AZERBAIJAN CONSIDERS CHANGES TO RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAKU 000339

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/01/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM KISL AJ
SUBJECT: AZERBAIJAN CONSIDERS CHANGES TO RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS
LAW, CIRCULATES GOAJ SERMONS TO MOSQUES

REF: 05 BAKU 1836

Classified By: DCM Jason P. Hyland for Reasons 1.4 B and D.


1. (C) Summary: Rafiq Aliyev, Chairman of the State Committee
on Work with Religious Associations (SCWRA) informed us that
the GOAJ has begun writing sermons for Azerbaijan's mosques.
Aliyev confirmed news reports that the GOAJ plans to amend
the Law on Religious Freedoms to address the threat of
Islamic extremism. Separately, Haji Akif Agayev, a senior
official at the Caucusus Muslim Board, the SCWRA's rival in
the oversight of Islamic affairs, reported continuing
friction between the SCWRA and the CMB. Both the SCWRA and
CMB cited the political activities of Ilgar Ibrahimoglu,
former imam of the Juma Mosque, as a problem. Aliyev added
that Ibrahimoglu's campaigning for an opposition candidate in
the parliamentary election was evidence of the need to
strengthen existing prohibitions on the use of religion for
political purposes. The GOAJ is clearly concerned about the
potential growth of political Islam in Azerbaijan. We
continue to tell the GOAJ that restrictions on religious
activities will only spur the growth of Islamic
fundamentalism contrary the state's objective of maintaining
Azerbaijan's secular tradition. End Summary.

GOAJ WRITING SERMONS FOR MOSQUES, PLANS TO AMEND LAW
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2. (C) According to Rafiq Aliyev, head of the State Committee
on Work with Religious Associations (SCWRA),the GOAJ has
started writing and distributing sermons to Azerbaijan,s 500
mosques for use on a voluntary basis. Aliyev claimed that
Azerbaijani clerics appreciate the GOAJ,s efforts, as the
sermons are well-researched and peppered liberally with
quotes from the Koran. Because most Azerbaijani clerics
possess only a primary or secondary education, Aliyev said,
the GOAJ-prepared sermons, written by highly trained
religious scholars, enable the clerics to speak with more
authority among the religious community. To date, the GOAJ
has prepared and distributed 12 sermons, and plans to
continue the efforts.


3. (C) Aliyev confirmed that the GOAJ plans to amend the Law
on Religious Freedom, and reported that the GOAJ is working
with experts from the Council of Europe on the proposed
changes. The current law issued in 1992 does not reflect
current realities, he said. The GOAJ seeks to clarify
relations between the state and religion, specifically in
regard to religious extremism. To that end, Aliyev said the
GOAJ plans to add one new article to the Law on Religious
Freedom that specifically prohibits the use of religion for
political purposes. Noting that this prohibition already
exists in the Law on Political Parties (which stipulates that
parties cannot be based on religion),Aliyev claimed the
amendment would not affect the status quo. Nevertheless, the
changes to the Law on Religious Freedom were needed to
address problems that arose during the 2005 parliamentary
campaign, when certain parties and activists tried to mix
politics and religion. (This was a thinly veiled reference
to the active role played in the campaign by religious
activist Ilgar Ibrahimoglu on behalf of religiously observant
Musavat candidate Rauf Arifoglu.) Religious freedom, Aliyev
concluded, must exist within a certain framework.


4. (C) Aliyev believes that Azerbaijani citizens have an
increasing interest in Islam and the role of religion in
society. The recent controversy of cartoons depicting the
Prophet Mohammed, he said, prove his point. The controversy
has made the largely secular Azerbaijani population and
particularly the intelligentsia more curious about Islam.
However, the context in which Azerbaijanis are now thinking
about Islam as one religion pitted against others is
troubling to Aliyev. Through the SCWRA, Aliyev hopes to
promote a message of tolerance that will prevent an
anti-Christian backlash.

FRICTION BETWEEN RIVAL RELIGIOUS COMMITTEES BUT AGREEMENT ON
IBRAHIMOGLU
-------------- --


5. (C) In a subsequent meeting with Poloff, Haji Akif Agayev,
a senior official at the Caucusus Muslim Board (CMB),
reported continued friction between the SCWRA and the CMB
over the regulation and oversight of the Muslim community. He
suggested that Rafiq Aliyev's SCWRA did not appreciate the
separate spheres of politics and faith. Agayev also implied
that the CMB Chairman, the spiritual head of the Islamic
community throughout the Caucasus' Sheikh Pashazade, was

BAKU 00000339 002 OF 002


irritated at the SCWRA and the GOAJ security forces'
increasing intervention in religious matters that were under
the jurisdiction of the CMB. Agayev hastened to add that
these sorts of disagreements were "normal" and that Aliyev
and Pashazade would work out their differences privately.


6. (C) Separately, Agayev told Poloff that the USG should not
put much faith in "voices" critical of the CMB. While
encouraging the USG to engage all aspects of Islam in
Azerbaijan Agayev stressed some religious activists are
motivated largely out of self-interest and are often
politically driven. When pressed, Agayev named Ilgar
Ibrahimoglu as one such religious activist. (In recent talks
with Poloff, Ibrahimoglu argued that Islam had a legitimate
role in Azerbaijan's political life but that how Islam
develops largely depended on the GOAJ action to improve
social, political conditions in the coming years. Septel.)

COMMENT
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7. (C) The GOAJ is clearly concerned about the public's
increasing interest in Islam evidenced in its decision to
write sermons for mosques and in Aliyev's public comments. We
continue to advise the GOAJ that if it takes actions to
restrict the growth of Islam or repress religious freedom to
protect society's secular tradition, it will in fact
strengthen the attraction of fundamentalist Islam that will
work against the state's interest. The GOAJ is well aware of
these dangers and appears, at this early stage, to be
treading carefully in its effort to stem the growth and
development of political Islam. We will follow closely the
GOAJ's evolving approach to Islam.
HARNISH