Like any other human right, religious freedom is subject to constant encroachment, harassment, and restrictions. This happens only to the extent that a society realizes the importance and limits of this right and is ready to defend it.
International law helps governments and societies see the highest religious freedom standards. However, the practice of its application differs from country to country. This is due to the historical context, cultural peculiarities, geopolitical situation, religious landscape within the country, etc.
The efforts of the international community to promote religious freedom in the world are primarily realized through monitoring and documenting violations. The international community assesses religious legislation and the implementation of its practices for compliance with international treaties. In addition, special attention is paid to the facts of incitement to religious hatred and religiously motivated violence.
This approach is inherent in the practice and reports of many international human rights organizations focusing on religious freedom. Few, if any, of these reports offer strategic ideas for making positive changes in the countries discussed. Additionally, many of the recommendations found in these reports are not immediately actionable due to a lack of societal responsibility and, in the case of post-Soviet countries, a deficiency in religious literacy.
Understanding these key challenges has led LYNC to change its strategy in Central Asia. Over the past ten years, our efforts have focused on building cross-cultural religious literacy through the Covenantal Pluralism initiative1, which is integral to our mission. It equips individuals with critical skills—evaluation, negotiation, and communication—rooted in a deeper understanding of themselves, others, and the contexts in which potential collaborations unfold.
For example, in April 2024, LYNC invited government officials on religious affairs, pastors, and imams from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to the United States to participate in a Train-the-Trainers event and learn about the American experience of the coexistence of different faiths in a free society. Thirty delegates gained the knowledge and practical skills to set up and host multi-faith roundtables, teach cross-cultural religious literacy in their country, and establish interaction between representatives of different religions and local authorities to benefit their societies.
The multiplier effect of LYNC’s efforts was already evident in six months.
In October, a multi-faith retreat for imams and pastors of Kazakhstan was held in Almaty. This event was led by a local imam and local pastor trained at the LYNC’s Train-the-Trainers program, who can now share their knowledge and skills with their fellow believers and citizens. In November, a similar event was held in Tashkent for imams and pastors of Uzbekistan. This event was also led by local religious leaders who are graduates of the LYNC training.
Government officials and religious leaders of various denominations in Central Asia are increasingly discovering the peacebuilding potential of multi-faith initiatives and pluralistic virtues. The LYNC’s approach creates the essential ground for new steps toward enhancing religious freedom. In particular, such positive trends are currently evident in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan as a result of our practical efforts in relationship building and education.
In recent months, we have seen some steps in registering religious organizations and expanding their network in Uzbekistan. Some progress in building religious freedom in this country has been achieved since the release of LYNC’s assessment report, which included a list of recommendations prepared following a visit by a delegation of U.S. experts to Uzbekistan from January 17-24, 2024.
For example, Islamic organizations have been registered, including a higher education institution in Termez, Uzbekistan, and several mosques. Also, a few court cases have ruled in favor of Muslim men whose beards were forcibly shaved. Now, an internal order prohibits such practice.
In October, the Uzbek government registered an evangelical church in the city of Jizzakh. The local authorities also assigned a new building to the Baptist church in Bukhara, replacing the one destroyed by city water after the pipe burst.
At the same time, LYNC cooperates with Kazakhstan’s government, experts, and religious leaders. In 2025, our innovative project to develop positive indexes to measure religious freedom will be piloted in this country, starting with a comprehensive field study.
LYNC’s positive indexes will foster positive competition among Central Asian countries and beyond. We propose a step-by-step strategy to achieve one positive change after the other, prompting governments to take at least minor steps toward building religious freedom.
Instead of recording negative trends and focusing on violations, LYNC’s approach aims to create a framework for building religious freedom in countries on the path to democracy, even in authoritarian ones.
Nevertheless, our positive indexes are not intended to replace but to complement the widespread approach to monitoring religious freedom. We developed an advocacy tool to help governments and societies gradually move toward greater religious freedom through covenantal pluralism and sustainable cross-cultural religious literacy education, which will trigger religious legislation reforms.
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