Church leaders won't release information

Kyrgyzstan: November 17, 2009, (PCTV Newsdesk)

By law, unregistered religious activity in Kyrgyzstan is prohibited. But according to Forum 18 News, governmental "roadblocks" have stopped religious communities from gaining legal status. To protest these unfair restrictions and protect their congregations, evangelical churches in Kyrgyzstan are refusing to register with the government.

"To register our many un-registered congregations, we need to give the names and personal data of 200 members as founders--" Aleksandr Shumilin of the Baptist Union told Forum 18 earlier this month, "which we will not do."

Previously, information about ten church members was required by law to register a church. Kyrgyzstan's new law, passed in January, requires each group to register with the state and to release information about 200 of their church members. This makes it impossible for smaller churches to gather legally.

"If the requirements of the New Law were feasible, we should have no problems re-registering," said Bishop Eicholz to Forum 18. "But for instance, notarizing 200 signatures of church members and giving their personal data to the State Commission is not feasible."

Under this new law, unregistered religious activity has serious penalties; along with being banned, activity is also subject to prosecution. According to Forum 18, communities of Protestant Christians and other religious minorities have been ordered to stop meeting for worship. Despite these communities' inability to obtain legal status, two mosques have been registered.According to Voice of the Martyrs USA, Kyrgyzstan officials have stated they will close churches in order to pacify Muslim majorities. Christians in some villages face physical violence and eviction from ethnic Muslims.

News source: http://www.mnnonline.org/article/13507