An American Baptist missionary, who was fined for holding weekly
Bible studies in Russia, has taken his case to the European Court of
Human Rights to appeal the severe sanctions imposed by the country's
"anti-missionary" law. Donald Ossewaarde was the first U.S. missionary to be charged under
Russia's "Yarovaya" law that was introduced in July 2016. He was fined
40,000 rubles ($600) after he was found guilty of conducting illegal
missionary activities for hosting Sunday morning Bible studies at his
home in the Russian city of Oryol. The "Yarovaya" law, named after one of its authors, was introduced as
an "anti-terrorism" measure, which allows the government to monitor
extremist groups, according to World Watch Monitor. Ossewaarde had already made several appeals, including one to the
Russian Supreme Court, but his efforts have been unsuccessful. On
Wednesday, he filed an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights,
with the help of ADF International, a legal organization advocating for
religious freedom.
"Freedom of religion is one of the most fundamental rights. Nobody
should be persecuted because of their faith. Despite the Russian
Constitution guaranteeing freedom of conscience and religion for all,
Donald Ossewaarde has been charged with a criminal offence for holding a
peaceful Church service in his own home," said ADF International Legal
Counsel Laurence Wilkinson. ..........................
Russia considers putting the brakes on lawbreaking sites
Fed up of foreign companies sidestepping punishment by the courts,
Russian lawmakers are considering a new strategy — slowing down the
websites of internet companies that violate Russian law. According to a report by Russian newspaperVedemosti,
the law would be aimed at companies that have been able to evade
judgments from Russian courts because they are officially registered
abroad. While initially proposed to target foreign companies such as
Google, any new rules would allegedly also apply to Russian companies,
according to the report. Rather than pushing through new legislation, lawmakers are
considering bringing in the new rules by amending Russia's existing
Yarovaya Law, a package of legal amendments intended to combat terrorism
that was passed in 2016. If you can't beat 'em, slow 'em down.
