Source: www.forum18.org
Date: June 12, 2023
https://www.forum18.org/archiv
By Olga Glace, Forum 18, and Felix Corley, Forum 18
On 1 June, police stopped a group of Baptists with a musical group from
sharing their faith in the town of Drogichin in the south-western Brest
Region. They took Vladimir Burshtyn – who is in his seventies - to the
police station and held him overnight. The following day, a judge fined him
the equivalent of just over a month's average pension for organising an
illegal event. The judge held the closed hearing in the police station to
prevent fellow-Baptists from attending.
"We thought the hearing would be open, but it was closed," a local Baptist
told Forum 18. "It should have been open, but we weren't surprised that
they would not let us attend" (see below).
Burshtyn has appealed against the fine to Brest Regional Court, the local
Baptist told Forum 18. The Baptists are also gathering signatures on
complaints to local, regional and national officials about the way Burshtyn
and the other Baptists were treated (see below).
Burshtyn is a member of the Council of Churches Baptists, who do not seek
state permission to exercise freedom of religion or belief.
Forum 18 was unable to reach the Head of Drogichin Police Lt. Colonel
Sergei Peryayev to ask why police had detained Burshtyn and held him for 24
hours (see below).
Judge Leonty Stankevich absolutely refused to give any comments when Forum
18 called Drogichin District Court. "The case is not closed, and the judge
does not comment on such cases," the court secretary told Forum 18. She did
not explain why Judge Stankevich decided to hold the hearing on Burshtyn's
case not at the court but at the police station (see below).
Asked why preaching and singing in public places are illegal and require
the authorities' approval, the Head of the Ideology Department of Drogichin
District Executive Committee Svetlana Shchur insisted that according to the
law any event should be coordinated with the local authorities.
"What does it have to do with religion?" Shchur told Forum 18. "Vladimir
Burshtyn was together with a music band in a crowded public place. What if
somebody collapsed in the street, or something else happened? They should
have provided security and medical aid, according to the Mass Events Law"
(see below).
Andrei Aryayev, the Head of the Religious Department of the Office of the
Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs in Minsk, had put the
phone down before Forum 18 could ask why Burshtyn was punished for sharing
his faith on the streets (see below).
For the first time, the 11 June Corpus Christi procession in Minsk did not
stop at the Church of Saints Simon and Helena (known locally due to its
brickwork as the Red Church). The regime ordered the prominent church
closed following a small, suspicious fire in September 2022 (see below).
Asked whether officials had instructed the Catholic leadership to amend the
route to avoid the Red Church, Aryayev of the Religious Department of the
Office of the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs told Forum
18: "I don't have such information." He then put the phone down (see
below).
Fr Yuri Sanko, spokesperson for the Catholic Bishops' Conference, told
Forum 18 that the amended route with no stop at the Red Church was the
decision of the Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese (see below).
Exiled Catholic journalist Maksim Hacak notes that any public activity is
banned near the Red Church, including processions and prayers. "Therefore,
the absence of a stop there fits into this ban," he told Forum 18. "Or the
diocese itself decided not to anger the authorities and therefore did not
even offer to stop there. In any case, this is a forced decision, with very
little chance for an independent decision" (see below).
Asked when the authorities will allow the Red Church to reopen for worship,
Fr Sanko responded: "This is not clear. Some kind of works are going on
inside." He said the works are being carried out without any involvement
from the church. "Our access to the church is barred. We can enter only by
prior agreement and stating our reason" (see below).
Draft new Religion Law published
On 2 June, the regime made public on its legal website the draft of the
proposed new Religion Law
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
website said the draft Law was open for public comments from 5 to 15 June.
The proposed new Religion Law continues the restrictions in the current Law
and contains many new restrictions (see forthcoming F18News article).
In late May, before publishing the draft of the proposed Law for public
discussion, Plenipotentiary Rumak summoned the leaders of registered
religious communities to present the text, the Deputy Head of the Baptist
Union Aleksandr Branovitsky told Forum 18 on 9 June.
The new Law is set to replace the 2002 version of the Religion Law which
was, when adopted, the most restrictive Religion Law
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Detained, fined for sharing faith on streets
On 1 June, Vladimir Burshtyn was among a group of Council of Churches
Baptists who shared their faith on the street in Drogichin, a town in the
south-western Brest Region. They brought with them a musical band.
Burshtyn – who is in his early 70s – had travelled to Drogichin from
his home in the town of Malorita, 110 kms (70 miles) away.
Police soon intervened to halt the event and took Burshtyn to Drogichin
police station. Police took only Burshtyn to the police station because he
had been previously punished for organising unapproved events, a local
Baptist told Forum 18 on 9 June.
Police drew up a record of an offence against him under Administrative Code
Article 24.23 ("Violation of the procedure for organising or conducting a
mass event or demonstration"), Part 2. Punishments for organising such
events under Part 2 are a fine of 20 to 150 base units, or community
service, or 15 days' imprisonment.
Police detained Burshtyn for 24 hours until the court hearing the next day.
Forum 18 was unable to ask the Head of Drogichin Police, Lt. Colonel Sergei
Peryayev, why police had detained Burshtyn and held him for 24 hours. His
phone went unanswered each time Forum 18 called between 5 and 8 June.
Drogichin District Court scheduled Burshtyn's hearing for 10 am on 2 June,
and officers took him to the court. However, the judge later rescheduled
the hearing for 5 pm that day. The closed trial then went ahead earlier,
not at the court but at the police station.
Judge Leonty Stankevich handed down a fine of 15 base units, 555 Belarusian
Roubles. This is equivalent to just over a month's average pension or about
two weeks' average wage. More than 20 local Baptists waited for Burshtyn
outside the police station to welcome him once he was released.
"We thought the hearing would be open, but it was closed," the local
Baptist told Forum 18. "It should have been open, but we weren't surprised
that they would not let us attend."
Burshtyn has appealed against his fine to Brest Regional Court, the local
Baptist told Forum 18. "We are also collecting signatures from believers on
three petitions, to the local court and police, as well as to Brest and
Minsk."
Judge Stankevich absolutely refused to give any comments when Forum 18
called Drogichin District Court. "The case is not closed, and the judge
does not comment on such cases," the court secretary told Forum 18 on 9
June. She confirmed that Judge Stankevich had decided to hold the hearing
on Burshtyn's case not at the court but at the police station. She did not
explain why.
"What does it have to do with religion?"
Asked why preaching and singing in public places are illegal and require
the authorities' approval, the Head of the Ideology Department of Drogichin
District Executive Committee Svetlana Shchur insisted that according to the
law any event should be coordinated with the local authorities.
"What does it have to do with religion?" Shchur told Forum 18 on 5 June.
"Vladimir Burshtyn was together with a music band in a crowded public
place. What if somebody collapsed in the street, or something else
happened? They should have provided security and medical aid, according to
the Mass Events Law."
Shchur appears to have been referring to the January 2019 Council of
Ministers Decree No. 49 ("On the procedure of payment for public security
provided by police, for healthcare services, for cleaning a venue after a
public event"). The Decree imposes further conditions related to the Mass
Events Law (https://www.forum18.org/archi
varying event fees to be paid to state agencies depending on the number of
participants. It requires that all permitted public event organisers -
including of religious events – must both agree event fees with the
police, state healthcare, and cleaning services, and also pay these fees in
advance.
Andrei Aryayev, the Head of the Religious Department of the Office of the
Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
phone down on 12 June before Forum 18 could ask why Burshtyn was punished
for sharing his faith on the streets.
In 2008, a court fined Burshtyn
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
more than two months' average wages for sharing his faith outside a market
in the town of Ushachi in Vitebsk Region. At the time, his fine was the
highest handed down to a member of the Baptist Council of Churches. In
2005, an administrative commission fined him for leading his unregistered
congregation (https://www.forum18.org/archi
Malorita.
The authorities consider sharing faith or talking about religion to
passers-by as mass events which are illegal unless individuals have gained
prior state approval.
On 15 April, the day before Orthodox Christian Easter, police arrested
seven young Protestants from several churches who were talking about their
faith with passers-by in central Minsk and took them handcuffed to the
police station. A court fined each about two months' average wages
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
In 2022, courts used Administrative Code Article 24.23, Part 1 to punish
three Protestant pastors in Gomel for holding outdoor baptisms, and two
Protestant pastors in Minsk
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
in the car park of the confiscated New Life Pentecostal Church.
No stop for Corpus Christi procession at closed Minsk church
Catholics were able to hold customary street processions in June.
Processions were held on 4 June to mark Trinity Sunday, including in
Mogilev, Brest and Pinsk. Processions were held on 8 and 11 June to mark
the festival of Corpus Christi, including in Minsk, Grodno, Vitebsk,
Smorgon and Gomel. Such processions stop at altars set up specially outside
Catholic churches.
For the first time, the 11 June Corpus Christi procession in Minsk did not
stop at the Church of Saints Simon and Helena (known locally due to its
brickwork as the Red Church), the katolik.life website noted the same day.
On 9 May, when the amended route for the procession was set out, the parish
lamented that the Red Church would no longer be included. "Unfortunately,
for the first time in 33 years, an altar has not been planned near our
shrine, which requires special attention and prayer," the parish noted on
its website.
Asked whether officials had instructed the Catholic leadership to amend the
route to avoid the Red Church, Andrei Aryayev, the Head of the Religious
Department of the Office of the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic
Affairs (https://www.forum18.org/archi
told Forum 18 on 12 June: "I don't have such information." He then put the
phone down. Subsequent calls went unanswered.
Fr Yuri Sanko, spokesperson for the Catholic Bishops' Conference, told
Forum 18 that the amended route with no stop at the Red Church was the
decision of the Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese.
"If the diocese decided so, then the question arises: why and for what
purpose?" exiled Catholic journalist Maksim Hacak told Forum 18 on 12 June.
"At the same time, we know that any public activity is banned near the Red
Church, including processions and prayers. Therefore, the absence of a stop
there fits into this ban. Or the diocese itself decided not to anger the
authorities and therefore did not even offer to stop there. In any case,
this is a forced decision, with very little chance for an independent
decision."
The regime closed the Church to Catholic parishioners who want to pray, and
attend Mass and other religious services since a suspicious early-morning
fire (https://www.forum18.org/archi
2022. The authorities later cut off electricity, heating and running water
in the adjacent priest's house.
Aryayev told Forum 18 in January
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
completed and the church reopened for worship "In the near future".
Asked when the authorities will allow the Red Church to reopen for worship,
Fr Sanko responded: "This is not clear. Some kind of works are going on
inside." He said the works are being carried out without any involvement
from the church. "Our access to the church is barred. We can enter only by
prior agreement and stating our reason."
In February 2021, the regime forcibly expelled Minsk's New Life Pentecostal
Church from its place of worship. In September 2022, police banned the
church from meeting for Sunday worship in the church car park
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Church's pastor Vyacheslav Goncharenko and another pastor Antoni Bokun. A
judge fined each two months' average wage for leading the 18 September 2022
service (https://www.forum18.org/archi
church's car park which police had observed. (END)
Full reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Belarus
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
For more background, see Forum 18's Belarus religious freedom survey
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in
Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments
(https://www.forum18.org/archi
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