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There are other signs that religious freedom in Russia may be improving.Prime Minister and Acting President Vladimir Putin, who is likely to take the presidential spot in the upcoming election, pledged in recent public statements to uphold fundamental rights, including freedom of conscience.But a recent position paper on Russia's future, posted on the Internet under Putin's name, does not mention religion.Stephen Shenfield, an expert on Russia at the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University, says that absence may be a good sign: "The very fact that religion is nowhere mentioned in the document is a hopeful sign, because it implies that religion belongs to the private sphere instead of to the state." This may constrain further movement toward making the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) a semi-official state religion.Another significant development occurred last November, when the Russian Orthodox Church helped organize a conference of 33 traditional Christian churches, including Orthodox, Catholics, and Protestants of various denominations from former Soviet countries. Participants discussed theology, missions, morals, and Christian cooperation in what was reported as "a fraternal spirit."Krasikov says the interdenominational conference came about because the ROC, itself caught in the mire of the 1997 religion law, "came to understand the dangers of this law to the church." He said a similar cooperative effort was already in motion in 1994, but was "frozen" when the battle began over the 1997 law.Vsevolod Chaplin, speaking for the ROC Patriarchate from its Office of External Affairs, states emphatically that the ROC "didn't change its opinion toward this law."He says the ROC still supports the 1997 law because the earlier law created a vacuum that could not protect the country against destructive activities of questionable religious groups. But he agrees that the future looks more stable for religious freedom. "The peak of the struggle for souls is going away," he says.Chaplin says the ROC already had good relations with other confessions in the 1970s and 1980s. The conflict started in the late 1980s with the influx of foreign missionaries, peaking in 1992 and 1993. Chaplin says it is possible that the wounds inflicted several years ago are starting to heal.

See our past coverage of this issue:Turning Back the Clock | Non-Orthodox Christians have less religious freedom than a year ago (Oct. 26, 1998)Russia's minority churches welcome liberal ruling on religion law | 1997 ruling against 'sects' upheld, but religious groups claim victory (Nov. 30, 1999)Stepping Back from Freedom | The new law restricting religion is part of Russia'sstruggle to redefine itself. By Anita Deyneka (Nov. 17, 1997)New Religion Law Fraught with Potential for Abuses | By Beverly Nickles (Nov. 17, 1997)Jehovah's Witness Verdict Stalled | By Beverly Nickles (April 26, 1999)The U.S. Department of State Annual Report on International Religious Freedom examines Russia's religious freedom from political and societal perspectives, and remarks on what the U.S. government has done in response to human rights infringements in the country.

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March 6 2000, Vol. 44, No. 3