Azerbaijan: Expelled Adventist Pastor Waits to Return Home

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Azerbaijan: Expelled Adventist Pastor Waits to Return Home
July 30, 2002 Nakhichevan, Azerbaijan .... [Bettina Krause/ANN]

A Seventh-day Adventist pastor and his family who fled the Azerbaijani city of Nakhichevan June 10 may soon be able to return home, reports Keston News Service. Pastor Vahid Nagiev, his wife, and their four children were expelled by police, who told the pastor he was suspected of plotting "terrorist activities." Since then, the family has been waiting in the capital, Baku, for permission to return.

In a letter to John Graz, public affairs and religious liberty director for the Adventist world church, a leading Azerbaijani official reaffirmed his country's commitment to religious freedom. Rafik Aliyev, chairman of Azerbaijan's state committee for religious associations, said authorities have been investigating the case. He said that, as citizens of Azerbaijan, the rights of Pastor Nagiyev and his family are protected, and their right to create religious community will be protected and settled "in accordance with law about freedom of religion of Azerbaijan Republic."

According to Keston, officials in Nakhichevan say they did not force the pastor to leave.

The small group of Adventist believers in Nakhichevan is in the process of applying for legal recognition under the country's religion registration laws. There has been no word yet on the outcome of their application.

Adventists in some other parts of Azerbaijan continue to report instances of hostility from local authorities. In February, officials broke up a meeting at an Adventist church in Gyanja, in the western part of the country, saying the church had failed to obtain a necessary re-registration certificate.

Azerbaijan, located between Iran and Russia, is a predominantly Muslim country; only about 3 percent of its population claims a Christian affiliation.