Prisons to close down prayer rooms and chapels in Kazakhstan

Mosques, chapels and prayer rooms will start closing in Kazakhstan prison camps on October 25, Tengrinews.kz reports citing deputy chairman of Kazakhstan Agency on Religion Marat Azilzhanov. "Hundreds of prayer rooms and over 60 orthodox chapels are operating in correctional facilities. But the position of the law is clear. All the religious facilities, including prayer rooms, have to stop functioning in correctional facilities and detention places. The law comes into effect within 10 days after its official publication. This means that starting from October 25, the Correctional System Commission will start implementing this regulation into effect. But, of course, they will not close them down in one day. They will be closing gradually,” Azilzhanov said during multimedia video-bridge Moscow-Astana called Extremism: How to protect a country and its citizens? in the Regional representative office of RIA Novosti in Central Asia.