Baku, Azerbaijan — Authorities in Azerbaijan are refusing to issue birth certificates for children with Christian names, the Forum 18 News Service reports. Without birth certificates, the children are unable to enroll in school, receive medical service, or obtain passports.
Government officials claim that the public opposes the use of Christian names, preferring traditional Azerbaijani names. “We have letters from village residents and 98 percent are opposed to registering Christian names,” local registration official Aybeniz Kalashova told Forum 18. Azerbaijan is more than 90 percent Muslim.
When questioned by Forum 18 as to why parents should be denied the right to name their children, Kalashova shot back: “Why are you interfering in the internal affairs of Azerbaijan?”
“This is ridiculous,” remarked a member of a Christian community in the capital city of Baku. “You can call your child 'Communist' or 'Tractor,'” she told Forum 18. “Why not a Christian name?”
(This update courtesy of LifeSiteNews.com and Catholic World News. To subscribe or for further information, contact subs@cwnews.com or visit www.cwnews.com.)
