DUSHANBE, October 23 (RIA Novosti) - Tajikistan has banned the Jehovah's Witnesses sect, Culture Minister Mirzoshokhrukh Asrori told journalists on Tuesday.

"The decision was made at a meeting of the Culture Ministry board held last week," the minister said adding that sect activists had repeatedly violated laws on religion and religious organizations despite official warnings

The culture minister said sect members had been conducting propaganda campaigns in public places and neighborhoods, which is unlawful in Tajikistan.

Asrori also said Jehovah's Witness activists were refusing to serve in the military citing religious reasons and insisting on an alternative, which does not exist in Tajikistan yet.

Jehovah's Witnesses have been active in the former Soviet republic since 1997. The international religious organization, which adheres to a restored form of first-century Christianity, has up to 100 activists in Tajikistan.

According to the Culture Ministry, there are 85 religious organizations in the republic, which has a population of 7.2 million.