ICC Note:
Nepal’s proposed constitution has religious freedom supporters concerned over how several ambiguous clauses may be interpreted and potentially wielded against religious minorities, particularly against the country’s small Christian population.
8/10/2015 Nepal (ASSIST News Services) – Nepali Christians fear that proposed amendments to Nepal’s new constitution, likely to come into effect on Monday (10 August) after seven years of parliamentary discussions, could eventually render all Christian activity illegal.
According to a story by World Watch Monitor (WWM), attempting to convert someone to another religion is already prohibited in Nepal, but the proposed amendments would mean that anything perceived as “evangelistic” could be punishable by law.
Article 31(3) states that “any act to convert another person from one religion to another, or any act or behavior to undermine or jeopardize the religion of another (will be) punishable by law.”
Christians fear this will pave the way for an “anti-conversion clause” to be written into the penal code, which could result in prison sentences or hefty fines for “offenders.”
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