Muslims voice problem with return of historic mosques to communities in Kuban and Adygea

The decision made by the Arbitration Court of Adygea on transferring the building of the first Maikop mosque from the property of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of the Russian Federation to the property of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims (SAM) of Adygea and the Krasnodar Territory is a historically important event, believes Asfar Myss, the head of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims for the Takhtamukai District.

The decision on the transfer of the mosque building located in Krasnooktiabrskaya Street in Maikop to the regional SAM was made by the Arbitration Court of Adygea in late March. The building was registered by the Russian MoD as the premises of the "headquarters." Representatives of the SAM requested to grant the building to the Muslim community, since it was constructed for worship services and had spiritual value for believers. The Arbitration Court of Adygea granted the claim in full.

Together with the question on the return of the mosque building in Maikop, the SAM representatives should have raised the issue on the transfer of the mosque built by Liu Trakhov, a Circassian merchant and patron of arts, to Muslims in Krasnodar, Asfar Myss believes.

"Nevertheless, our SAM has not yet raised the topic at all," Asfar Myss told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to him, the representatives of the SAM for Adygea and the Krasnodar Territory do not want to raise the issue to avoid spoiling relations with the authorities. Meanwhile, the legal department of the Russian Orthodox Church actively uses the laws and defends its right to buildings of churches, notes Asfar Myss.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on April 23, 2019 at 05:52 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.