The Population Control Health Care Bill — drafted under pressure from hard-line Buddhist monks with a staunchly anti-Muslim agenda — was passed by Myanmar parliamentarians last month.

Myanmar’s president has signed off on this law requiring some mothers to space their children three years apart despite objections by a visiting senior U.S. diplomat and rights activists, who worry it could be used not only to repress women, but also religious and ethnic minorities.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he warned Myanmar leaders during face-to-face talks last week about the dangers of the bill. On Saturday, hours after the diplomat left, state-run media announced President Thein Sein had signed it into law.

As predominantly Buddhist Myanmar started moving from dictatorship to democracy four years ago, newfound freedoms of expression lifted the lid on deep-seeded hatred for minority Muslims — including Rohingya Muslims now arriving on Southeast Asian shores in crowded, rickety boats.