Uzbekistan expands state control over children’s religious upbringing

A new law signed on February 20 includes amendments aimed at “strengthening the protection of children's rights.”

According to an amendment to the Law on Guarantees of Children's Rights, parents or guardians have the right to raise their children in accordance with their personal beliefs, including religious and moral upbringing. However, the law now explicitly prohibits them from enrolling their children in unregistered or unlicensed religious institutions or placing them under the instruction of individuals who lack official religious education credentials and have not been authorized by Uzbekistan’s central religious authorities.

A corresponding amendment to the Administrative Code stipulates that parents or guardians who violate this regulation will face fines ranging from 5 to 10 times the base calculation unit (BCU). Repeat offenses within one year after receiving an administrative penalty will result in fines of 10 to 15 times the BCA or up to 15 days of administrative detention.

The law came into force upon its official publication. The bill was first passed in its initial reading by lawmakers on June 25, 2024, and was approved by the Senate of Oliy Majlis during its August 16 session.

In response to public criticism, Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Chamber, Odiljon Tojiyev, defended the measure, arguing that some people were misinterpreting the law and that it was meant to strengthen guarantees for children's rights.

According to the Law on Education, parents are obligated to ensure their children receive a general secondary or specialized secondary education and to create conditions for their intellectual, moral, and physical development. However, Tojiyev claimed that many parents are responsible for their children being placed in unauthorized religious study settings, thereby isolating them from the state-mandated education system and fostering a narrow worldview and religious extremism.

Unauthorized religious instruction, he noted, often takes place in so-called hujras — private, home-based religious study groups — at the initiative of parents. Over the past five years, authorities have identified 9,705 children receiving such education. In many cases, parents allegedly leave their children in the care of unauthorized religious instructors for months, depriving them of a proper developmental environment.

The government defines this practice as "illegally involving a child in unauthorized religious education." In simple terms, parents who send their children to hujras will be held accountable. Tojiyev emphasized that hujras have been strictly prohibited by law for many years.

At the same time, he insisted that the law does not interfere with parents' right to provide their children with religious instruction personally, as this is considered an inviolable right of any parent.