A law has been passed banning rallies and marches near religious sites.

On June 9, 2022, a draft law was submitted to the State Duma prohibiting rallies, marches, demonstrations and meetings near a number of objects, including religious ones.

The developers were a group of deputies and senators, including Andrey Klimov, Vladimir Dzhabarov, Vasily Piskarev, Andrey Lugovoy.

The draft federal law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation” proposes, in particular, to include in the list of places near which it is forbidden to hold meetings, marches, rallies and demonstrations, along with other objects, “religious premises, buildings and structures , as well as land plots on which such buildings and structures are located, including those owned by religious organizations on the basis of ownership or provided to them on other property rights for the implementation of their statutory activities, places of pilgrimage” .

The bill , as its authors pointed out, is part of a package of federal laws aimed at improving the regulation of the status of a foreign agent.

The Russian Orthodox Church expressed concern about this bill. According to the head of the legal department of the Moscow Patriarchate, Abbess Xenia (Chernega), the amendments contradict paragraph 3 of Article 16 of the law "On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Associations." “The bans established by the bill will apply to public religious ceremonies, including prayers, religious processions in the territories of medical organizations and social protection organizations that are not included in the list established by Article 16 of the said law. For example, a public religious ceremony will become unacceptable on the territory of a hospice, a rehabilitation center, and so on. Also, such religious ceremonies cannot be held on the territories of sports grounds, railway stations, airports , ”said the abbess.

She also recalled that services and other religious rites are freely held in places of worship and on their territories, as well as in places of pilgrimage, and the new rules deprive religious organizations of this right.

On July 5, the bill was approved by the State Duma in the first, on November 23 - in the second and third reading, on November 30 it was approved by the Federation Council.

On November 30, Abbess Xenia (Chernega) announced that the developers had finalized the bill and fully took into account the wishes of the Russian Orthodox Church.

“Now, according to the bill, the ban on holding public events in places of worship and on their territories does not apply to public religious ceremonies, including mass religious processions taking place in public places. In addition, the constituent entities of the Russian Federation cannot establish their own restrictions on the places where such religious ceremonies are held ,” Ms. Ksenia said.

On December 5, the law was signed by V. Putin.

Sources

• Bill card No. 140449-8 // CREATE. 2022.
• The Russian Orthodox Church is concerned about the prospect of a ban on marches near clinics and religious sites // Interfax-Religion. 2022. June 10.
• The legislators took into account the wishes of the Russian Orthodox Church to the draft law on the ban on processions and meetings near churches, railway stations and schools // There. November 30th.