HEAD OF JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES ORGANIZATION FINED 1,000 TENGE
Orken-Media.kz, 8 September 2017
The director of the Jehovah's Witnesses religious organization was fined 1,000 tenge. The 56-year-old man was penalized for the fact that worship services were attended by a minor child without the permission of one of her parents. The 12-year-old girl attended along with her mother when the father was opposed.
The violations were discovered twice during raids. The first time the action was stopped because of absence of evidence of a crime. A month later, a second unexpected check was made. At that time, members of the congregation tried to hide the girl in a restroom. It turned out that her parents have been divorced for a long time and the head of the family does not live with his wife and daughter. But he did not give permission for attending the Jehovah's Witnesses and he even opposed it.
But ignorance does not relieve of responsibility. According to the rules, when attending any religious center with children it is necessary to get written or oral permission from both parents, in the presence of witnesses. According to the law of the republic of Kazakhstan "On religious activity and religious associations," the leader is required not to permit the girl to attend a service because of the father's objection. For this, the head of the Jehovah's Witnesses congregation was fined 1,000 tenge [about US$3.00]. (tr. by PDS, posted 10 September 2017)
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