One of the catalysts for Tamil separation arose in 1972 when the Sinhala government made amendments to the constitution. The Sinhala government decided to promote Buddhism as the official religion, claiming that "it shall be the duty of the State to protect and foster Buddhism". Given that the majority of the Tamils were Hindus, this created unease. There was then a fear among the Tamils that people belonging to the "untouchable castes" would be encouraged to convert to Buddhism and then "brainwashed" to learn Sinhala as well.