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By Kent Larsen
LDS Church One Of Religions Attacked By Russian Education Ministry
MOSCOW, RUSSIA -- A report last week by the Kenton News Service says
that Russia's Education Ministry launched an attack in August and
September on 700 "foreign" religious groups, apparently including the
LDS Church, urging directors of institutions of higher education to
"prevent [the] infiltration [of their schools] by such religious
groups." A letter from the ministry sent to these directors included
an attachment naming the LDS Church, the Jehovah's Witnesses and many
others as involved in "military espionage and encouragement of
separatist activity."
The letter is just the latest in a long series of attacks and
discriminatory acts against small western religions in Russia. And
these acts have has some effect on LDS efforts, delaying or
frustrating Church activities in some Russian cities. A recent US
State Department indicates that in spite of recognition by the
Russian government, local authorities in the Russian city of
Cheylabinsk (Russia Yekaterinburg Mission) have refused to recognize
the LDS Church in their city, keeping missionaries from proselyting
there as recently as this past summer.
The LDS Church has also been unable to register in the city of Kazan,
Tartarstan because of local opposition. Part of this opposition stems
from local regulations, which, like those in 30 of Russia's 89
constituencies, violate the Russian constitution's religious freedom
protections. In spite of warnings issued by Russia's federal
government, the regulations remain in force, and some local
authorities follow them.
The lack of recognition will become much more serious with the
approach of the end of the year, since a national law allows
unregistered religious bodies to be "liquidated," -- all their assets
would be seized and privileges revoked. Technically, the LDS Church
has already obtained national registration, which should protect all
its "affiliates" throughout Russia. However, as the situations in
Kazan and Cheylabinsk demonstrate, local authorities don't always
follow national laws.
The approaching deadline led Elliott Abrams, President of the Ethics
and Public Policy Center and Chairman of the US Government's
Commission on International Religious Freedom to urge President
Clinton to get Russia's President Putin to extend the deadline.
Abrams, writing in an editorial in the Washington Post, explained the
urgency of the situation. "If a system of due process were in place
for religious groups to register, the situation would not be so
dangerous. But quite the reverse is true: Local officials in some
regions have delayed or denied registration to and sought liquidation
of unpopular religious groups, even when they have been recognized
and registered in other regions or at the federal level. Sometimes
this delay or refusal occurs at the instigation of the local Russian
Orthodox bishop or priest." He continued, "Given the slow pace of the
registration process so far, it is hard to believe most of the
remaining groups will be able to register by Dec. 31. Putin must
intervene--both to speed up the process and to postpone the deadline."
Fortunately, the LDS Church may not be as vulnerable as some other
"foreign" denominations. The Church has less than 10,000 members in
Russia, and those are concentrated in major cities, where laws are
often more tolerant of other religions. Many of the meeting houses
used by the Church in Russia are rented, and the Church's monetary
assets are centralized at a national level, where they are less
vulnerable to the whims of local officials.
Sources:
In Russia, 'Liquidating' Churches
Washington Post pg A43 14Nov00 T1
By Elliot Abrams
Education Ministry Urges Measures Against "Non-Established Religious Associations"
Keston News Service 8Nov00 T1
By Mikhail Zherebyatev
2000 Annual Report on International Religious Freedom:Russia
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor; U.S. Department of State 5Sep00 T1
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