The Voronezh Lutheran parish, which is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran church of Ingriia and which received registration in 2000, has petitioned city authorities for the return of the building of the former church, Blagovest-info reports.
St. Mary's church, built in 1820, is located in the center of Voronezh, at the intersection of Karl Marx and Nikita streets. The building belonged to the Lutheran parish of the city until the beginning of the 1920s. At the present time the building is municipal property and is registered in the possession of the city electric utility. The head of the city committee for supervision of property, Igor Vatrak, said that the Lutheran parish's request will be unconditionally denied, even if it can be confirmed by archival documents that the building was the historic property of the Lutheran church. According to Igor Vatrak, the church building contains the central control room of the city electric network. "This is the most valuable equipment," he emphasized, "and it would be impossible to move it to a different place." Besides, the head of the city committee for supervision of property promised to search for other premises to compensate the Lutheran congregation.
Despite the statement from the representative of the city administration, Pastor Andrei Sysoev expressed the firm intention to begin an official process for the return of the historic building of the church. (tr. by PDS, posted 1 August 2001)
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With extreme cynicism and brutality an ex-convict made short work of a female sectarian from the "Jehovah's Witnesses" religious society. He had just been released from prison where he served a term for murder. The Muscovite had invited him to her home to talk about God and after the talk the monster attacked her in the chest with two pairs of knives and plundered the apartment. Recently the Moscow City Court sentenced the murderer.
It has become known to MK that in October 2000 the twenty-nine-year-old Muscovite Sergei Sokolov was released from prison ahead of time on an amnesty and began living with his father in the capital. Two weeks after his release, on 1 November, around eleven in the morning Sokolov met two women near his house on Bolshaia Cherkizovskaia street. The women introduced themselves to Sokolov as evangelists from the "Jehovah's Witnesses" religious society and began a conversation about God. Solokov immediately told them that he recently served a prison term for murder. However the confession did not bother the women at all. Moreover, one of them, forty-nine-year-old Valentina Goncharova, presented the recent convict religious pamphlets and even invited him to visit her at any time if he had questions about the Bible (it seems they lived in the same building). At this the new acquaintances parted. But by noon Sokolov appeared at the apartment of the hospitable sectarian.
Goncharova was home alone; her husband was at work. Over tea the woman talked with the guest about her organization, about the belief in the Trinity, and about the Bible. At approximately three o'clock she interrupted the intense conversation and said that it was time for her to go to the hospital to visit a friend. Sokolov went into the entry and began to put on his coat while the hostess wrote down her phone number for him. But the guest did not plan to leave so quickly. The man suddenly attacked the evangelist with his fists and beat her about the face and neck and kicked her. Goncharova tried to resist and even scratched her attacker's nose and then ran into the kitchen, but Sokolov grabbed her by her skirt and threw her onto the floor. Then he grabbed from the table two pairs of knives and repeatedly plunged them into his victim's chest. After this the sadist stole from a vase on the dresser all the jewelry, five silver necklaces, a pair of gold earrings, and two wedding rings worth a total of 10,600 rubles.
The woman's body was discovered that evening by her husband when he returned from work. He summoned the police and telephoned the friend of his wife, who told the officers about their chance acquaintance with Sokolov. Several days later the murderer was arrested in his father's apartment. The blood of his victim was still on Sokolov's jeans and jacket.
The accused denied his involvement in the crime. Besides murder and robbery the investigation also incriminated Sokolov with attempted rape of the sectarian; the dead woman was found completely nude. However the sex charge was not proven. But even without this the court sentenced Sokolov to 18 years in prison with confiscation of property. (tr. by PDS, posted 1 August 2001)
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Dr. Mikhail Oshtrakh, the president of the Jewish National Autonomy of Sverdlovsk Oblast, sent a written appeal to the mayor of Yekaterinburg, the governor of the Sverdlovsk region, and the presidential plenipotentiary for the Urals region demanding that criminal charges be brought against the local diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC). Dr. Oshtrakh, who is also a partner with the humanitarian assistance program of UCSJ's affiliate Chicago Action for Jews in the Former Soviet Union, informed UCSJ that the ROC is distributing a book written before the Russian Revolution by Sergey Nilus containing excerpts from his infamous forgery-- "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion." The "Protocols," which purports to be a record of a secret meeting of powerful Jews planning to control the world, was used by Hitler as a justification for the Holocaust. Under Russian law, the incitement of ethnic or religious hatred is illegal, including incitement of hatred through published material.
According to Dr. Oshtrakh, the book was published in St. Petersburg by the Orthodox Publishing house with the blessing of ROC Bishop Afanasy. In Yekaterinburg, it is being sold for 102-107 rubles a copy.
Dr. Oshtrakh's action against the ROC's illegal distribution of Nilus' book has been widely covered in the regional print and television media. Unfortunately, it has also led to a public attack on him by the leader of the city's Chabad community, whose spokeswoman told the media that while the Chabad leadership looks upon the publication of Nilus' book "unfavorably," it "is not a reason for religious or political scandals" and "we have long-standing and very friendly relations with the Yekaterinburg [ROC] diocese." Obviously seeking to exploit this disagreement within the Jewish community, a representative of the ROC diocese publicly advised Dr. Oshtrakh to stay in closer touch with the Chabad and not try to "score political points for himself."
Unfortunately, this is not the first antisemitic scandal tied to the local ROC diocese. The former ROC bishop Nikon openly maintained ties with the neo-Nazi group Russian National Unity, who according to press reports attended his farewell service in 1999 wearing full swastika-bearing regalia. In March 2001, the diocese's newspaper Pravoslavnaya Gazeta printed an article by the antisemitic columnist Deacon Andrey Kuraev, who blasted the celebration of International Women's Day because it "secretly" coincides with the Jewish holiday of Purim, which in his words savagely celebrates "unpunished mass murders" by Jews.
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Jehovah's Witnesses in Georgia have distributed an open letter to all members of Parliament. The letter points to the fact that during the last year and a half, there have been more than 80 violent attacks against Jehovah's Witnesses, many of which were mob attacks led by religious extremists, Orthodox priests, and State officials, including policemen. More than 400 criminal complaints have been filed by Jehovah's Witnesses, but none of the attackers have been convicted even though the perpetrators are often easily identifiable in televised news broadcasts. Attached to the letter were photos of victims of attacks during the last months. Jehovah's Witnesses appeal to the deputies "to exercise the power vested in you as parliamentarians to compel State agencies to uphold the law and the Constitution." The Georgian Parliament had adopted on March 30, 2001 a resolution condemning religious intolerance and violence. Nevertheless, the violent attacks continue -- the most recent of these on July 20, 2001.
Open Letter
July 24, 2001
All members of the Parliament of Georgia
Tbilisi, Georgia
On January 11, 2001, we wrote you concerning the mob violence and religious persecution directed against Jehovah's Witnesses in Georgia. At that time, we asked that clear direction be given to police and the Prosecutor's Office to protect Georgian citizens regardless of their religious confession and to prosecute those responsible for criminal acts of violence. Parliament is to be commended for having adopted on March 30, 2001, a resolution condemning religious intolerance and violence. Likewise, President Shevardnadze is to be commended for issuing, on March 22, 2001, Presidential Decree No. 226, which made the Prosecutor's Office and the ministries of Internal Affairs and State Security responsible for taking emergency measures to prevent and eradicate religiously motivated crimes.
Nevertheless, the situation has not improved; in fact, it has worsened. The attacks have escalated and become more violent, seriously endangering the lives of peaceful citizens. Law-enforcement agencies continue to turn a blind eye to criminal acts against Jehovah's Witnesses. During the last year and a half, there have been more than 80 violent attacks against Jehovah's Witnesses, many of which were mob attacks led by religious extremists, Orthodox priests, and State officials, including policemen. More than 400 criminal complaints have been filed by Jehovah's Witnesses, but none of the attackers have been convicted even though the perpetrators are often easily identifiable in televised news broadcasts.
This serious situation of unpunished lawlessness has not gone unnoticed by the international community. On May 7, 2001, the UN Committee against Torture, before whom Ms. Rusudan Beridze, Deputy Secretary of the National Security Council, appeared, made the following comment regarding the ongoing unpunished violence in Georgia: The Committee expressed concern, among other things, about "the instances of mob violence against religious minorities, in particular Jehova[h]'s Witness followers, and the failure of the police to intervene and take appropriate action despite the existence of the legal tools to prevent and prosecute such acts; and the risk posed by that impunity which resulted in such acts becoming widespread." (United Nations Press Release, CAT 7 May 2001)
These acts of mob violence and religious persecution have become so widespread that the Supreme Court of Georgia saw the need, on March 15, 2001, to publicly condemn the violence and "other expressions of religious extremism and intolerance." According to the Court, these acts are not only illegal, "but they create a serious danger for the public and the State."
Georgia's Constitution guarantees religious freedom and protection from violation of person and property. In addition, as a signatory to several international agreements and treaties in the field of human rights, Georgia has a duty to uphold the rule of law and to protect its citizens, regardless of their religious beliefs, against attacks and persecution. As stated by Luzius Wildhaber, Chairman of the European Court of Human Rights, during his recent visit to Georgia: "It makes no difference what Convention you join, if you are not going to realistically care for the fulfillment of its requirements."
We appeal to you to exercise the power vested in you as parliamentarians to compel State agencies to uphold the law and the Constitution. We look to you to go beyond rhetoric and to act in a manner consistent with Georgia's bold commitments to international human rights agreements. Such action would certainly help to restore Georgia's faltering image, both internationally and domestically, as a society that upholds its international commitments and respects the constitutionally protected rights and freedoms of all its citizens.
Respectfully,
Genadi Gudadze
Attachments: Photos
of victims
Nana Devdariani, Ombudsman
Rusudan Beridze, Deputy Secretary of National Security Council
American Embassy, Tbilisi, Georgia
British Embassy, Tbilisi, Georgia
German Embassy, Tbilisi, Georgia
Italian Embassy, Tbilisi, Georgia
OSCE Mission, Tbilisi, Georgia
EU Commission, Tbilisi, Georgia
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