By Joshua Carroll
YANGON, Myanmar
Myanmar's president has signed off on a population control law that ethnic and women's rights groups have condemned as sexist and racist.
State-run media reported Saturday that Thein Sein approved the Population Control Healthcare Bill – under which women will be forced to wait three years between having children – the day before.
Ultra-nationalist Buddhist monks, who preach that Muslims are attempting to "breed" Buddhists out of existence, had pushed for the law as part of a group of four bills aimed at preserving Myanmar's predominant religion.
The other proposed laws cover religious conversion, interreligious marriage and monogamy.
The country has struggled with outbreaks of religious rioting since a democratic reform process began in 2011.
Critics say the new laws will increase tensions and risk being used selectively against ethnic minorities including Muslims such as the persecuted Rohingya minority.
In January, rights groups released a statement saying the laws would breach international human rights law and Myanmar's own constitution, which says all citizens have the "right to freely profess and practice religion."
The statement added: “Religion, family planning… and marriage are subjects integral to the private lives of people. The government cannot and should not control these areas of people’s lives through laws."
A chorus of international voices has called for the draft laws to be scrapped. Last year Human Rights Watch accused Myanmar's government of "stoking communal tensions" by considering them.
