Book sellers in the central Asian country of Turkmenistan are reportedly facing a ban on the sale of Bibles. Directors of bookshops and stalls received a letter in March notifying them of the ban, according to information received by Keston News Service. 

Until earlier this year, imported Bibles were available from stalls for around US $5. But it has become increasingly difficult for Turkmen residents to purchase Bibles locally, reports Polina Naumova, communication director for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the region that encompasses Turkmenistan. For some time now, Bibles have not been sold on the general market, she says, although they have been available on a limited basis through some Russian Orthodox Churches. 

Turkmenistan, a former Soviet republic, has been steadily increasing its restrictions on minority religions, destroying churches, disbanding groups worshiping in private homes, and jailing church members and pastors.  In November 1999, local officials ordered the destruction of an Adventist Church building in the capital Ashgabat. An Adventist pastor was arrested and held for three days in October 2000 for holding an “illegal worship service” in a private home. Only two religious groups are legally recognized by the Turkmen government-–Sunni Muslims and the Russian Orthodox Church.