URGENCH, Uzbekistan — A Baptist from Urgench in the northwestern Khorezm Region of Uzbekistan has been punished for a second time within a year for having Christian books at home, which state officials regard as “illegal.” As this was a second punishment, Stanislav Kim was convicted under the Criminal Code, receiving a two-year corrective labor sentence.
Kim was the latest in a line of Christians being persecuted for their faith. A Presbyterian Christian in the capital of Tashkent was fined in May for having religious literature at home. A criminal trial against him began in September.
In Surkhandarya Region four Baptists were punished for religious literature confiscated during an illegal house search. Two Bibles, as well as other books and discs, were ordered destroyed. Officials claimed Baptists are banned in the region because they do not have state registration.
In Zarafshan a Baptist pastor and his wife were fined for Bibles and Baptist songbooks seized from their home.
Police and National Security Service secret police officers often seize such literature when they raid individuals’ homes. Following administrative or criminal prosecutions, courts frequently order that such literature be destroyed. (F18)
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