A/61/340 with other religions, provided that such literature does not constitute incitement to religious hatred, as prohibited by article 20 of ICCPR. C. Conversion and propagation of religion 55. Since her appointment, the Special Rapporteur has noted that problems related to religious conversion and the propagation of religion, often referred to as proselytism, have increased significantly worldwide. In different regions of the world, States have adopted, or are considering, legislation that would either limit the possibility of converting from one religion to another or criminalize certain acts that would encourage such conversion. Moreover, religious communities have put obstacles in the way of their members who wish to convert to other religions and have reacted negatively, often with violence, to religious propagation carried out by other religious groups. The Special Rapporteur addressed this question extensively in her previous report to the General Assembly (A/60/399, paras. 40-68) and wishes to re-emphasize that conversion is an essential part of the right to freedom of religion. She also emphasizes the danger of criminalizing certain acts that fall within the different aspects of the right to manifest one’s religion, as has been developed, inter alia, by the Human Rights Committee in its general comment No. 22 (1993). 56. Many religious communities argue that missionary activities for the purpose of seeking converts is central to their belief. However, for different reasons, including historical or cultural ones, some religious communities conduct only limited activities in terms of propagating their religion while others are far more active and give priority to this aspect of their religious duties. Some so-called non-traditional religious groups have also been accused of using aggressive or “unethical” forms of proselytism. 57. In principle, all religious groups and communities of belief agree that individuals have a right to change their religion and to propagate it. At the same time while all religious communities fully accept converts to their religion, not all are either willing or comfortable with their members converting to another religion. 58. The example of Sri Lanka, where a number of draft legislative bills had been introduced either with the aim of prohibiting conversion or criminalizing certain forms of so-called unethical conversion, illustrates the controversies surrounding some forms of conversions. Eventually, the Government, religious leaders, politicians and the civil society were able to negotiate and come to a compromise in order to resolve the issue. However, this unique example was made possible in part because the country is rich in democratic traditions. In a society where open or honest discourse is denied or threatened, resolving issues of faith and belief is far harder. For this reason, issues of freedom of religion or belief are, to a certain extent, linked to the level of democracy of a society. 59. With respect to the concerns raised by the adoption of legislation prohibiting certain forms of conversion, one has to emphasize that it is very difficult to assess the genuineness of a religious conversion. This difficulty is essentially due to the fact that this is a question of conscience, and the freedom of conscience cannot be controlled objectively. While it may be easy to prove that a person has received a gift or was moved by another form of inducement, it will not be easy to prove that that person has converted because of the gift. Under international law, freedom of 06-52068 11