Peculiarities of Kazakhstan and Malaysia in View of the Relationship between State and Religion

Abstract

The current study analyzed the specifics of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Federation of Malaysia keeping in view the relationship between religion and state. For Kazakhstan, which has a multi-confessional and multi-ethnic specificity, it is extremely important to study and examine the experience of other peer countries. In this context, Malaysia, as a multi-confessional and multi-ethnic state, has its own experience in maintaining the relationship between state and religion. Kazakhstan, which has enshrined itself in its constitution as a secular state, has always focused on improving the state's policy on religion, regulating the activities of religious associations in view of democratic requirements and defining the complex aspects of the relationship between state and religion. For Kazakhstan, it is of particular importance to differentiate its model of a secular country dominated by the representatives of Islam. For this purpose, the country chosen for comparison was Malaysia, which has excellent development indicators.  The current study determined the specific features of the two countries in the in terms of ethnic and confessional composition, the structure of public administration, religious education, activities of religious associations, interreligious dialogue and tolerance, the fight against religious extremism, and terrorism via historical and comparative analysis.