RUSSIA RELIGION NEWS


Another parliamentary foray against "sects"

MIKZULINA SAYS THAT MORE THAN 500 TOTALITARIAN SECTS OPERATE IN RUSSIA

The senator says that the situation is complicated by the fact that "in Russian legislation there is no such concept as 'sect,' much less 'destructive sect'"

TASS, 13 February 2016

 

More than 500 destructive sects are active now in Russia; for combating them a working group has been created in the Federation Council under the leadership of the deputy chair of the Committee for Constitutional Legislation and State Structure, Elena Mizulina, the parliamentary press service reports.

 

"According to current expert assessment, on the order of 500 destructive sects are now active in Russia," the senator noted on Monday at a session of the committee. She says the situation is complicated by the fact that "in Russian legislation there is no such concept as 'sect,' much less 'destructive sect.'" "Contemporary sects masquerade as various organizations, conducting psychological training and seminars for the development of leadership qualities, and various experts explain how to survive if the end of the world arrives or, for example, how to teletransport to other planets, preferably with property," she added.

 

The senator introduced data from the Russian Ministry of Justice according to which in 2015-2016, on the basis of judicial decisions, 52 sectarian organizations, operating in 24 provinces, were banned and liquidated. "Such a widespread distribution of sectarian organizations clearly shows that something is wrong in current legislation," Mizulina thinks.

 

At the session of the Committee on Constitutional Legislation, a decision was adopted for the creation in the Federation Council of a working group for combating sects under the leadership of Mizulina, whose members include members of the committees on defense and social policy. The group will engage in improving legislation in the sphere of protection of citizens from fraudulent actions of destructive sects. At the same time, the leader of the group emphasized especially "that in declaring war on destructive, totalitarian sects, one should prevent attacks on traditional religious organizations." "In them we have strong allies in the struggle with frauds," Mizulina thinks. (tr. by PDS, posted 14 February 2017)


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