No Children in Mosques

Tajikistan is banning children from mosques:

"The new legislation has generated controversy by explicitly barring children under the age of 18 from 'participating in the activities of religious organizations,' which include mosques and other places of worship. Local analysts believe that the ban is aimed at preventing Tajik children from becoming radicalized. Presenting the bill in the parliament, Tajik Education Minister Abdujabbor Rahmonov, said: 'The draft law allows children that study in religious schools to attend mosques and join religious associations. However, children studying in secular schools are prohibited from doing so before they reach the age of 18.' He also said that children will still be allowed to participate in funerals and attend mosques during official religious holidays (www.avesta.tj, June 15)...

"Tajik legal experts and religious communities have condemned the ban on children’s visits to mosques as unconstitutional and anti-Islamic. Prominent Tajik lawyer and head of the country’s Social Democratic Party (SDPT) Rahmatillo Zoirov suggested that the parental responsibility bill includes some provisions which had already been stipulated in the constitution and the Family Code. At the same time, according to Zoirov, some provisions in the bill violate Tajikistan’s constitution and international human rights obligations (www.news.tj, June 20)...

"The ban on children attending places of worship has also drawn criticism from the country’s non-Islamic religious groups, including Russian Orthodox Christians and the Jewish community (www.rferl.org, February 17; www.forum18.org/Archive.php, May 25)."