US embassy cable - 04COLOMBO970

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