The Ministry of Justice took care of the freedom of religion of prisoners

A government commission yesterday approved a bill protecting prisoners' right to freedom of religion. If the document is adopted, convicts will be able to count, in particular, on meetings with a clergy lasting at least two hours without the participation of guards. Representatives of confessions interviewed by Kommersant believe that such rules of communication with convicts should have been introduced a long time ago.

Photo: Yuri Martyanov, Kommersant / buy photo

The amendments, which were discussed yesterday at a meeting of the government commission on legislative activities, were prepared by the Ministry of Justice. The department proposes to restate Art. 14 of the Criminal Executive Code (PEC), guaranteeing freedom of conscience and religion of prisoners. The current version of the article states that clergy “belonging to duly registered religious associations” may be invited to join those sentenced to forced labor, arrest or imprisonment at their request. “In institutions executing punishment, convicts are allowed to perform religious rituals and use religious objects and religious literature,” the article says. The Ministry of Justice, in turn, considers the theses used in the current edition of the Criminal Code to be too vague. “Currently, the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia, as well as territorial bodies of the penal system, have concluded more than 80 agreements on interaction with religious organizations. The bill proposes to legislate the procedure for this interaction,” the government statement says.

The right to practice religious rites and meet with confessors now extends to those in custody. Moreover, the document states that both convicted and awaiting sentencing citizens have the right to keep religious objects, as well as religious literature. The list of items permitted for storage, “except for piercing and cutting items, consisting of precious stones and of historical value,” will be approved by order of the Federal Penitentiary Service. The bill also proposes to regulate meetings of prisoners with representatives of faiths. “Personal meetings are provided for up to two hours each, with no limit on their number,” the document says. Prisoners have the right to meet with priests in a separate room, without guards and “out of earshot of third parties.” The only condition for such meetings will be the presence of a video surveillance camera. At the same time, it is proposed to grant the right to communicate with a confessor even to prisoners held in punishment cells, punishment cells and solitary confinement.

Representatives of religious denominations interviewed by Kommersant call the bill timely and hope that it will simplify the presence of clergy in prisons. As Kommersant was told in the synodal information department of the Russian Orthodox Church, legislative regulation of clergy’s access to prisoners is a long-overdue necessity. “The church has a significant practice of working with prisoners, but until now it has been based mainly on agreements between dioceses and local departments of the Federal Penitentiary Service. Now it is time to summarize the existing relationships and, after discussion with interested parties, give them the form of law,” the department said. “It is important to have bearing in mind that the right of prisoners to communicate with clergy is legally ensured by many foreign countries and is considered an integral part of religious freedom, which cannot be deprived of those in custody.” “The new rules for clergy visiting convicted citizens can fully enable the clergy to help people in difficult situations,” agrees deputy chairman of the Council of Muftis of Russia Rushan Abbyasov.

“Now the rules for visiting convicts very much depend on the will of the head of the institution,” Rabbi Aron Gurevich, head of the department of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia for interaction with the armed forces and law enforcement agencies, told Kommersant. “The new document is intended to legitimize and, most importantly, regulate the rules of work of priests in prisons.” According to him, “if the law is adopted, it will be possible to transfer literature and religious objects to convicts, which is often difficult to do now.”

Grigory Tumanov, Pavel Korobov

Priests get easier access to prisons