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Uzbekistan

  • Uzbek Christians Detained and Tortured for Their Faith

    On June 11, the body of 65-year-old Kim Khen Pen Khin was found on a street in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.  Kim was a U.S. citizen who had been working with Pentecostal churches in Uzbekistan.  Since her death, police investigations have centered on members of the Pentecostal churches.  However, according to Forum 18, it appears that police are more interested in the practices of the Christians than in finding the one responsible for Kim's death.

    Since Kim's death, seventeen church members have been questioned, sometimes for several hours.  According to one church member, "They were insulted, humiliated and threatened. Police spoke to them in the way you would not even speak to animals. Each day it is getting worse and worse."  Three members have been severely beaten, including a pastor who was treated for a concussion.  One of those arrested was told by a Lieutenant-Colonel of the police that "all Christians are animals who have sold themselves to America and should be shot as this is a Muslim state."  One church member, 19-year-old Kural Bekjanov, was originally accused of Kim's murder.  After two days, those charges were dropped but when police found out he was a Christian, the torture began. His ribs have been broken and needles were inserted under his fingernails in an attempt to make him renounce his faith in Christ.

    This is not an isolated incident.  In Termez on the southern border with Afghanistan, police arrested and severely beat the pastor of the church.  They then took the church members to see him and warned them that they would suffer the same fate.  In the western town of Urgench, the worship service on June 26 was raided by police and some of the members were detained for questioning.  The church has been trying to register for two years and the pastor had been discussing a new registration application with authorities the previous week.

    Pray for endurance for Christians throughout Uzbekistan facing mistreatment because of their faith in Jesus Christ.  Pray that authorities will see the love of Christ in the lives of those whom they arrest.  Pray that Christ's peace will reign in the hearts of every believer.

    For more information on Uzbekistan and the persecution facing Christians there,click here.
  • Threatened Church Pleads for Prayer

    Pastor Sergey Khripunov
    The Bethany Protestant Church in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent is facing opposition from authorities for holding services.  On June 10, two members were convicted for illegally teaching their faith.  According to Forum 18, Nail Kalinkin was sentenced to fifteen days in prison and his daughter, Marina, was fined the equivalent of $84.00 CDN.

    Two days later, the church service was disrupted when four police officers burst into the room and demanded that the meeting be stopped.  Six people, including the pastors Nikolay Shevchenko and Sergey Khripunov , were detained and ordered to give written statements.  According to VOM sources, when they refused to do so without a lawyer present, they were threatened and held until evening.  Later that evening, they received a telephone call from the police further threatening them and demanding that they return to the police station at 5:00 a.m. the next morning.  They refused to do without a legal summons.  A hearing on the charges facing the pastors was planned for June 17.  It has now been rescheduled for July 7.

    Speaking to a VOM contact, Pastor Sergey Khripunov said that they can be imprisoned for fifteen days for the first conviction, but could face three to eight years if they continue to gather.  The church has approximately one hundred members who meet in smaller Bible study groups.

    Khripunov has asked for the prayers of God's people.  "Pray for us, that the Lord [will give] us a possibility to stand through, so that we [will] stay faithful under these circumstances, in which we live and work. Pray that this does not influence the young believers, because some were tempted, unfortunately, because of the persecution. People are afraid to hold services openly. Pray that God [will give] power to withstand…."

    For more information on the situation facing Christians in Uzbekistan,click here.
  • Students Expelled from University
     

    Karakalpak University, Nukus

    In July, the Persecution and Prayer Alert reported that students at Karakalpak University in Nukus, Uzbekistan faced expulsion if they continued to associate with "illegal" Christian associations (click here for details). Forum 18 reports that the university followed through on those threats in early September, expelling second year student Aliya Sherimbetova and third year student Shirin Artykbayeva from the Nukus branch of Tashkent Medical Institute.

    Pray for Aliya and Shirin, as they deal with the difficulties facing them at this time. Pray for other Christian students facing similar challenges and threats.

    For more information on the persecution of Christians in Uzbekistan,click here.
  • Pressure Continuing Against Unregistered Christians

     
    Karakalpak State University

    Six months ago, the Baptist church in Urgench in northwest Uzbekistan was stripped of its registration, making it a banned organization (for more details, click here). According to a July 7 report from Forum 18 News, members of the church have been facing increasing threats from security police in recent weeks. On June 25, a member of the church, Sharovat Allamova, was interrogated by a National Security Service (NSS) officer. The officer, Alisher Khasanov, accused the church members of being agents for foreign intelligence services. He demanded that Allamova tell him if any foreign organizations had been in contact with the church, threatening her with prison if she refused to tell him. The next day, Khasanov interrogated another member, Dilshod Dilbaev, hitting him and demanding to know if the church had received any foreign humanitarian aid. Khasanov threatened to plant drugs on Dilbaev if he refused to answer.

    Students in Uzbek universities have been told that they could be expelled if they continue to associate with "illegal" Christian organizations. Recently three students at Karakalpak University in Nukus, the capital of Karakalpakstan (a semi-autonomous region in north-western Uzbekistan), were accused of being members of a "banned Protestant sect" and told they faced expulsion if they continued meet with other members of this group. These follow similar threats in April and May.

    Pray that Christians in Uzbekistan will stand firm in their faith, despite the pressure from authorities to give in. Pray that they will shine forth with the glory of God, despite the darkness pressing in around them.

    For more information on problems facing Christians in Uzbekistan, click here.
  • Police Pressure Christians to Convert to Islam


    Flag of Karakalpakstan

    In recent weeks, pressure has been put upon members of the unregistered Church of Christ in Nukus, the capital of the autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan in north-western Uzbekistan. Eleven members have been summoned to the office of M. Arzymbetov, the public prosecutor. According to an April 21 report from Forum 18, the believers were pressured to convert to Islam and verbally abused, to the point of being threatened with being shot. Arzymbetov denies the accusations, while confirming that the Christians face fines for being members of an unregistered religious organization.

    The prosecutor's office has also attempted to have a church member, Iklas Aldungarov, removed as a student at a medical university. Arzymbetov confirms that he wrote a letter regarding the student to Oral Ataniyazova the university rector, but denies pressuring her to remove Aldungarov as a student. However, a copy of the letter obtained by Forum 18 clearly calls for the removal of Aldungarov by April 10. The rector refused to remove him, saying that his religious beliefs are a personal matter.

    Pray for Christians in Uzbekistan, as they face continuing pressure from authorities. Pray that they will stand firm in their faith, unwavering in their commitment to Jesus Christ.

    For more information on the Church in Uzbekistan,click here.
  • Church Registration Revoked

    On February 27, Forum 18 learned that the Uzbek authorities have decided to revoke the registered status of the Urgench Baptist Church in northwest Uzbekistan. This leaves only one other church in the region; the Protestant Korean Church.

    The authorities claimed that the church had been working with children without parental consent. Uzbek law forbids "the enticement of underage children into religious organizations, as well as the religious instruction of children against their or their parents' will." The church claims that the parents had given consent but that the parents were coerced into denying this after pressure from the secret police. The parents have since asked the church's forgiveness.

    Only registered churches are allowed to meet for religious meetings in Uzbekistan, including in private homes. The Protestant Peace Church in Nukus, 250 km from Urgench, lost its registration in August 2000 and has unsuccessfully tried three times since then to re-register. They have continued to meet, however, even though police have raided the church four times, each time fining the leaders.

    Pray for wisdom for the leadership of the Urgench Baptist Church, as they determine the best way to serve Christ in their community at this time.

    For more information on the situation facing Christians in Uzbekistan,click here.
  • Christian ''Mob'' Faces Fines Following Closure

    In the latest action against unregistered churches, an unregistered Baptist church in Navoi, Uzbekistan has been banned from meeting to worship and the operator of a street library associated with the church faces possible criminal charges.

    On September 27, church member Nikolai Nikulin was distributing religious books through a street library in Navoi when anti-terrorist police lieutenant Alisher Kurbanov confiscated the books. According to a report sent by the church to Forum 18, Kurbanov then banned members of the church from meeting for worship.

    When confronted with the allegations from the church, Kurbanov told Forum 18, "This is not a church at all, just a religious mob." He also denied confiscating the books. "He [Nukulin] says he was giving them away for free, so I simply took them away to read them," Kurbanov claimed. "I'm very interested in these books."

    Nikulin had previously spent ten days in jail on an "administrative offence" for "unlawful religious activity." Consequently, he could face criminal charges for the latest incident.

    Pray for Nikolai Nikulin and the other members of the church in Navoi. Pray for wisdom and endurance as they face this opposition. Pray for Lieutenant Kurbanov and other officials opposing the Church in Uzbekistan, that they might see the truth of the Gospel and come to faith in Christ. Pray that Kurbanov really will read the books he has confiscated.
  • Adventists Face Court Appearance

    Five months after their small congregation in Nukus, the capital of Karakalpakstan in north-western Uzbekistan, was raided by police and literature confiscated, the members of an Adventist church has been summoned to appear in court on July 20. In April, the members were fined and Kazakh-language literature was confiscated. The pamphlets were sent to Nurula Jamalov, a religious specialist at Karakalpakstan's cabinet of ministers, for evaluation and Jamalov determined that the pamphlets should not be allowed to be distributed.

    According to Forum 18 News Service, the reasons for the court summons are not clear, but authorities have been regularly harassing religious minorities in this predominantly Muslim country. This is one of many cases where churches have been raided and literature confiscated.

    Pray that the ongoing campaign against religious minorities in Uzbekistan will cease. Pray for strength for believers facing oppression and harassment.
  • Protest Letters Prevent Church Closure

    A prosecutor in Uzbekistan said he will not prevent an unregistered Baptist church and its pastor from meeting because of the flood of protest letters he has received from around the world. Public prosecutor Shurali Ashurov told Forum 18 News Service, "I constantly receive protest letters from Baptists from various parts of the world.... I am fed up with reading them."

    As a result of the letters, a commission was sent from Tashkent to investigate the complaints. Three times in February Ashurov summoned Baptist pastor Vladimir Khanyukov, questioning him about his church and threatening to close the church for refusing the register. As a result of the protest letters and petitions, the prosecutor is planning no further action.

    Stories such as this show that letters to government officials can work. We thank those of you who consistently show your support for your brothers and sisters around the world in this way. Continue to pray for believers in Uzbekistan facing pressure from authorities because of their faith.
  • Christians Face Charges, Forced Underground

    Pentecostals in Muinak, 200 kilometres north of Nukus, the capital of Uzbekistan's western region of Karakalpakstan, fear that two church members, Kuralbai Asanbayev and Rashid Keulimjayev, may again face punishment for meeting together as Christians. According to Forum 18 News Service, Asanbayev's home was raided on March 6 and both men were forced to make a statement to police. When the two were previously arrested in December, they were tortured and sentenced to five days in prison. At the time, the hakim (chief of the district), Jarylkan Tursynbekov, said that even if the church managed to get the 100 signatures needed to register, they would not allow a Protestant church in Muinak.

    Protestant Christians in particular have been facing increasing pressure in this country where Islam is the main religion. Church registration is required, but is often refused, forcing Christians to worship in secret. Even in registered churches, "turning believers from one confession to another" and missionary activity are illegal. Meetings are not allowed outside of the regular church building. Pastor Obyedkov of Yangiyul, 30 kilometres south of Tashkent narrowly escaped charges recently for a meeting in the home of a church member. Obyedkov is the pastor of a registered Baptist church.

    Pray that the increasing pressure against Uzbek Christians will subside and that they will find peace in the midst of the storm of opposition.
     
     

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