A/HRC/55/47/Add.1 (art. 17). The permission of the State Committee to publish or import a religious book also stipulates the number of copies that can be imported. The production, distribution, import or export of religious literature and items of a religious nature which have not passed compulsory prior State censorship is punished (Code of Administrative Offences, art. 474 (1)). Following a meeting with the State Committee for Religious Affairs and the Ulama Council, the Special Rapporteur notes that the process of appointing those religious experts remains unclear and it is highly questionable whether the system can deliver justice in a fair and impartial manner. 37. All the Islamic bookshops in Dushanbe and some publishers that printed Islamic literature were closed down by the State Committee for Religious Affairs in August and September 2022. The Islamic bookshops next to the Central Mosque in Dushanbe were allowed to reopen in early 2023, albeit with a very restricted supply of religious books, as observed by the Special Rapporteur. E. Religious education 38. The Act on Parental Responsibility for the Education and Upbringing of Children (2011) prohibits persons aged under 18 years from participating in public religious activities, including attending services at public places of worship (art. 8). Under-18s may attend religious funerals and practise religion at home, under parental guidance. 39. Students must take a limited number of general classes on the history of religion at high school. The Ministry of Education sets classroom and curriculum standards and issues licences for religious organizations. The State Committee for Religious Affairs is responsible for monitoring the organizations to ensure implementation of the other legal provisions. According to the Committee, parents may teach religion to their children at home, provided the children express a desire to learn. 40. Grade 9 school children receive 36 hours of education regarding the history of religion. In the first year of university, students receive approximately the same number of hours of mandatory religious knowledge classes, focused on the philosophy and teachings of religions, with textbooks produced by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the State Committee for Religious Affairs. The Special Rapporteur notes that there was no evidence that the religious groups concerned had been consulted concerning the content relating to them in those textbooks, as merited by article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. 41. The law allows minors aged between 7 and 18, with the written consent of both parents, to obtain religious instruction provided by a registered religious organization with a State licence, outside mandatory school hours. Such instruction must not duplicate religious instruction that is part of the school curriculum. Only central mosques may set up such educational groups. In October 2016, three years after an official suspension order, the Ministry of Education closed five registered madrasas (Islamic religious schools) in Sughd Province and the only State-approved madrasa in Dushanbe, which had been run by the State Islamic University. The Ministry claimed that was due to non-compliance with the 2015 State Standard of General Education.11 Those schools served about 1,000 students. No madrasas have operated in Tajikistan since then. VI. Prohibition of incitement to extremism and terrorism Legislative frameworks and analysis in the light of international standards 42. What drives the highly regulated scope for freedom of religion or belief in Tajikistan is an almost singular focus on the fight against extremism and terrorism. The terms “extremism” and “terrorism” were regularly used interchangeably by the authorities in 11 8 The Standard was approved by government decree No. 494 of 1 August 2015. GE.24-00093