Uzbekistan: While Islamic weddings become popular it irritates the government.

Dear colleagues,

Please see attached a new report of the Expert Working Group on
popularization of Islamic weddings in Uzbekistan and the official
reaction to this process by the Uzbek authorities.

This paper is distributed in English and Russian. Thank you in advance
for your attention.

Kind regards,

Sukhrobjon Ismoilov
Director, The Expert Working Group

TEXT IN ENGLISH

Uzbekistan: While Islamic weddings become popular it irritates the government

Most regions of Uzbekistan like Andijon, Ferghana, Namangan, Khorezm
and Bukhara have faced lately revival of Islamic weddings. Islamic
weddings differ from a traditional secular wedding by the following:
refusal of serving alcohol products at the wedding table; refusal of
the services of singers and musicians during the wedding; sitting of
men and women at the wedding table separately; and considerably
smaller number of the people invited to the wedding.

Interestingly very often it is a young bridegroom – young Muslim most
of whom are labor migrants in Russia and Kazakhstan who initiate
Islamic weddings in Uzbekistan. They have an Islamic way of life and
pray five times a day.

Having found themselves in Russia and Kazakhstan young Uzbek labor
migrants feel higher level of freedom of religion and under the
influence of different factors become more pious in Islamic way, says
Sukhrobjon Ismoilov, the head of the Expert Working Group. “Talking
about factors which make the Uzbek labor migrants in Russia and
Kazakhstan more pious the following need to be mentioned: a
comparatively higher freedom of religious practice in those countries;
compensating and social-psychological role of Islam which helps the
labor migrants get a stronger character and cope with difficulties of
life in a foreign country much easier; primarily low level of
knowledge and world outlook of the Uzbek labor migrants and openness
of their minds for mutual interaction and influence by other Muslims.
It is in Russia and Kazakhstan certain groups of the Uzbek labor
migrants start visiting local mosques, get to know other Muslims and
learn how to carry out daily prayers. They don’t experience such level
of freedom of religion at home because of the existing government
policy on religious practice without risking of being accused of
religious extremism, anti-constitutional activity and terrorism”, says
Ismoilov.

There are reports that the initiators of the Islamic weddings and
their families immediately fall into the field of vision of the Uzbek
law enforcement bodies and raise their active interest. The
representatives of local secret services and police visit the houses
of newly-weds right after the wedding, have so called “preventive
conversations” with them and their parents, question them about the
reasons why they have decided to arrange an Islamic wedding and
sometimes force them to write down official explanations. According to
our information the Uzbek authorities have created special commissions
from the representatives of the local secret services and law
enforcement bodies, hokimiats (local government) and mahalla
committees (the neighborhood self-governance bodies). The major task
of this new commission is to identify and maintain a list of the Uzbek
labor migrants who return to the country and demonstrate themselves as
very pious: for instance, praying everyday; men wearing beards;
calling on the relatives to live an Islamic way of life. Obviously
persons in those lists are under a special watch.

Hurshid, the Uzbek labor migrant from Bukhara region, 25 years old
shares his opinion: “I have never prayed before, nor did my family
members. It is now four years since I am working in Russia. There in
Russia I have got to know Uzbeks who regularly carry out everyday
Islamic prayers. They have taught me how to pray. I pray five times a
day now and attend the mosque. Many Uzbeks and Kyrgyz attend the
mosques in Russia. On Fridays we often get together to read and
discuss Islamic literature jointly. Living in Russia I have more
chances to upgrade my knowledge on Islam. This year I returned home.
Here I taught my parents and wife how to pray. They have also started
praying every day. But then they have found out about it at the local
mahalla committee. Representatives of the local law enforcement bodies
and mahalla committee visited our house and demanded we immediately
stop our prayers. I was forced to give a written explanation letter
with detailed description of from whom, when, where and how I have
learnt to pray, what I do in Russia and etc. Unfortunately my
relatives had to stop their prayers after that incident”.

Bunyod is another Uzbek labor migrant from Khorezm region, 27 years
old, works in trade sector in Ufa, Russia. His story is similar to the
previous one. “I have married recently. I started carrying out Islamic
prayers in Ufa last year. I have returned home and arranged an Islamic
wedding. We have decided not to serve alcohol at the wedding table. We
also decided to conduct the wedding not in the restaurant but at home.
There were no singers and musicians in our wedding. Everything started
after the wedding. The head of the local mahalla committee and local
police station officer visited our home first. They have threatened us
for arranging an Islamic wedding. Then the representatives of the
local secret services have also started visiting our house. Such
visits and threats have continued for almost two weeks. I am leaving
for Russia soon. I and my wife have made our decision – I am taking
her to Russia and in the future we would like to remain there for a
permanent life”, – says Bunyod.

At the same time the representative of the Expert Working Group
Sukhrobjon Ismoilov points out to another important reason why Islamic
weddings gain popularity. “Apart from religious and moral settings it
is quite possible that the choice of Islamic wedding is influenced by
the financial aspect of the issue. In a country where both rich and
not rich segments of the population like to arrange huge and pompous
weddings the Islamic wedding costs much cheaper than a usual secular
one. Most families are ready to stay just on bread and water in order
to be able to accumulate money for a wedding “which is not worse than
the wedding of the others”. But anyway the choice of people to arrange
their weddings and other private events in an Islamic way should be
free from the government interference”, thinks Ismoilov.

Mass character of the pompous weddings and other family festivities
push the Uzbek authorities to take measures at the highest level. On
28 October 1998 the Uzbek president adopted a decree ordering to end
pompous weddings and other events. But in practice this decree is
grossly violated as it is often high rank government officials and
other small-number wealthy people of Uzbekistan who tend to arrange
pompous weddings and other family events which push the rest of the
society to follow suits in organizing “decent” weddings.
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