TURKMENISTAN: PENTECOSTALS IN ABADAN CONTINUE TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000208 SIPDIS STATE FOR SCA/CEN E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/08/2019 TAGS: PHUM PGOV TX SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: PENTECOSTALS IN ABADAN CONTINUE TO WAIT FOR REGISTRATION REF: ASHGABAT 162 Classified By: Charge Richard Miles, reasons 1.4 (B) and (D). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: After two years and eight applications, a small Pentecostal group in Abadan continues to wait to be registered. Among the faithful, hope springs eternal and a recent postponement of a meeting at the Ministry of Justice was viewed as a good sign -- at least the application was not denied. Even if national authorities eventually register the group, local authorities are another obstacle. The Pentecostal church in Dashoguz waited five years after national registration before local officials finally approved. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) On February 5, Political Officer visited Pentecostal Pastor Ruslan Atajanov at home in Abadan, a dusty industrial town 15 miles from Ashgabat. He lives together with his wife in one room of a communal apartment in a low-rise, Soviet-era building. Although he became active in the Pentecostal church in Ashgabat 13 years ago, he only became a pastor in 2006 following a year of study at a bible institute in Ukraine. Following his return to Abadan, a small group would gather in his one room in order to worship. For one year, the authorities did not bother the group because, as Pastor Atajanov said, no one knew about them. In January 2007 the group applied for registration. Immediately after applying the authorities fined everyone who attended the meetings. They no longer meet in groups larger than 2-3 persons. Occasionally they also meet with registered Pentecostal groups in Ashgabat and Dashoguz. ¶3. (C) The group (Light of Life Church) has applied a total of eight times during the past two years (NOTE: Charge raised registration for the group during his February 2 meeting with Foreign Minister Meredov. Reftel. END NOTE.) Pastor Atajanov showed a pile of correspondence, letters from the Ministry of Justice that list flaws in the various applications. Other churches had succeeded in becoming registered with documents identical to those that have been rejected in Abadan's case. But, he said churches in Ashgabat had also waited 1-2 years before finally being registered. Most recently, on December 24, 2008, the pastor had been scheduled for a meeting at the Ministry of Justice. However, upon arrival, he was told the meeting was postponed until an undetermined date. Atajanov was optimistic because unlike at previous meetings, the group's registration documents were not returned. ¶4. (C) Concerning the role of the Presidential Council on Religious Affairs (CRA),Pastor Atajanov explained that the CRA had passed the group's application to the Ministry of Justice, but otherwise he was not aware of how the CRA influenced the registration process. He mentioned that the chairman of the CRA also sits on the Ministry of Justice committee that approves registration. The members of the CRA are Muslim and Russian Orthodox, and Atajanov thought the presence of a Protestant representative on the CRA would be helpful in explaining their beliefs to the other CRA members. ¶5. (C) If and when the Abadan group is registered by national authorities, they still have to obtain local approval. In the past, local officials have told Atajanov that Turkmenistan is a Muslim country and that they will only allow Islam and Russian Orthodox Christianity. After the Pentecostal church in Dashoguz was registered at the national level, it took five years before it could obtain local approval. Government officials have urged Atajanov to worship at a registered church in Ashgabat, but he feels called to set up a church in Abadan and address the needs of the people there. ¶6. (C) COMMENT: Despite the delays and rejections, Pastor Atajanov remains optimistic and views the process as a test ASHGABAT 00000208 002 OF 002 of his faith. Given the Government's record of randomness and opaqueness in the handling of these applications, it is tough to predict how soon the pastor's patience will be rewarded. END COMMENT. MILES