Myanmar parliament to debate controversial religion laws

YANGON, Dec 3 (AFP): Myanmar's president has approved a set of controversial draft religious laws inspired by radical Buddhist monks and sent them to parliament, officials said Wednesday, prompting rights groups to voice alarm over the divisive nature of the proposals.

The draft legislation-including curbs on interfaith marriage, religious conversion and birth rates-will be debated by MPs and voted on in the coming parliamentary session, according to president's office director Zaw Htay.

"The president had to draft the bills, but it is (parliament's) responsibility to enact them," he told AFP.

Rising Buddhist chauvinism-and the government's apparent willingness to acquiesce to it-has sparked fears that religion could becoming increasingly politicised as the former junta-run nation heads towards crunch 2015 elections.

The drafts were initially proposed by a group of nationalist monks known as "Mabatha", or the Committee for the Protection of Nationality and Religion, who have been accused of fanning intolerance in Buddhist-majority Myanmar after several outbreaks of violence against minority Muslims. Opponents of the bills say they are discriminatory.