Photo via kazembassy.by

Shelved worship law clouds Kazakhstan Church-State relationship

Almost 20 years after the Soviet Union crumbled, opening the way for freedom of worship in the area where it once held sway, some religious communities in Kazakhstan fear they may be at a crossroads, reports Ecumenical News International.

Some even fear that one day they could one day live in an Islamic state as the proportion of the population who are Muslims increases.

At the end of 2008, the Kazakh parliament passed a restrictive Law on Religion and Belief. It limited religious and political freedoms of religious-based groups in the country and triggered a public outcry by religious leaders in different parts of the world.

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TAGS: Kazakhstan Church-State relationship freedom of worship religious freedom persecution

[08/25/2009]

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