jake Mitra for producing this great little video compilation of the Burmese Cyclone Relief Asian Food Fair.

The food fair held at the Fremantle Esplanade last Sunday was an outstanding success! The weather was lovely and sunny which allowed thousands of people to pass through the food stalls and buy food with proceeds going to the victims of Cyclone Nargis. Despite the enormous efforts of all the stall holder volunteers who brought large volumes of food in order to last through to 4pm, sales of food coupons ceased at 3pm because food was running out!



Congratulations must go to all the volunteers, stall holders, performers and donors who supported the event. The event was universally considered by both volunteers, organisers and patrons to be a successful occasion which exceeded expectations.



On Friday evening the organisers of the food fair and the new president of the BCWA Stewart Jervis presented a cheque to Save the Children to assist with their campaign to provide relief to victims of Cyclone Nargis.

A big thankyou must go to the hard working organising team of Norliah and Ari Ariyaratne, Grace Collins, Sai Tip, Tat Soon, Jake & Cecilia Mitra, Upali Gunasekera, Han Chuan, and Natasha Tang (most of whom are pcitured below).

Coming up on Sunday 20 July is the Burmese Cyclone Appeal Asian Food Fair. There will be numerous food stalls with both vegetarian and non-vegetarian foods. There will also be live entertainment and raffles.

This event is Australia Burma Buddhist Association, the Buddhist Council of WA, and the Friends of Burma Cyclone Relief Fund. All money raised will be going towards helping the millions of victims of Cyclone Nargis in the southern part of Burma.

On the weekend of 21-22 June the Sri Lankan Buddhist Vihara Celebrated Poson Day. On the full moon of June we celebrate Poson, which is of special significance to Sri Lankan Buddhists, as tradition holds that it was on a Poson full moon the Arahant Mahinda was sent as an emissary by his father, the Emperor Asokha, with the gift of the Dhamma to the people of Lanka, in the 3rd century BC.

The Sri Lankan Vihara constructed a special lantern for the occasion which can be seen below.

The Committee of the Buddhist Council of Western Australia has agreed to make Tuesday 22nd July the date for the Annual General Meeting. The meeting shall be conducted at 7.30pm at Tisarana Buddhist Vihara, 21 Ashby Close, Forrestfield. We ask representatives to arrive at 7pm in order to ensure that we have a prompt start to the meeting.

We are encouraging each member organisation of the BCWA to send two people along to the meetings:
1.a representative: who will represent your Buddhist association and vote on all items at the AGM.
2.a committee nominee: someone who will serve on the Committee of the BCWA for the next year.

Keep in mind that all Committee positions fall vacant each year and we would encourage you to nominate someone to be on the Committee, even as an executive member like Secretary, Treasurer or President.

I would ask that you respond to this letter before the end of June to let me know who will be attending the meeting and what positions your committee nominee will be seeking. This will allow me to inform members of the names of nominees prior to the meeting.

For your information, the following Buddhist associations are current members of the Buddhist Council of Western Australia:
Buddhist Society of Western Australia
Cambodian Buddhist Society
Dharmapala Buddhist Centre
Diamond Way Buddhist Centre
Hayagriva Buddhist Centre
Sagaramudra Buddhist Temple
Sri Lankan Singhalese Buddhist Society
Tibetan Buddhist Society
Tisarana Buddhist Association of Australia
We welcome participation from new members. For more information contact me using the details below.

Your faithfully,

Sol Hanna

President – 2007-08
Buddhist Council of Western Australia

-The National Vesak was held at the North Sydney Council Hall, 3rd May 2008.This was an excellent venue. Guests were met outside, directed to the foyer for registration and escorted to allocated seating.
-There were a number of dignitaries representing FABC, ASA, Mayor of North Sydney, BCNSW, Interfaith representative.
-MC directed proceedings in a professional manner. Mr. Bob Weaver gave the Aboriginal welcome to country.
Mr. Brian White, President of the BCNSW opened with address. Mr. Brian Ashen , President of the FABC gave an address.
-Guest speakers spoke to the theme ,”Acts of Kindness”. Excellent presentations.
-Children from various Buddhist organizations invited to pin their ‘bodhi leaf’ on a tree. Each leaf outlined the acts of kindness the children were going to perform. Very nice to have children involved.
-Finished with light refreshment and gathering of attendees.

Pre AGM.
Informal talk from lobbyist about how access to Govt. is gained in Canberra.
i.e. Dinner/function, use secretaries around the minister, need regular contact face to face with public servants in Ministers office.
Point out to Ministers the voting power of Buddhist (now 450,000 in Australia).Gain notice through public/social work i.e. feed the poor.

AGM
The AGM was held in the office of the BCNSW.
Election of office bearers. Brian white nominated for president-declined. Mr. Brian Ashen returned to office. Secretary and Treasurer positions vacant.
-Member accounts are due,$50.No member has paid yet.
-Policy forum. Ajahn Sujato’s sister to be consulted (ex media officer of Geoff Gallop). Ajhan Sujahto will talk with ASA members on July 9th at the ASA conference about policy ideas.
- The FABC needs clarity in its decision making. Committee members need to be informed and consulted about issues.
- Funding - $20,000 to come as donation from Japan trip,.
- FABC resolved to have 3 monthly hookups. Use web threads as primary discussion forum.

Report by Stewart Jervis

May is the month of Vesak, a auspicious time for all Buddhists as it the time that we recollect and celebrate the birth, enlightenment and passing of the Lord Buddha.

This year discussions have begun amongst the Australian Buddhist Councils (comprising of many of the temples and organisations in Australia) to hold a unified celebration of Vesak Day. The aim is not to change any of the existing traditional celebrations (which are celebrated on different days by each tradition) but to acknowledge a certain day in May each year as a common date upon which we can all celebrate Vesak. It will also be an opportunity to think about the broader Buddhist community in Australia and where it is heading.

The Buddhist Council of Western Australia has voted in support of a proposal by the Buddhist Council of New South Wales to recognize Saturday 3 May, 2008, as a common day of celebration for Buddhists in Australia and to support the theme of Acts of Kindness. As part of this occasion we are asking Buddhist groups and individuals to mark Saturday the 3rd May by sharing acts of kindness with the world.

This could be any act of kindness whatsoever. For instance, some suggestions that Buddhist groups have already committed to are donating blood as a group, and raising money for charity. Some groups will be offering loving-kindness meditations. Even if you cannot be with your local Buddhist group on the day, consider committing random acts of kindness wherever you happen to be. Tip the waiter at the cafe, feed the birds in the park, smile at the people you pass by, and at every opportunity you get, deliberately and mindfully commit acts of kindness.

Then share it with the world (whether by name or anonymously) at the Acts of Kindness website. We hope that these good news stories will inspire others to do the same.

This is not just about being kind and making good karma, it\'s also the first small step towards holding a national Vesak Day in Australia. So if you\'d like to see greater harmony and cooperation between groups in Australia, and you\'d like to see Australia\'s Buddhists come together in support of a national day of celebration of the Lord Buddha, then please support this first step, on Saturday 3 May, the national Acts of Kindness day 2008. (And who knows, maybe one day we\'ll have a national public holiday for Vesak! )

PS: Click here to see Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's message to Buddhists for Vesak 2008.

An invitation from the Director of Hayagriva Buddhist Centre, John Waite:
Quote:

Notes of meeting 27th November 2007

Present - Sol Hanna, U Tunhla, Wade Cockfield,

Small meeting took place at Tisarana Vihara, in Forrestfield. Because
of the small group I raised the issue that our primary focus should be
to get more interest amongst groups to come to meetings. It was agreed
that a good way of doing this and adding the needed vitality to the
council was to once again reinitiate contact with all groups and ask
for input.
In order for input to come forward it was also agreed that a survey
should be constructed and given to all groups to collectively fill
out. The survey should be relevant and functional in respect that from
the results of the survey would go towards constructing a meaningful
and productive 2008 Buddhist Council of WA agenda.
Apart from asking ourselves the basic primary question of "Do we
believe we are fulfilling the primary constitutional objectives" , it
was also decided that other socially reflective questions should also
be asked.
The topics put up were
* Education
* Formal Recognition- of council as a politically representative of
Buddhist Citizens of WA
* Legalities / accessibility of Buddhist Marriage Celebrants
* Creating a Buddhist Justice of the peace inventory
* The right of Buddhist to have the funeral procedures allowed by the
state i.e. bodies left for longer periods then currently
conventionally accepted.
* Government funding -what are the opinions of Buddhist groups about
their standing with the government policies. Do we feel we get treated
equally, are we concerned about some belief groups getting a lot of
money handed to them for political reasons?
This last issue was given even more spice later in the night when U
Tunhla mentioned that a local council representative had come into
their centre, approached the President and asked that no meditation be
done on the premises.
Sol and myself thought that that was outrageous ( and Politically
unconstitutional ) and asked U Tunhla if his Burmese group would like
the councils support on this issue. U Tunhla said he would need to
speak to his president for his thoughts on the matter.

Finally it was decided that the next step was for myself and Sol to
collaborate our notes on the meeting, share our thoughts via posting
on the Google Group and ask for feedback from all concerned.
It was also thought that each representative should go to their group
and ask what issues they would like to see tackled in 2008 and
beyond.

Next meeting will take place at the Diamond Way Centre 78 High St
Fremantle on Tuesday 8th January 2008 at 7 pm, All welcome.

Below are the Constitutional Objectives
2. THE AIMS AND OBJECTS
2.1. To serve as the representative organisation for Buddhist temples,
groups and organisations in Western Australia.

2.2. To liaise with local government and State and Commonwealth
government departments and agencies on behalf of its members.

2.3. To promote the interest of member organisations and the Buddhist
religion.

2.4. To assist in the resolution of disputes between member
organisations, if mutually invited, by arranging for independent
mediation.

2.5. To foster a spirit of fellowship, co-operation, friendship and
goodwill between all Buddhist groups in Western Australia.

2.6. To facilitate the exchange of information and resources between
members regarding their respective activities.

2.7. To serve as a forum for the discussion of matters of common
interest to members.

2.8. To work for peace and harmony through inter-religious co-
operation.

2.9. To act in any way to promote the interests and ideals of Buddhism
amongst the community at large.

2.10. To encourage and promote the development of social welfare
activities.

2.11. To encourage the development and dissemination of resources on
Buddhism in Western Australia.

2.12. To encourage member organisations to conduct public talks,
forums and seminars on Buddhism and other related subjects.

2.13. To represent the views of the broader Buddhist community on
matters of public interest and significance related to Buddhism.

In pursuance of the above Aims and Objectives the Council has all the
powers and capacities as set out in the Act and without limiting the
powers set out therein has the power and capacity to:

2.14. Enter into any contract or other arrangement, and to seek to
obtain any rights, grants, privileges, exemptions or concessions, that
the Management Committee may consider necessary or desirable and to
carry out, exercise and comply with the same.

2.15. Invest and deal with money of the Council in such manner as the
Management Committee may think fit.

2.16. Act for or as trustees and to do any act or thing in relation to
any matter arising out of any trust and or funds that may be
established for the benefit of the Council.

2.17. The Council shall in no way interfere in the administration or
internal affairs of its Members or any other Buddhist organisation,
group or temple.