Is an “Office of Religious Freedom” really a good idea?

Today Stephen Harper announced that his government would support an “Office of Religious Freedom” in DFAIT.

Perhaps the biggest foreign-policy promise is to track religious freedoms in other countries.
The Conservatives are promising to establish a $5-million office of religious freedom within the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade to monitor religious freedom around the world “as a key objective of Canadian foreign policy.”

I’ve mixed feelings about this. I believe that religious freedom is important as a fundamental human right. People should be allowed to express their faith (or non-faith). And supporting human rights is a good and traditional Canadian foreign policy,

However, I wonder if this is really a good idea or in Canada’s national interest?

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