US Objects To Proposed Conversion Law In Sri Lanka

Newspapers in Sri Lanka reported Sunday that U.S. Secretary of State Christina Rocca has complained to Sri Lanka's ambassador to the United States about possible legislation in Sri Lanka that would restrict religious conversions. The proposal would outlaw "converting persons unethically, subjecting a person to punishment for refusal to convert, accosting people with a view to converting and holding funds for such activities." The U.S. official told Ambassador Bernard Gunatilleke that religion cannot be legislated. She also reminded the ambassador that his government had previously assured the US ambassador in Sri Lanka, Jeffrey Lunstead, that this bill would not be enacted.