To become a monk is to throw away your old life in exchange for a new one.

In the past people did this because they had nothing to begin with, or they were in trouble or because they had done something terrible or in the rarest cases because the were looking for spiritual realisation.

Any way, it is about sacrifice. To discard everything you know and start again.

Are these people monks? I don't know, you would have to look at the way they live their lives.