Kazakhstan: Christians Face Surge in Harassment From Authorities
by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – Baptist Christians in southern Kazakhstan have suffered a surge in police raids upon their churches, as well as arrests and fines for expressing their faith, Christian Daily (CD) reports.
During an interview with Christian Daily, a legal expert who was not named for security reasons stated he is concerned that the prior persecution of Christians carried out under the President Nursultan Nazarbayev from 1991 to 2019 may be returning under Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the current and equally authoritarian president of Kazakhstan.
“The practice of raids, persecution, and fines against religious minorities often occurred during the adoption of amendments to the law on religious activities,” the legal expert told Christian Daily.
“Currently, the Kazakhstani authorities have repeatedly announced that there will be a tightening of the law on religion in the near future,” the expert said.
In one example of harassment at the hands of the authorities, police raided four services in three unregistered Protestant churches in Shu District, near the border with Kyrgyzstan, in March and April, Christian Daily reports. The police filmed worshippers and handed out summary fines.
“What has been happening in the last month in Shu [District] has aroused serious concern among evangelical communities, which have experienced persecution for their religious activity,” the local Council of Churches Baptists said in an April press statement.
Commenting on the situation facing Christians in Kazakhstan, the Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization reported in a website statement: Religious freedom in the country has been under constant threat since legislation was introduced in 2011 that gave the government significant control over religion. For Christians, this means increased surveillance, raids on meetings, arrests and imprisonment.”
Ruled by a dictatorial paranoid Islamic government, the central Asian country of Kazakhstan ranks 47 on the Open Doors World Watch List 2024 of the top 50 countries where Christians are persecuted.
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