"Illegal" for Christians to even celebrate a birthday
Tashkent (AsiaNews/F18) -Police raids during prayer meetings, threats, costly fines, confiscation and destruction of religious material and even religious texts. In many regions of Uzbekistan the systematic persecution of Christians by police and authorities continues, "guilty" of meeting in private homes to pray together to the point that even a birthday party is considered an "illegal meeting".
Persecution is increasing in the north-western region of Karakalpakstan. Forum 18 news agency reports that on 8 April in Nukus, the capital of Karakalpakstan, the police questioned the Protestant Aimurat Khayburahmanov and asked him to sign a declaration that he will not meet with other Christians and does not have Christian books at home. Upon his refusal, he was threatened with prosecutin. Khayburahmanov had already spent three months in jail for "teaching religion without permission" and was released through an amnesty in September 2008. Local sources report that many Christians have been threatened in a similar way under Article. 244-3 of the Penal Code, which punishes with imprisonment for up to three years the "illegal production, possession, importation and distribution of religious literature." They complain that the police carries out thorough raids for religious literature, and that once they come across it the report the owner, even though at times the police themselves plant the texts in the homes of Christians and then report them for possession”. The religious books are later confiscated and burnt.
Students in the region are kept under close watch and told to not get involved with "foreign religions, extremist influences and low level cultures of mass". Those who do, risk being expelled from school and art. 240 Part 2 of the Administrative Code can be applied, which prohibits "attracting believers of a confession to another (proselytism) and other missionary activities." For 2010 various meetings with young people have been organised, to explain to them the evil influence of foreign religions.
Christians are affected even if they organize football or basketball matches or any other mass gathering or social activity. On April 10, police interrupted a meeting of young Protestants in the village of Baraja, Bostanlik District, Tashkent. On the arrival of many young police was playing football or basketball. The officers led 43 participants and organizers to the barracks, taking their photographs and fingerprints. Many of them, like as Alexander Lokshev were punished for taking part in an unauthorized mass event and charged with having held a religious activity.
On the afternoon of April 12, police inspected the premises of the Protestant Church of Eternal Life Tahskent, Yakkasarai district, where the faithful have a canteen for the poor and homeless. Those present were interrogated; the pastor and others were taken to police headquarters and charged with having held an unauthorised activity “not in conformity with their statute”.
In practice, any meeting of the faithful can be punished. Also in Tashkent Surgeli district, 10 Pentecostals were reported on March 10 for an illegal meeting, for having gathered to celebrate a birthday. The 10 - 8 of them pensioners - were sentenced to fines of about 100 times the average monthly wage.
.png)
