End for Kazakhstan Krishnas

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Kazakh court orders confiscation of land used by Hare Krishna community

 

International Herald Tribune

Published: January 31, 2007

 

ALMATY, Kazakhstan: A court has ordered the confiscation of land used by

Kazakhstan's Hare Krishna community, ruling in favor of local authorities in

a legal dispute that Krishnas have called religious persecution, the

community's spokesman said Wednesday.

 

The Karasai district court decision, announced Tuesday in the absence of the

Krishnas' representatives, means that district authorities are now one legal

step away from expelling the community after an almost three-year long

battle, spokesman Maxim Varfolomeyev said.

 

District authorities are now expected to ask the Supreme Court to overturn

its 2005 decision that allowed Krishnas to continue to use the 48-hectare

(118-acre) plot near the commercial capital Almaty despite the ongoing

dispute.

 

Varfolomeyev said the community would appeal the Karasai court decision, but

added that "this appears to be an end."

 

A government commission earlier dismissed the Krishnas' claims of religious

persecution, saying the dispute was the result of "gross" violations of land

and religion laws. The Hare Krishna community denies breaking property laws.

 

The community members have also been battling individual legal actions

against them over alleged illegal privatization of their cottages.

 

Under court orders, laborers with crowbars and bulldozers destroyed the

community's 13 country houses on Nov. 21, while police prevented community

members from interfering.

 

The dispute has attracted the attention of foreign diplomats. The U.S.

Embassy expressed concern about the legality of razing the houses and urged

Kazakh authorities to end what it called an "aggressive" campaign against

Hare Krishna followers. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in

Europe said after the houses were destroyed that it appeared the Krishnas

were targeted because of their religious beliefs.

 

Varfolomeyev said Wednesday that on Monday, three more community members

received notifications that their cottages would be destroyed within five

days.

 

Krishnas have said that another reason why local authorities sought their

expulsion could be that the land they are using is prime real estate.

 

Land and property prices in and around the oil-rich Central Asian nation's

biggest city have soared in recent years amid a construction boom fueled by

a rapid economic growth.

 

The mostly Muslim nation has long been tolerant to other religions, but in

recent years the government has tightened laws on religious organizations,

citing concerns about religious extremism.

 

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/31/asia/AS-GEN-Kazakhstan-Hare-Krishn

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