Source: www.forum18.org
Date: January 24, 2024
https://www.forum18.org/archiv
By Felix Corley, Forum 18
A draft Amending Law amending nine Codes and Laws on the exercise of
freedom of religion or belief would, if adopted in its current form, change
the 2011 Religion Law, as well as the Marriage Code, the Administrative
Code, the Law on the Rights of the Child, the Education Law, the Police
Law, the State Service Law, the Law on Preventing Violations, and the State
Social Grants Law.
The draft Amending Law may reach the lower house of the non-freely-elected
parliament soon. However, no text has been made available for public
discussion (see below).
The head of the National Security Committee (NSC) secret police, Yermek
Sagimbayev, on 30 October 2023 told deputies: "The initiative on the need
to harshen legislation in the area of regulating religious activity has
more than once been discussed at a government level." He noted that similar
legal changes were passed by parliament in 2018, but withdrawn after the US
State Department had given the proposed new Religion Law a "negative
rating", and included Kazakhstan on its Special Watch List. No public
reason for the 2019 withdrawal of the previous draft Amending Law was given
at the time (see below).
An official presentation in the non-freely-elected parliament noted
"probable risks" to adopting the current draft Amending Law, including
retaliatory sanctions from the US State Department and the European Union,
which could "harm the investment climate in Kazakhstan" (see below).
"Proposed measures" in response included to present the draft Amending Law
as the initiative of parliamentary deputies and not the government, and for
the Culture and Information Ministry and other state agencies to devise a
strategy to use the media, civil society and registered religious
organisations to gain acceptance for the new provisions. The Foreign
Ministry and other state agencies are also to devise a strategy to gain
acceptance for the new provisions among foreign human rights organisations,
the United States, and the European Union (see below).
Majilis press secretary Mukhtar Ibraimov initially told Forum 18 that the
proposed Amending Law is "a joint project between the government and
parliament". He then backtracked, insisting that the draft Amending Law is
the initiative of one deputy (see below).
Aida Balayeva, Culture and Information Minister (whose Ministry includes
the Religious Affairs Committee), spoke of what she saw as the need to make
the Religion Law harsher. She told a government briefing in October 2023
that "there were official requests from deputies" (see below).
The regime has offered no public discussion of any proposed amendments to
the Religion Law or other laws related to the exercise of freedom of
religion or belief. A Kazakh legal expert, who wishes to be anonymous for
fear of state reprisals, told Forum 18 that the proposed amendments "raise
many questions and concerns".
On 4 October 2023, parliamentary deputy Ermurat Bapispoke spoke of what he
regarded as dangerous "sects" in Islam which he claimed threatened the
country. Bapi and 13 other deputies then formally asked both Prime Minister
Alikhan Smailov and NSC secret police head Sagimbayev if there were plans
to make the 2011 Religion Law harsher (see below).
Smailov on 6 November told deputies that work was underway on "introducing
the concepts of 'destructive religious trend' and 'religious radicalism';
legislative provision of rehabilitation works with adherents of destructive
religious currents; development of a list of entities allowed to distribute
religious literature, informational materials and items for religious
purposes on Internet resources; and introducing restrictions on wearing
clothes that prevent facial recognition in public places" (see below).
All these provisions, along with others such as on young people under the
age of 18, are included in the proposed draft Amending Law (see below).
Regime states Religion Law needs to be "harsher"
On 4 October 2023, Ermurat Bapi, a deputy of the lower house of the
non-freely elected parliament
(https://www.osce.org/odihr/el
what he regarded as dangerous "sects" in Islam which he claimed threatened
the country. Bapi and 13 other deputies then formally asked both Prime
Minister Alikhan Smailov and the head of the National Security Committee
(NSC) secret police Yermek Sagimbayev if there were plans to make the 2011
Religion Law harsher.
Prime Minister Smailov's response of 6 November said that the government
had held meetings with the leadership of the state-controlled Muslim Board
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
"well-known theologians" to discuss ways to resolve "problematic issues".
Smailov told the deputies that work was underway on "introducing the
concepts of 'destructive religious trend' and 'religious radicalism';
legislative provision of rehabilitation works with adherents of destructive
religious currents; development of a list of entities allowed to distribute
religious literature, informational materials and items for religious
purposes on Internet resources; and introducing restrictions on wearing
clothes that prevent facial recognition in public places".
All these provisions are included in the proposed Amending Law (see below).
The head of the National Security Committee (NSC) secret police, Yermek
Sagimbayev, on 30 October replied to deputies: "The initiative on the need
to harshen legislation in the area of regulating religious activity has
more than once been discussed at a government level."
NSC secret police head Sagimbayev noted that similar legal changes were
prepared in 2017 (https://www.forum18.org/archi
passed by parliament in 2018
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
withdrawn by then-Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagantayev
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
explanation on 29 January 2019.
NSC secret police head Sagimbayev's 30 October 2023 reply states that the
reason the amendments were withdrawn was that in 2018 the US State
Department had given the proposed new Religion Law a "negative rating", and
included Kazakhstan on a special watch list. Sagimbayev comments: "Due to
the possible risks of political and economic sanctions being applied to our
country in the future, at the end of 2018 the Religious Affairs Committee
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
draft Amending Law and withdrew it from Parliament in January 2019."
NSC secret police employs masseur to draft letters?
On 23 January 2024, Forum 18 called the official who drafted NSC secret
police head Sagimbayev's response to deputies on the number given in the
letter, and asked about the NSC secret police's role in the proposed
Amending Law. The official claimed that it was a wrong number and that he
was a masseur at a massage parlour.
Countering "probable risks" to adopting draft Amending Law
An official presentation in the non-freely-elected parliament
(https://www.osce.org/odihr/el
adopting the draft Amending Law. The three identified risks are:
- dissatisfaction from believers in Kazakhstan which could destabilise
society;
- retaliatory sanctions from the US State Department and the European
Union, which could "harm the investment climate in Kazakhstan";
- and "sharp criticism" from international human rights organisations.
"Proposed measures" in response were given as:
- to present the draft Amending Law as the initiative of [the
non-freely-elected (https://www.osce.org/files/f/
parliamentary deputies and not the government;
- for the Culture and Information Ministry and other state agencies to
devise a strategy to use the media, civil society and registered religious
organisations to gain acceptance for the new provisions;
- and to use the Foreign Ministry and other state agencies to devise a
strategy to gain acceptance for the new provisions among foreign human
rights organisations, the United States, and the European Union.
Majilis press secretary Mukhtar Ibraimov initially told Forum 18 on 23
January that the proposed Amending Law is "a joint project between the
government and parliament
(https://www.osce.org/odihr/el
insisting that the draft Amending Law is the initiative of one deputy. "It
hasn't reached parliament yet, and it is not clear when it will do so."
On 6 October 2023, Aida Balayeva, Culture and Information Minister (whose
Ministry includes the Religious Affairs Committee
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
saw as the need to make the Religion Law harsher. She told a briefing at
the government press centre that her Ministry was considering such
proposals, which she insisted had come from parliamentary deputies.
"There were official requests from deputies," Balayeva insisted again to
journalists on 11 October 2023. "As a government body coordinating
religious policy, we are obliged to consider them."
Asked when any Religion Law changes might be adopted, Balayeva responded:
"First, there will be a discussion with experts, with the same deputies,
that is, we cannot take any measures without the consent of society.
Therefore, we will begin this work, since there are specific requests from
deputies."
However, the regime has offered no public discussion of any proposed
amendments to the Religion Law or other laws related to the exercise of
freedom of religion or belief. A Kazakh legal expert, who wishes to be
anonymous for fear of state reprisals, told Forum 18 that the proposed
amendments "raise many questions and concerns".
Nine Laws would be amended
A draft Amending Law amending nine Codes and Laws on the exercise of
freedom of religion or belief has been seen by Forum 18. If the draft
Amending Law is adopted in its current form, it would change the 2011
Religion Law, as well as the Marriage Code, the Administrative Code, the
Law on the Rights of the Child, the Education Law, the Police Law, the
State Service Law, the Law on Preventing Violations, and the State Social
Grants Law.
The draft Amending Law may reach the lower house of the non-freely-elected
parliament (https://www.osce.org/odihr/el
soon. "Officials want to push this through unprecedentedly quickly," one
human rights defender told Forum 18.
The draft Amending Law does not appear in the Majilis plan of measures for
22 to 26 January. Nor has it been published on the government website for
draft legislation.
Majilis deputy Ermurat Bapi – who is pressing for the Religion Law to be
made harsher - claims that the draft Amending Law is the initiative of a
group of deputies. "The Culture Ministry is not in the picture about it,"
he told Forum 18 on 23 January. He noted that the draft Amending Law has
not yet reached parliament.
Under current procedure, draft laws (whether prepared by the regime or its
parliamentary deputies) should be sent for review by the Justice Ministry.
If necessary they should also be sent for review by other relevant
ministries, as well as the Ombudsperson if they relate to human rights. The
Justice Ministry would review such draft laws at its monthly inter-agency
commission and provide a view on legal aspects of them. The Justice
Ministry would then hand such draft laws to the Majilis, whose
Documentation Department would record their arrival.
A spokesperson for the Justice Ministry said it had not seen or reviewed
the draft Amending Law. "Whether or not it is the initiative of deputies,
it could not be adopted without a Justice Ministry assessment," the
spokesperson told Forum 18 from Astana on 22 January.
An official of the Majilis Documentation Department said that it had not
received the draft Amending Law, and no such law is in the plan. "I would
have seen materials and I've not heard anything either," the official told
Forum 18 the same day. "In any case, the draft Amending Law would have to
come via the Justice Ministry with its assessment."
Bauyrzhan Bakirov, a Deputy Chair of the Religious Affairs Committee
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
any questions. "Speak to the Foreign Ministry," he told Forum 18 on 22
January, without explaining, and put the phone down. Other phones at the
Religious Affairs Committee were not answered on 22 and 23 January.
Making provisions on the exercise of freedom of religion or belief
"harsher"
The official presentation in parliament on the draft Amending Law stresses
that it is designed to make provisions on the exercise of freedom of
religion or belief "harsher". It claimed that the amendments aim to
"stabilise the religious situation" and "minimise conditions for the use of
religion for destructive aims".
The presentation noted the increased role for the Culture and Information
Ministry (which oversees the Religious Affairs Committee
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Ministry which controls the police.
The presentation uses terms such as "destructive religious movement" and
"religious radicalism", without defining them. As human rights defender
Yevgeniy Zhovtis of the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights
and the Rule of Law commented to Forum 18 in August 2019
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
such terms to target religious communities: "'Destructive religious
movements' is not a legal term. It is absolutely unclear what criteria are
used to designate any particular religious group as 'destructive'."
The presentation also stressed the "heightened defence of minors [age
unspecified] from illegal involvement in religious activity", tighter
controls over state employees, and removing the definition of "clergy" and
replacing it with "religious servant" who would have to be an employed
member of a registered religious organisation. It pointed to new provisions
increasing the number of local people needed to found a religious
community.
The presentation also focused on the proposed bans on wearing clothing in
public covering the face, on conducting illegal marriages, and on promoting
polygamy.
The presentation also noted the Religion Law preamble where the state
recognises the "historical role" of Hanafi Islam, where the Amending Law
would add that it is "traditional for Kazakh society". The state-controlled
Muslim Board (https://www.forum18.org/archi
has complete control of all public expressions of Islam, and all non-Hanafi
expressions of Islam are banned.
No international legal assistance sought
The regime has not sought a legal review of the draft Amending Law from the
Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)'s Office for
Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) or the Council of Europe's
Venice Commission.
"ODIHR has not been asked by the Kazakh authorities to review the draft
Amending Law, but we would be ready and willing to do so if we received
such a request," Katya Andrusz, ODIHR's spokesperson, told Forum 18 from
Warsaw on 22 January.
Venice Commission spokesperson Tatiana Mychelova told Forum 18 on 24
January that Kazakhstan has not sought a Venice Commission legal review of
the draft Amending Law. However, the Venice Commission would be ready to
provide a legal review were one to be requested.
In October 2011, a new Religion Law planned for 2009 was eventually passed
with great speed (https://www.forum18.org/archi
then-ODIHR Director issued a September 2011 statement noting that the
legislation was set to unnecessarily restrict
(https://www.osce.org/odihr/83
or belief and related freedoms. He referred to an ODIHR legal review of an
earlier 2009 version
(https://legislationline.org/s
which noted that many serious issues remained with respect to compliance
with international human rights standards. "ODIHR continues to stand ready
to provide advice and assistance on bringing Kazakhstan's freedom of
religion legislation fully in line with international standards and OSCE
commitments," an ODIHR spokesperson told Forum 18 on 13 October 2011
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Registration would remain compulsory, become more difficult
The proposed amendments to the 2011 Religion Law would not change the ban
on all exercise of freedom of religion or belief without state permission.
The proposed amendments would amend Religion Law Article 12 to double the
number of citizens required to found and register a local religious
organisation from 50 to 100. To found and register a regional religious
organisation, at least two local religious organisations with a shared
membership of at least 500 citizens are currently required. This would rise
to 600 in the amendments.
It remains unclear if the Amending Law would require all registered
religious communities to undergo re-registration under the new provisions.
The ban on and punishment for exercising freedom of religion or belief
without state permission is against international law, as outlined in the
OSCE / Council of Europe Venice Commission Guidelines on the Legal
Personality of Religious or Belief Communities
(https://www.osce.org/files/f/
permission may not be made a condition for the exercise of the freedom of
religion or belief. The freedom of religion or belief, whether manifested
alone or in community with others, in public or in private, cannot be made
subject to prior registration or other similar procedures, since it belongs
to human beings and communities as rights holders and does not depend on
official authorization."
"Necessary to defend the constitutional order"?
A proposed addition to Article 1, Part 3 of the Religion Law aims,
according to the framers of the proposed Amending Law, "to unmask
situations threatening the security of the state under the cover of
religion".
As the OSCE's Freedom of Religion or Belief and Security: Policy Guidance
(https://www.osce.org/files/f/
or 'national security' are not recognized by international law as
permissible grounds for restricting the manifestation of freedom of
religion or belief". The Policy Guidance also points out how imposing such
illegal restrictions on the exercise of human rights undermines the
security of a state.
The draft Amending Law's addition states: "Exercise of the freedom to
manifest religion or beliefs is subject to limitation only by law and to
the extent necessary to defend the constitutional order, to protect public
safety, the rights and freedoms of the individual, and the health and
morals of the population."
Permissible restrictions on freedom of religion or belief are outlined in
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)'s Article
18 ("Freedom of thought, conscience and religion"). Article 18.3 states:
"Freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs may be subject only to such
limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public
safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of
others."
The UN Human Rights Committee's General Comment 22
(https://undocs.org/CCPR/C/21/
Paragraph 3 of Article 18 "is to be strictly interpreted: restrictions are
not allowed on grounds not specified there". The draft Amending Law's
restriction of "defending the constitutional order" is not a permissible
limitation on the exercise of freedom of religion or belief.
Article 1 of the Religion Law sets out vaguely worded bans on what
registered religious organisations can do, allowing space for arbitrary
regime restrictions on freedom of religion or belief. At present, these
include actions "capable of disorganising the activity of state organs" and
"lowering the level of governability in the country". The proposed addition
would additionally ban actions threatening individuals' life and health, as
well as those "directed against the constitutional establishment, public
order, and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of
Kazakhstan".
"Extremism," "destructive religious movement," "religious radicalism"
Several proposed amendments would introduce unclear definitions of alleged
"extremism" and "radicalism", which offer many opportunities for regime
officials to take arbitrary actions against those they dislike.
The framers of the draft Amending Law claim that there are "certain risks
of erosion of the secular bases of the state, despite the moderation in
religious views of the inherent majority of the population". The risk
exists of a "threat of the growth of radicalisation of a certain segment of
the religious population against the background of inadequate theological
knowledge".
A proposed amendment to Article 1 of the Religion Law would define a
"destructive religious movement" as a "collection of religious views, ideas
and teaching" that threaten individuals' rights and freedoms, can violate
social order and "cause harm to the spiritual and cultural values and
traditions of society".
Another proposed amendment to Article 1 would define "religious radicalism"
as "calls or actions forcing others to carry out religious precepts and
dogmas which incite religious discord based on extreme and uncompromising
adherence by an individual to religious views and convictions".
A proposed addition to Article 5 of the State Social Grants Law would
specify that state grants can be given to alleged "non-governmental
organisations" (which can be GONGOS – Government organised NGOs
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
for the prevention of religious extremism and terrorism".
The regime has often used state-controlled and state-funded organisations
to attack the exercise of freedom of religion or belief, for example in
2011 (https://www.forum18.org/archi
laws to be harshened. This regime tactic continues, including attacks on
religious communities such as Protestant Christians and Jehovah's Witnesses
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
protests against such organisations.
A proposed addition, Article 26-1, to the Law on Preventing Violations
would introduce official written warnings for those "creating conditions
for the carrying out of extremist and terrorist crimes which are within the
competence of the Interior Ministry [police], as well as administrative
violations in the area of religious activity".
Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, then-UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and
protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering
terrorism, noted in her January 2020 report (A/HRC/43/46/Add.1
(https://undocs.org/A/HRC/43/4
counter-terrorism and extremism regimes provide excessive leeway to the
authorities to target and silence those who peacefully question the
established order, including various civil society actors, human rights
defenders, trade unionists, journalists, bloggers, and members of
marginalized communities or of communities legitimately exercising their
religious freedoms. The overwhelming focus on extremism has no
justification under international law."
Special Rapporteur Ní Aoláin's February 2020 general report on the Human
rights impact of policies and practices aimed at preventing and countering
violent extremism (A/HRC43/46 (https://undocs.org/A/HRC/43/4
this point. It stated that all "States that regulate 'extremism' in their
laws, policy, programmes or practice should repeal such provisions, which
have no purchase in international law, and domestic law must comply with
the principles of legality, necessity and proportionality".
Officials launched at least 143 administrative prosecutions in 2022
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
exercise of freedom of religion or belief. In 2023, this had risen to more
than 200, Forum 18 notes.
Restrictions imposed by new employed "religious servants" definition
A proposed amendment to Article 1 of the Religion Law would change the term
"clergy" to "religious servant". The current designation of those entrusted
by a registered religious organisation with "spiritual or preaching
service" would be restricted to those "employed under a legal document of a
registered religious association issued on the basis of a completed work
contract".
This amendment is contrary to international human rights law, as outlined
in the OSCE / Council of Europe Venice Commission Guidelines on the Legal
Personality of Religious or Belief Communities
(https://www.osce.org/files/f/
"States should observe their obligations by ensuring that national law
leaves it to the religious or belief community itself to decide on its
leadership, its internal rules, the substantive content of
its beliefs, the structure of the community and methods of appointment of
the clergy and its name and other symbols."
An amendment to Article 9 of the Religion Law would restrict those allowed
to post religious information online only to registered religious
organisations and their newly-regime defined "religious servants", as well
as continuing the existing system of local executive authorities (Akimats)
approving any bookshop
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
religious literature and other materials such as icons.
The new "religious servant" regime definition would thus add to the
existing severe censorship system, along with more censorship restrictions
in the draft Amending Law (see below), by severely restricting who can post
religious materials online.
Narrower clergy definition to restrict conscription exemption?
It remains unclear if the regime's proposed new "religious servant"
definition would have an impact on who would be eligible to be exempted
from compulsory military service. Article 36 of the 2012 Law on Military
Service and the Status of Military Personnel includes among those exempted
from conscription in peacetime "clergy of registered religious
associations".
At present, Jehovah's Witness young men are seen by the community as unpaid
"religious ministers", and so can gain exemption from military
conscription. Sometimes proving this to the Conscription Office can be
difficult. Jehovah's Witness Daniil Smal spent from 17 May 2023 in
detention in a military unit until Almaty Military Garrison Court ruled on
9 November 2023 that the call-up decision in his case should be revoked and
he should be freed, according to the decision seen by Forum 18.
If the Amending Law is adopted in current form, and the same definition is
used when individuals are called up for military service, more young men
who cannot perform military service on grounds of conscience would not be
able to be exempted if their religious community sees them as "clergy" or
"religious servants".
Religious censorship changes
The Amending Law would continue the existing system of regime censorship of
religious literature (https://www.forum18.org/archi
and materials produced in, imported into and distributed in Kazakhstan.
A proposed revision to Article 6 of the Religion Law would remove the
requirement for state censorship of religious materials produced by
registered religious organisations. Notes by the Law's drafters say that as
such materials were inspected when the organisation was originally
registered, there is no need for "repeat religious expert analysis".
It remains unclear what would happen to religious literature and materials
produced by a registered religious community after it had been registered.
An amendment to Article 6 of the Religion Law would ban the use of
religious literature or materials that the Religious Affairs Committee
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
permission for and would order their "removal from circulation in
accordance with the legal procedure".
The framers in their explanation complain that the 2014 regulations
governing religious censorship do not specify what should happen to
materials that do not pass the state censorship and therefore the decisions
"lack procedural force".
"On the basis of such expert analyses, it is possible to ban the import of
literature into Kazakhstan and its use in missionary activity," the framers
say. "At the same time, the fate of literature already in Kazakhstan but
not recommended for use is unclear."
Courts on occasion already order religious literature or objects destroyed
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
seized in criminal or administrative cases.
An amendment to Article 9 of the Religion Law would restrict those allowed
to post religious information online only to registered religious
organisations and their "clergy", as well as continuing the existing system
of local executive authorities (Akimats) approving any bookshop
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
religious literature and other materials such as icons. The new, more
restrictive definition of "religious servant" would thus severely restrict
who can post religious materials online.
In the notes to the amendments, the framers say local authorities are
receiving ever more applications for permission to sell religious
literature and objects online. They say owners of shops authorised by local
administrations to sell such items can receive permission to sell them
online also. They claim that this reduces the number of people subject to
administrative prosecution for selling religious literature and objects
online (https://www.forum18.org/archi
permission.
The framers add that the new provision would ban "other individuals
(including journalists, bloggers, [parliamentary] deputies, sportspeople
etc.) and legal entities apart from [registered religious organisations and
their paid clergy, and owners of registered religious materials sales
points] from distributing materials on religious themes".
New controls on children in religious meetings
Article 3 of the Religion Law
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
leaders of religious organisations "to take steps to prevent the attraction
and/or participation by children and young people [under 18] in the
activity of a religious association if one parent or one of its legal
guardians objects".
A proposed amendment would additionally require leaders of registered
religious organisations to "take measures" to prevent those under the age
of 12 from attending "services, religious rituals, ceremonies and meetings
without being accompanied by one of their parents, adult close relatives,
or other legal representative of the minor".
No provision is made in the amendment for the involvement of under-12s in
adult-supervised activities a parent or legal guardian approves of but does
not take part in.
Other provisions
Other provisions of the Amending Law include a proposed amendment to the
Education Law to ban those studying in schools (apart from religious
schools) from "including elements of clothing of religious adherence of
various confessions". The provision is vague, and could apply to the hijab
(Islamic headscarf), Christian crosses, and Jewish kippas (skullcaps) among
other religious items.
The regime has targeted Muslims nationwide with repeated intrusive
questioning (https://www.forum18.org/archi
wear clothing such as hijabs, and some regions have banned schoolgirls from
attending school (https://www.forum18.org/archi
they wear hijabs.
A proposed addition to Article 3 of the Religion Law would ban state
officials from using their official position to press others to join a
religious organisation or participate in religious rituals.
A proposed amendment to the Marriage Code would ban conducting religious
marriages or divorces outside registered places of worship, except in cases
of severe illness for at least one of the parties. It remains unclear what
would happen when communities that do not seek state registration – such
as Council of Churches Baptists – hold weddings.
Another proposed amendment to the Marriage Code would ban promotion or
encouragement of "cohabitation with two or more women".
A proposed addition to Article 21 of the Law on Preventing Violations would
ban "wearing in public places clothing preventing the recognition of the
face", except for those needing facewear for medical, work, sports of
cultural purposes. (END)
More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Kazakhstan
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
For background information, see Forum 18's Kazakhstan freedom of religion
or belief survey (https://www.forum18.org/archi
Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in
Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
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