wfn.org | Russian Duma Approves Revised Bill on Religion

[PCUSA.NEWS@pcusa.org]

26-September-1997 
97377 
 
    Russian Duma Approves Revised Bill on Religion 
 
    by Christian Lowe 
    Ecumenical News International 
 
MOSCOW--Religious activists in Russia have strongly condemned a decision by 
the lower house of Russia's parliament -- the State Duma -- to approve a 
bill on religious organizations which, critics argue, could lead to new 
religious restrictions in Russia. 
 
    The bill was backed by the Russian Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish and 
Buddhist faiths. But minority religions -- including Catholics and 
Protestants -- say that it will restrict their rights. 
 
    As hundreds of Protestants sang hymns and chanted protests outside the 
Duma building in central Moscow Sept. 19, lawmakers voted by 358 votes to 
six in favor of the measure, which has been promoted by its supporters as a 
means of protecting Russians from the influence of dangerous sects. 
 
    Human rights activists and representatives of those faiths which stand 
to lose out from the law said they would fight to overturn it. "The rights 
of hundreds and thousands of our fellow countrymen have been encroached 
on," according to Anatoly Pchelintsev, director of the Institute of 
Religion and Law, a body considered by observers to be sympathetic to 
Protestantism. 
 
    "You do not have to be a hotshot lawyer to see that this law is 
anticonstitutional," he added. "Looking at this logically, our only 
possible option is to go to the Constitutional Court." If the court rules 
that a law, or part of it, does not comply with the constitution, the law 
ceases to have effect. 
 
    The bill was an amended version of one passed by both houses of 
parliament earlier this summer. President Boris Yeltsin vetoed the earlier 
bill on the grounds that it violated the constitution's provisions on 
religious freedom, but the new version -- drawn up by President Yeltsin's 
office after consultations with religious organizations -- differs little 
from the first, according to observers. 
 
    The bill must still be approved by the Federation Council, or upper 
house of parliament, and signed by President Boris Yeltsin before it 
becomes law. But that is widely believed to be a foregone conclusion. 
 
    Critics say the bill would create a two-tier system that would enshrine 
the rights of traditional religions -- Russian Orthodoxy, Islam, Buddhism, 
Judaism -- but restrict the activities of other mainstream religions, 
including Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. 
 
    In order to qualify for the status of "religious organization" with 
full rights to preach and worship, a faith must prove it has officially 
existed in Russia for 15 years. That excludes Roman Catholics and 
Protestants, as well as nonmainstream religions because they were denied 
official recognition under Communist rule. 
 
    Those faiths that do not qualify as "organizations" can apply for the 
status of "religious group" with fewer legal rights. A group would be able 
to retain its own property, teach religion to its own followers and do 
charity work. But it would be denied access to public schools, prisons and 
hospitals and would not be able to set up its own educational 
establishments, publish literature or invite foreigners for religious work. 
 
    The bill's supporters said Friday's vote was a necessary step to 
combating religious sects. "We insisted that it be passed," said Communist 
Party leader Gennady Zyuganov. "There are some revisions, but they do not 
change the essence of the law. The country badly needs a law like this." 
 
    Spokesmen for the Russian Orthodox Church and Muslims living in central 
Russia also applauded the Duma's decision. 
 
    However, the international Roman Catholic news agency, APIC, which is 
based in Fribourg, Switzerland, cited a "close associate" of Archbishop 
Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, a leader of Russia's Catholics, as saying that the 
new bill still contained "discriminatory" provisions and that some 
amendments introduced into the draft legislation "solve nothing -- quite 
the contrary."   APIC also quoted Archbishop Kondrusiewicz, the apostolic 
administrator for Roman Catholics in the European part of Russia, rejecting 
allegations that the Catholic church was engaged in "proselytism" -- 
persuading believers who belong to one church to convert to another. 
 
    "There are practically no Orthodox Christians who convert to the 
Catholic church," he said. "Behind this reproach is the belief that if one 
is Russian, one is automatically Orthodox.  But the nonbaptized must be 
allowed the freedom of conscience to decide for themselves to which church 
they wish to belong." 
 
    On the pavement outside the Duma the day of the vote, passions were 
running high.  Christian groups sang hymns and brandished banners that 
read: "Protestants are Russian too."  A shaved-headed Hare Krishna devotee, 
wearing a saffron robe and holding a megaphone, led a crowd of his 
followers in chanting a mantra. 
 
    Inside the Duma, the law was passed with only a minimum of debate. 
Liberal lawmakers tried to have the bill struck off the agenda, but they 
were overruled by the nationalists and communists who dominate the Duma. 
 
    In a speech which carried heavy nationalist overtones, right-wing 
leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky said the law must be passed to protect the 
Russian Orthodox Church from foreign incursion. "[U.S.] vice president [Al] 
Gore is flying into Moscow to prevent us again from passing this law in the 
version that is beneficial for Russians," he said. 
 
    "Here we will follow the position of the Russian Orthodox Church," he 
said. "If the patriarchate says pass this law, we will pass it; if they say 
no, we won't pass it. But we won't take orders from those standing outside 
the State Duma." 

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