ODIHR training events in Kazakhstan focus on promoting freedom of religion or belief for all while ensuring security

Participants in two training courses organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights in Almaty, Kazakhstan, gained a deeper understanding this week of how to advance freedom of religion or belief for all while ensuring security.

Eleven state officials took part in the event on 23 and 24 October 2017, and some 20 representatives of civil society, including from religious or belief communities, attended the course on 25 and 26 October.

“Grounded in the OSCE’s comprehensive concept of security, our capacity-building course offered state officials and civil society actors from Kazakhstan an interactive and practical learning opportunity, as well as a platform to discuss how freedom of religion or belief and security can be advanced together,” said Dilnoza Satarova, ODIHR Officer on Freedom of Religion or Belief.

The subjects discussed included international standards and the national legal framework on freedom of religion or belief; the state’s responsibility to respect, protect and facilitate freedom of religion or belief; the interrelationship between freedom of religion or belief and security; gender and freedom of religion or belief; and practical ways to protect freedom of religion or belief while promoting security. 

“The training events helped state officials and those active in civil society to better understand how freedom of religion or belief can assist in creating environments of mutual respect and understanding among people of different religions or beliefs, including non-believers, that are essential to sustainable security in Kazakhstan,” said Diana Digol, Deputy Head of the OSCE Programme Office in Astana.

The training was provided jointly by ODIHR experts and graduates of train-the-trainer courses on freedom of religion or belief and security for state officials and civil society representatives, held in Astana in September.  

Nazgul Abdrakhman, Attache at the Europe Department of Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry, who was among the September course participants, said: "I truly enjoyed being a trainer at this event. I deepened my own knowledge and broadened my views on how freedom of religion or belief and security are interlinked. I look forward to using this knowledge and experience to facilitate learning on this topic by colleagues from Kazakh state institutions in the future."

The training is part of a two-year ODIHR project on promoting security and social cohesion through advancing freedom of religion or belief for all in Central Asia.