Man expelled for preaching in own church

Forum 18 News Service 07 September 2011

After legal residence in Kazakhstan for 15 years, marriage to a Kazakh citizen and having a two-year-old daughter, Russian citizen Leonid Pan was, in mid-August, denied his application to renew his residence permit because he volunteers to preach in his local Protestant church. The local Internal Policy Department had already refused permission for him to become leader of the church. "How can the Migration Police, without having a Court order, demand that Leonid leave the country?" church members complained to Forum 18. The KNB secret police denied to Forum 18 that it was involved in the expulsion.

Meanwhile, in August, another Baptist was fined nearly five months' official minimum wage for holding an unregistered worship service. State restrictions on religious communities are likely to increase with the new Religion Law amendments, due in Parliament this autumn.

Pray Leonid and his family will be able to remain together. Pray the Lord will grow His church in Kazakhstan in number and in faithfulness, in spite of the current restrictions and the threat of further law amendments. Pray for all those in authority in Kazakhstan.

To understand this former Soviet republic, go to the Kazakhstan Country Report.

Kazakhstan

Current Ministry Project
VOMC has come alongside project partners to offer an English camp as an opportunity for evangelism and outreach among youth and young adults. Camp participants are invited to embrace the Good News of the Gospel through the platform of the English Camps.

Project Fund: Equipping the Saints
Country Information
Population
19,543,464 (2023 est.)

Ethnicity (%)
Kazakh (Qazaq) (69.6), Russian (17.9), Uzbek (3.3), Uighur (1.5), Ukrainian (1.3), Tatar (1), Other (5.3) (2022 est.)

Religion (%)
Muslim (70.2), Christian (26.2), Other (0.2), Atheist (2.8), Unspecified (0.5)

Leader
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev (2019)

Government type
Presidential republic

Legal system the theory and practice of the Russian Federation
Civil law system influenced by Roman-Germanic law and b

Source: CIA World Factbook
Pray for Kazakhstan
Pray that authorities will cease their harassment of unregistered church communities. Until then, pray believers will effectively minister the gospel despite opposition.

Pray for endurance for those believers facing these challenges.

Pray for the adage “To be a Kazakh is to be a Muslim” to be broken; pray for freedom from historic spiritual bondages and prejudices.

Kazakhstan News

Multiple Raids of Unregistered Gatherings

A Bible study in Kazakhstan
Photo: VOMC

Police in the Shu district of southern Kazakhstan raided four worship gatherings during the months of March and April, resulting in a total of seven fines being laid. During the raids, officers filmed those who were present and demanded that they provide written statements explaining the reasons for their gatherings. These raids affected the worship activities of three unregistered Protestant churches.

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Banking Access Blocked for Church

Talgar, Kazakhstan
Photo: Wikipedia / Makvlad (cc)

For the past five years, the New Life Pentecostal Church has encountered repeated problems while trying to gain access to banking services – to the point of the recurring situation being described as "incomprehensible." With no access, the church administration has had difficulties paying necessary taxes, along with numerous other challenges.

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Civil Suits Used in Religious Opposition

As a recent spate of civil suits have been launched against religious groups in Kazakhstan, some human rights experts are suspecting that state officials may be instigating the legal action, or at least providing support. If accurate, this would be a new way for the Kazakhstan government to take action against the religious minority groups they oppose.

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Parliament Debates New Religious Restrictions

Kazakhstan Senate
Photo: Wikipedia / SenateKZ (cc)

On October 6th, amendments to Kazakhstan's religious laws were approved by the Parliament and then passed on to the Senate. The legislation added new restrictions to religious events conducted outside a building of worship owned by a registered religious organization. Already, any religious community not in receipt of an official state registration is presently being banned, and the process of obtaining such registration has proven to be very difficult. Under the new amendments, any activity taking place at a different location from that of the registered place of worship will require approval at least ten business days in advance, along with a detailed explanation of what the event is to entail. The approval of these religious events rests with local officials who could withhold permission for many reasons.

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