Kazakhstan has passed a new amendment in its national security laws on 8th July, which has been condemned as violating international human rights. The law signed by Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbaye, aims to outlaw all unregistered religious activity and missionaries’ work, according to a report by Forum 18.

The amendment has being considered by both houses of Parliament since February, however, it was not revealed to the public until the last two months. It has prompted strong criticism from international and local human rights organisations, including the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Under the law, all unregistered religious activity is now illegal and those leading or taking part in unregistered religious meetings can be fined.

Missionary activities by local people as well as foreigners are illegal unless missionaries are from a registered religious organisation. An individual registration from the authorities of the local area where missionaries operate is compulsory as well. In addition, literature used by missionaries require approval from local authorities.

The OSCE official told Forum 18 that the organisation had recommended that the ban on unregistered religious activity should be excluded from the law.

"Unfortunately this was not done," the official declared.

The official added that only one of the OSCE recommendations has been taken, which is "excluding the amendment that would have granted the prosecutor's office the right to halt the activity of media outlets, political parties and religious organisations before a court decision had been reached".

The adoption of the sweeping restrictions on religious activities is similar to those taken in neighbouring Uzbekistan in 1998. Kazakhstan has related it to the provision of national security. The Kazakhstan Parliament finally approved the law on 29th June and signed on 8th July by Kazakhstan's president Nursultan Nazarbayev.

The law has become effective upon its publication in Kazakh-language newspapers on 13th July and in Russian-language newspapers on 14th July.

The OSCE will now step up their protest against the "overly restrictive" new law in Kazakhstan. The organisation's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights in Warsaw, Poland is preparing a detailed critique of the "overly restrictive nature" of the new law which will shortly be published, according to OSCE office in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

The International Report of Religious Freedom 2004 presented by the US Department of State said that the society of Kazakhstan is ethnically diverse with many religions represented. Most of the population historically are Sunni Muslims while approximately another one-third are Eastern Orthodox. However, evangelical Christian and Baptist congregations outnumber Russian Orthodox congregations.

According to government statistics, there were 339 foreign missionaries in the country as of April 2004. Missionaries are most active in the southern regions of the country and often come from Turkey, Pakistan, and other predominantly Muslim countries. There are also non-Muslim missionaries from the United States, South Korea, and Western Europe.