TURKMENISTAN: FOREIGN SPEAKER APPROVED TO PREACH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000386 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN; DRL/IRF E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/24/2019 TAGS: KIRF PHUM PGOV TX SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: FOREIGN SPEAKER APPROVED TO PREACH AT NEW APOSTOLIC CHURCH Classified By: DCM Sylvia Reed Curran. Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: The 30-member New Apostolic Church, registered since 2007, is able to conduct its worship services without difficulty, acording to its pastor. For the first time, the group has received permission from the government for the visit in April of a church leader from Germany. Although the group would like to acquire its own church building, it is at a loss as to how to proceed. The group has also been unable to obtain current religious literature. Still, the group's pastor had an exceptionally positive outlook about the current state of religious freedom in Turkmenistan, although he lamented the burdensome bureaucratic procedures imposed on the church. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) On March 23, poloff met with Pastor Andrey Tokar, the leader of the New Apostolic Church in Ashgabat. The international church of the same name is based in Switzerland, and the Ashgabat church was started by two German missionaries in the 1990s. The church has been registered since 2007. The registration process took two years, during which time the church did not meet as a congregation, but only in groups of two or three people. The congregation currently numbers about 30 members. Although once larger, during the four years when it could not hold services, some members went to different churches. Many people have emigrated or passed away. The Pastor described the congregation as "international" with ethnic Azeris, Armenians, Moldovans, Ukrainians, and two or three Turkmen. ¶3. (C) Tokar was pleased that the church has been able to obtain a letter of invitation from the Migration Service to allow the visit of a religious leader from Germany in April. Within the hierarchy of the church, such visits by the District Apostles occur once every two years. Tokar said he applied for permission for the visit at the State Council on Religious Affairs (CRA) well in advance, in order to avoid any difficulties. Deputy CRA Chairman Gurbanov sent a letter of support to the Migration Service. Last summer, an apostle came to Turkmenistan from Germany on a tourist visa and led a worship service. The church had not sought the approval of the Turkmen authorities. Pastor Tokar was called in to the CRA, and the foreigner was banned from returning to Turkmenistan. ¶4. (C) The group currently meets in a cafe for services on two Sundays per month. The cafe is surrounded by high-rise Soviet-era apartment blocks. Rent costs about USD 40 for each two hour service. The group would like to either acquire land to build a church building, or buy an existing house and remodel it, but the Pastor said the group has not asked the CRA how to proceed. He said financing a church building would not be a problem as the group receives financial support from outside Turkmenistan. It is not possible for the group to pay its rent based on the donations of members, many of whom have no money. Tokar said it is "complicated" to get new literature. The group relies on publications from 1993, which are old, but still "fresh," and on the Bible. They plan to receive new literature through an Internet connection that a young member just obtained. ¶5. (C) Pastor Tokar said that the members of the church can share their faith freely with others -- friends, co-workers, neighbors, people on a bus or train. He explained that they do not engage in street evangelism, not because they are not allowed to by the government, but because such an approach by a stranger would be viewed as culturally and socially unacceptable. He said that there has been a "big change of attitude" by the government. The government does not stop them. "Now it is free, nearly like in Europe." According to the Pastor, his church faces no special obstacles, just " a lot of bureaucratic paperwork." Still, he said it was necessary to observe the letter of the law. ¶6. (C) COMMENT: While sharing some of the same problems as ASHGABAT 00000386 002 OF 002 other registered groups, obtaining permission for the visit of a foreign church leader is a breakthrough of sorts, although until other groups have similar successes, it's not clear that the authorities have adopted a more lenient policy. Still, the New Apostolic Church was able to receive permission despite running afoul of the authorities last summer with its unauthorized speaker. END COMMENT. MILES