Kazakhstan: Proposed new Administrative Code to be reworked, existing penalties remain
By Felix Corley
ICC Note:
The Kazakhstan Parliament’s proposed new Code of Administrative Offences is not likely to improve on religious freedom violations, and will remain unable to stop the government from punishing those attending unregistered religious activity.
9/8/2010 Kazakhstan (Forum 18 News Service) – In withdrawing from Parliament the controversial proposed new Code of Administrative Offences, the government was not responding to pressure from human rights defenders, an official and a law professor have separately told Forum 18 News Service. Bulat Beisov of the Justice Ministry's Legislation Department insisted the Code will be reworked and presented again to Parliament. Law professor Roman Podoprigora says the impact on human rights and religious freedom of the withdrawal of the proposed new Code is "neutral". He points out that the Code in force today already includes two Articles punishing non state-approved religious activity which are likely simply to be carried over into the new Code when it is presented once again. Beisov rejected any suggestion that the two Articles in both the current and withdrawn new Code violate international human rights norms by punishing people for unregistered religious activity.
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