Kyrgyz parliament adopts new law on freedom of worship

Moscow, Nov 6 (UNI) The Kyrgyz parliament has adopted a law on the Freedom of Worship, which tightens requirements to religious organisations acting in the former Soviet Central Asian Republic of Kyrgyzstan.

The previous law of the kind was adopted in 1991. The authors of the new bill said that the old law ''was too liberal and outdated.'' ''The new law will not so much tighten requirements to religious organisations in Kyrgyz as regulate their activity and relationship with the authorities,'' State Agency for Religious Affairs Director Kanybek Osmonaliyev told Interfax news agency today.

''So far, the activity of religious organisations has been regulated by interim rules, which disregarded latest changes in society and the religious environment. The new law defines rights and duties of religious organisations, which means it provides a legal foundation for their activity,'' he said.

The new law demands the registration of a religious organisation.

A religious organisation must have no less than 200 members for being registered. There were no such requirements earlier.

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