DUSHANBE, May 7, 2015, Asia-Plus - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has once again recommended that the Department of State classify Tajikistan as home to some of the world’s worst restrictions on religious freedom.

USCIRF said in its 2015 Annual Report, released April 30, that “the government of Tajikistan suppresses and punishes all religious activity independent of state control, particularly the activities of Muslims, Protestants, and Jehovah’s Witnesses.”

Numerous laws that severely restrict religious freedom have been implemented in the country since 2009, the report says, noting that the government also imprisons individuals on unproven criminal allegations linked to Islamic religious activity and affiliation.

Based on these concerns, as it has since 2012, USCIRF again recommends in 2015 that the U.S. government designate Tajikistan as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA).  Previously Tajikistan was on USCIRF’s Tier 2 (formerly Watch List) since 2009.

In addition to recommending that the U.S. government designate Tajikistan as a CPC, USCIRF also recommends that the U.S. government should press the Tajik government to bring the 2009 religion law and other relevant laws into conformity with international commitments, including those on freedom of religion or belief, and criticize publicly violations by the Tajik government of those commitments.