Controversial anti-conversion bill tabled for

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 000970

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, DRL, DRL/IRF

NSC FOR E. MILLARD

PLEASE PASS TOPEC

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06-10-14
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KIRF CE
SUBJECT: Controversial anti-conversion bill tabled for
Parliament

Refs: (A) Colombo-SA/INS 06-10-04 unclass email

- (B) Colombo 760, and previous

(U) Classified by James F. Entwistle, Deputy Chief of
Mission. Reasons 1.5 (b,d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: An MP has published a draft religious
"anti-conversion" bill and intends to present it before
Parliament as a private member's bill. The GSL has not
publicly formulated an opinion on the draft bill and is
waiting to review it before commenting further.
Christian groups, especially the evangelical community,
are against the draft bill and will work to formally
oppose it. The draft bill is explicit in its penalties
for forcibly converting an individual. The bill's
chances of success are unclear, but Mission will
continue to impress on all interlocutors the deep USG
concerns regarding religious freedom. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) SUBMISSION OF A BILL: Venerable Dr. Omalpe
Sobitha Thero, an MP from the Buddhist monk Jathika Hela
Urumaya (JHU) party has put forth a draft religious
"anti-conversion" bill as a private member's bill. The
bill is designed to prevent "unethical conversions" by
criminalizing any attempt to convert someone by force,
allurement, or fraudulent means, from one religion to
another (see Para 6 for more on the content of the draft
bill). Although the draft bill has been officially
published, or "gazetted," GSL interlocutors report that
the it has not been formally presented before
Parliament. (During the previous government, the GSL
drafted an "anti-conversion" bill, but never formally
introduced it in Parliament. The government at the time
was not publicly supportive of an anti-conversion bill
and when President Kumaratunga dissolved Parliament in
February 2004, all pending legislation expired.)


3. (C) GOVERNMENT AND CIVIL SOCIETY REACTION:
Government officials have been reluctant to comment on
the draft bill, since there has not been any formal
presentation of it before Parliament. Interlocutors at
the Christian Affairs Ministry stated that they intend
to meet with the Catholic Bishops and other Christian
groups to discuss the bill before taking any position.
Separately, Reverend David Beling with the National
Christian Evangelical Alliance in Sri Lanka (NCEASL)
told poloff that churches of the various Christian
denominations are planning to work together on this
issue and "all are upset" about the draft anti-
conversion bill. Rev. Beling, who is opposed to the
draft bill, highlighted that almost any sort of aid or
assistance can be construed as an allurement, as defined
in the bill.


4. (C) The Buddhist Affairs Ministry was less organized
in their response to the draft bill. P.D. Abeywickreme,
Ministerial Secretary, told poloff he too could not
comment on the bill since it had not come before
Parliament formally. He said, however, that he thought
the bill protected people of all religions from
"unethical" conversions. (Sri Lanka is approximately 70
percent Buddhist, 15 percent Hindu, 8 percent Christian,
and 7 percent Muslim.) Abeywickreme equivocated when
asked if the Ministry would support this private
member's draft "anti-conversion" bill and would also not
comment on whether the Buddhist Affairs Ministry was
considering its own version of an anti-conversion bill.
(There has been talk that the Ministry may be pursuing
its own draft bill on the subject.) Poloff conveyed to
him that the USG was following closely how the situation
developed and the GSL's reaction to the anti-conversion
bill put forth by the JHU Buddhist monk MP. She added
that many groups in the U.S. who were concerned about
religious freedom in Sri Lanka were also carefully
monitoring the situation.


5. (C) BASICS OF LEGISLATIVE PROCESS: It is not clear
how the draft anti-conversion bill will fare in the
Parliament. Once MP Ven. Sobitha Thero formally
requests permission to present the draft bill before
Parliament -- which does not meet again until July 20 --
there are several steps in the legislative process. An
appropriate Cabinet Minister must take up and evaluate
the bill and report to Parliament on it within six
months. At that time the Parliament may debate the bill
and then pass it to a parliamentary committee for
further review before a full-house final vote on its
passage.


6. (C) FEATURES OF THE BILL: The draft bill, entitled
the "Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion,"
was officially published on May 28, 2004 (Ref A).
Salient points of the bill follow:

-- Conversion "by the use of force or by allurement or
by any fraudulent means" is prohibited. Allurement is
defined, in part, as gift, gratification, material
benefit (monetary or otherwise) or grant of employment.

-- Anyone who converts from one religion to another must
notify the regional Divisional Secretary. The person
performing the conversion must also inform government
officials.

-- There are penalties for forcibly converting an
individual. The person performing the conversion can be
sentenced up to five years in jail and up to 1,500 USD
in fines for converting a man and up to seven years in
jail and up to 5,000 USD in fines for converting a woman
or minor. Failing to inform the government of a
conversion, by either party, can result in up to five
years in jail and up to 1,500 USD in fines.


7. (C) COMMENT: Although the draft bill does not
discriminate against any one religion, it is widely
perceived to be an attempt by Buddhist extremists to
obstruct the religious outreach work of Christian
evangelical groups operating in Sri Lanka. In the Sri
Lankan constitution, Buddhism is accorded the status of
"foremost religion" and some Buddhists feel threatened
by the tiny fraction of society involved in evangelical
Christian organizations. It is too soon to predict the
course the draft bill will take, but the Christian
groups here, which are generally well-organized, will
likely formally oppose the bill at every turn. While
the two-month old government lacks a clear position on
the subject of "unethical" conversions, the GSL will
tread very lightly when developing its stance. The
government is still a minority one and will want to
avoid antagonizing any group, including the JHU, that
may eventually contribute to it achieving a majority in
Parliament. That said, Mission continues to take every
opportunity to reiterate deep USG concern over religious
freedom in Sri Lanka. END COMMENT.


8. (U) Minimize considered.

LUNSTEAD