27 religious communities fail registration in Azerbaijan
By Aynur Jafarova
27 religious communities failed to undergo registration in Azerbaijan in 2012 as their documents did not comply with the domestic legislation, a report of the Cabinet of Ministers on the results of last year says.
The number of religious entities registered in Azerbaijan so far is 576, of which 555 are Islamic, 12 Christian, six Judaic, two Baha'i and one Krishnaite communities.
As a result of the measures taken to counter illegal import, publication and dissemination of religious literature in Azerbaijan, 791 religious books were scrutinized and import of 49 books which propagated radicalism and religious intolerancedeclined.
Re-registration of religious communities has been improved in Azerbaijan in accordance with the legislation.
According to the law on religious faith adopted in 1992, everyone has the right to believe in any religion, to express and spread his or her opinion about religion. All religions and religious organizations enjoy equal rights in Azerbaijan.
However, it is forbidden by the law to propagate and spread religious ideas related to racial, ethnic, religious and social hostility that contradict the principles of humanism. The law also bans religious propaganda by foreigners in Azerbaijan.