Jehovah’s Witnesses Suspended for 6 Months in Southern Kazakhstan

The Hall of Kingdom belonging to the local Jehovah’s Witnesses community was sealed in Shymkent (Chimkent) in mid-August. Closed by the court acting on a lawsuit from the Kazakh Fire Department, the Hall of Kingdom is expected to meet all safety regulations first.
On August 1, the Shymkent Administrative Court of the South Kazakh Region suspended Jehovah’s Witnesses for six months. Regional Assistant Prosecutor Jeinbai Praliyev ascribed this decision to violation of the procedures by the religious community, namely to organization of a meeting beyond the place of registration. Jehovah’s Witnesses therefore stand in violation of Article 375 (part 2) of the Administrative Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (violation of the legislation pertaining freedom of conscience and religious organizations).

Representatives of the community appealed to the regional court but were baffled. Jehovah’s Witnesses intend to complain to the prosecutor’s office now.

Amerkhanov, Deputy Chief-of-Staff of the National Security Committee’s Counter-Terrorism Center, said in 2006 that the National Security Committee planned to put Jehovah’s Witnesses on the list of outlawed organizations. The black list published in April 2008, however, does not include Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Originally posted and written for: Ferghana.ru

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