Protestant rally in Voronezh

On June 4, a rally in defense of the rights of believers of all denominations was held in Voronezh, organized by the Council of Senior Ministers of the Churches of Evangelical Christians - Pentecostals and the Consultative Council of the Heads of the Protestant Communities of the city (Evangelical Christian Baptists, Pentecostals, Seventh Day Adventists, Evangelical Christians, Methodists and Presbyterians). About 600 people took part in the action.

According to Portal-Credo.ru , "the resolution of the rally included demands on the regional and city authorities: to stop discrimination against believers who do not belong to the ROC MP, not to obstruct the conduct of evangelism (the most recent example of a refusal citing the threat of terrorist attacks), to find resolving the issue of allocating land plots for the construction of religious buildings for all religious organizations operating in the city and the region, to which such a right is granted by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the Federal Law "On Freedom of Conscience", objective informing the population through state media about the social activities of Protestant denominations in the Voronezh region participation, on a par with the diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, in social, cultural and civil-patriotic programs and actions organized by the authorities, restriction of advertising of tobacco, alcohol, erotic products and gambling outlets.

Sources

• At a rally in Voronezh, protesters demanded from the authorities equal treatment of representatives of all faiths // Portal-Credo.ru. 2005. June 6.