Nagorno-Karabakh Court Denies Jehovah’s Witnesses the Right to Register
05 November 2009
A local court in Nagorno-Karabakh, a semi-autonomous region in Azerbaijan, ruled against its Jehovah's Witness population on 28 October, 2009. Nagorno-Karabakh's Jehovah's Witness community was fighting for its rights to be recognized as an official religious group; this would enable them to hold public religious services and practice their faith openly. The limitations come in the wake of Azerbaijan's 2009 Religion Law, which vaguely prohibits proselytizing.
Ashot Sargsyan, the head of the Department for Ethnic Minority and Religious Affairs, supported the court's ruling. Sargsyan stated that, while the Jehovah's Witnesses and local Protestants had the right to practice their religion, they were unregistered and therefore not allowed to participate in communal and/or open religious activity. If any Jehovah's Witnesses or other follower of an unregistered religion attempted to violate the law then they would be subjugated to fines. While the Jehovah's Witnesses of Nagorno-Karabakh lost their fight for registration in the local court, they can appeal to the region's Supreme Court. It is likely, however, that the Supreme Court will side with the ruling of the lower court.
Please pray that the Jehovah's Witnesses residing in Nagorno-Karabakh will not lose hope and will continue to pursue religious freedom. Please pray that their registration will be accepted so they can hold public services. Please also pray for the Supreme Court of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan's policy makers as they implement the strict Religion Law.
Read more: http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1371
Last updated 05 November 2009