Alexander Lukashenko was considering signing Europe’s most repressive law, and foreign missionary workers remained banned from the region.
Last week the Upper House of Parliament in Belarus approval a bill on religion which would severely restrict the activities of smaller denominations and stress the dominant role of the Russian Orthodox church.
The bill bans organized prayer by religious communities of fewer then 20 people and prohibits religions which have been active in Belarus for less than two decades from publishing literature or setting up missions.
PRIOR RELIGIOUS CENSORSHIP
Keston News Service (KNS), which closely monitors religious persecution, said the new law outlaws unregistered religious activity and require compulsory prior censorship for all religious literature.
The law also forbids foreign citizens to lead religious organizations and there would be a ban on all but occasional, small religious meetings in private homes, KNS reported.
Despite international protests, President Lukashenko was expected to sign the legislation by the required deadline of Friday, October 12 or earlier, Western observers said.
FOREIGN MISSIONARY WORKERS
The latest developments came amidst reports of growing pressure on active Christians and foreign missionary workers in Belarus and neighboring Russia, which have remained close diplomatic ties and even talked about a new merger.
On Monday, October 7, there were no indications that Leo Martensson, a Swedish missionary who was recently expelled from Russia, would have his deportation order overturned in courts. Over the weekend KNS also reported that 5 United States Protestant church workers based in the city of Kostroma were banned from entering Russia.
They were reportedly denied entry visas to Russia this summer in accordance with the same legal provision cited against the banished Irkutsk-based Catholic Bishop Jerzy Mazur – "in the interests of ensuring state security".
ORTHODOX INFLUENCE
"We cannot understand the motivation," one of the five, Jeffery Wollman, told KNS. "We had done everything legally and above board." Church analysts have blamed the developments on growing influence of the large Orthodox Church on politicians eager to keep power.
There is concern among human rights workers that Western countries are less interested in the violation of religious rights at a time when the United States needs Russia to be a partner in the global war against terrorism.
