Islam - The Times Of Central Asia

Viewing results 1 - 6 of 91

Tajikistan Urged to Reconsider Ban on ‘Alien’ Clothing

The International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) has called on the Tajik authorities to repeal recent amendments to the law imposing restrictions on “foreign” clothing. According to activists, such restrictions violate international human rights, particularly the right to freedom of expression and freedom of religion. In a statement issued on August 19, IPHR emphasized that since clothing is an important element of personal identity as well as religious and cultural beliefs, states have an obligation to protect people's right to choose what they wear. According to amendments to the law “On the Ordering of Traditions, Celebrations and Rites”, enforced in June this year, Tajikistan prohibits “importing, propagandizing and selling clothes that do not correspond to the national culture.” Although a precise definition of such has yet to be provided, there has been a clear focus by authorities on “Islamic” clothing, and in particular, the issue of a fatwa by Tajikistan's Ulema Council urging women to avoid wearing “tight, black or see-through clothing.” Violations of the law are punishable by heavy fines or imprisonment for up to three years. IPHR continues to stress that restrictions based on religious, cultural, or traditional values cannot justify the violation of human rights The amendments were earlier condemned by The League of Muslim Scholars and other international organizations, and the Taliban even declared “jihad” against Tajikistan. In response to international criticism, Tajik authorities reiterated that the new law aims to protect national values and prevent extremism.

Religion Islam Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan: Tashkent police reject claims of forcing men with beards to shave

TASHKENT (TCA) — City police in Uzbekistan’s capital Tashkent are rejecting claims that dozens of men with beards were detained and forced to shave because they were practicing Muslims, saying the men were held during a raid to find suspects selling stolen mobile phones, RFE/RL's Uzbek Service reported. Continue reading

Islam Religion Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan: Men reportedly detained, forced to shave beards

TASHKENT (TCA) — Security officials in Uzbekistan have come under fire after allegedly detaining dozens of males at a local market in Tashkent and shaving their beards before releasing them, RFE/RL's Uzbek Service reported. Continue reading

Religion Tajikistan Islam

US provides assistance to preserve historical heritage in Tajikistan

DUSHANBE (TCA) — The United States Ambassador to Tajikistan, John Mark Pommersheim, on June 25 joined local authorities to celebrate the opening of the historical Oim Madrasa, the first educational institution for women in Tajikistan. Through the Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) program, the US Embassy awarded the Public Organization Imdodi Ghayrat a grant of $77,154 for the restoration and renovation of the rooms, walls, and roofs of the madrasa, the Embassy said. Continue reading

Central Asia China Xinjiang Islam

Islamic countries engage with China against the background of repression in Xinjiang

BISHKEK (TCA) — For the majority of Islamic countries — including in Central Asia — their relations with China are far more important than any concern for Muslim minorities in China’s Xinjiang. We are republishing the following article on the issue, written by Roie Yellinek*: Continue reading

Education Uzbekistan Islam Religion

Uzbekistan hopes Islamic education is the antidote to extremism

TASHKENT (TCA) — Authorities in Uzbekistan have softened their attitude to Islam in an effort to prevent religious extremism, but the state still strictly controls the religious sphere. We are republishing the following article on the issue, originally published by Eurasianet: The staircase that leads to the row of cells in Bukhara’s Mir-i Arab madrasa is steep and narrow. Ascending necessitates a bow that feels suitably reverent. Akbarali Mamadaliyev, 24, has been treading those steps for three years now. His hujra, or cell, is an almost cruelly cramped space, just 2.5 by 2 meters. There is no bed. Just a low ottoman where to sit and sleep, and small bookcase. On the ottoman lies a copy of Mamadaliyev’s most treasured book, the Koran. He has committed more than half of the 300 or so pages to memory. This feat has earned Mamadaliyev a photo on the honors board. Getting into this type of religious school is becoming a much sought-after ambition among young people in Uzbekistan committed to spreading knowledge of the faith. Mir-i Arab, which was one of very few Islamic education institutions permitted by Soviet authorities, remains an especially prestigious establishment. “I was always drawn to Bukhara, to Mir-i Arab. In 2015, I couldn’t get in, I didn’t have [good enough marks]. But the following year, happiness smiled on me – I became a student here,” Mamadaliyev told Eurasianet. Mamadaliyev comes from a devout household in a city, Namangan, with a reputation for Islamic piety. His family jealously guarded their Koran even in Soviet times, when possession of the book drew suspicion. He seriously began performing namaz – the five daily prayers – when he was 15. It was then that he understood that he wanted to become an Islamic scholar. The path to Islamic studies for people like Mamadaliyev has become easier as Uzbekistan’s government has in the last couple of years tempered its bitter suspicion of the pious and instead lent tentative support to religious education as a way of steering the young away from extremist notions. There are at present 11 specifically Islamic educational institutions in Uzbekistan. Of those, 10 are madrasas, where pupils can get onto the first rung of Islamic scholarship. After four years, they may seek to qualify as imams or become Arabic language teachers. Admission is still a highly exclusive affair though. Before 2017, Mir-i Arab accepted up to 24 students; last year it was 56. A year’s tuition costs almost $800. The Imam al-Bukhari Tashkent Islamic Institute is the only strictly religious college of higher learning to offer bachelor’s and master’s degrees. This new emphasis on religious education is in line with the change of tack adopted by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is, in contrast to his late predecessor Islam Karimov, proving more accommodating toward believers. In an important symbolic breakthrough, following a decade-long silence, it is again possible to hear the azan, the call to prayer, ring out loudly in neighborhoods in Tashkent. And tens of thousands of people...