The Population Control Health Care Bill drafted under pressure from hard-line Buddhist monks with a staunchly anti-Muslim agenda was passed by parliamentarians last month. US Deputy Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he warned Myanmar leaders during face-to-face talks last week about the dangers of the bill. Yesterday, hours after the diplomat left, state-run media announced President Thein Sein had signed it into law.
Many are fleeing persecution and violence that has left up to 280 people dead and forced another 140,000 from their homes in western Rakhine state. They are living under apartheid-like conditions in dusty, crowded camps, with little access to education or adequate medical care. They also have little freedom of movement, having to pay hefty bribes if they want to pass police barricades, even for emergencies.
Though the government says the law is aimed at bringing down maternal and infant mortality rates, activists argue that it steps on women's reproductive rights and can be used to suppress the growth of marginalised groups.
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Hard-line Buddhists have repeatedly warned that Muslims, with their high birthrates, could take over the country of 50 million even though they currently represent less than 10 percent of the population.
"It's very disappointing," Khin Lay, a women's rights activist, said of the president's decision to sign off on the law. "If the government wants to protect women, they should strengthen laws already in place to do that."