Uzbekistan’s National Security Service secret police, the head of a local town district and a local imam in the northwest of the country have obstructed the burial of a Muslim, Zhumabai Smetullaev, because his widow and son are Christians.
Elsewhere in Karakalpakstan — an autonomous republic of Uzbekistan — it has been reported that the authorities do not allow burials of Christians to involve the local community as would be normal in Central Asian culture.
Nonparticipation of the community indicates exclusion of the deceased person’s family from the community.
Officials admitted that Smetullaev’s burial had been obstructed but denied that the initiative came from them.
Pressure on the family continues, and officials are warning people that whoever accepts Christianity will be punished.
They were reported as telling people, “Your dead will not be buried.”
All nonstate-controlled Muslim and nonRussian Orthodox religious activity in Karakalpakstan is a criminal offense. (F18)
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