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Separation of the Church from the Civil Code

12.09.2012 22:42 / gazeta.ru

State Duma deputees have heeded Patriarch Kirill`s criticism of the new Civil Code norms, threatening the church, as stated in Kirill`s letter to Putin. Before the second reading, the parliament amended Code norms, saving the church from losing most of its land. Duma sources state `close cooperation` with the Moscow patriarchate legal office.

The State Duma took on board most of Kirill`s notes on the new Civil Code and made amendments to the first draft. Vedomosti reported Tuesday that Patriarch Kirill had sent President Vladimir Putin a letter criticizing the proposed amendments to the Civil Code, said Ksenia Chernega, legal councellor of the Moscow patriarchate.

Chernega said Wednesday that the letter had been sent on 6 May (a week after the Duma passed the new Civil Code in the forst reading). There was a number of issues raised. "Firstly, corporate relations and then, land ownership. Religious organizaions were exempted from bankruptcy, since current law does not provide bankruptcy for churches", said the councellor.

The Orthodox Church also expressed concern regarding the draft article on general company meetings.

This part of the Civil Code regulates voting at GSMs and sets rules for protocols. If the Duma had retained the first draft, churches would have had to conduct their councils according to secular law. The Orthodox eparchial, local and even congregational councils would all be affected, said the Patriarch`s letter. Deputees amended this norm in the second reading and also included provisions that allow churches to set up Sunday schools.

The Patriarch`s letter to Putin also mentioned a new CC norm that would make the ROC forfeit two thirds of its land. This concerns free use of municipal land, and not the land owned by the church. "For all legal entities that are exempted from paying land tax there is a stipulated provision under which they are going to have `permanent land ownership` on a free basis, with mandatory buy-out of the land. This effectively means loss of free use for ROC", explains Chernega. "The patriarch pointed this out and the promlem was solved".

United Russia took heed of the patriarch`s comments: the second reading of ownership rights for religious organizations was curated by First Deputy Chairman of the parliament Alexander Zhukov. Ten days after the letter, on May 17, United Russia was ready to submit their amendments to the Duma Committee on Civil, Criminal, Arbitration and Court Law.

United Russia has been behind church land ownership for a long time. A few years ago the ruling party amended the Land Code, making free land use possible for plots adjoining churches. "Naturally, we are interested in keeping this norm in the new Civil Code draft", reads the er.ru citation from Sergey Popov, member of the Duma Christian Values Preservation Group. Popov admits to lobbying church interests in the new Civil Code: according to him, prior to the second reading, the patriach and church leaders were consulted and "a series of test meetings were held involving the President`s Executive Office Legal Department, the government legal department, leading experts and scientists".

Head of Duma Public and Religious Organizations Committee Yaroslav Nilov, LDPR, confirms that the second reading draft has been amended to reflect the patriarch`s land use comments.

"The amendments have enough support to be passed, giving religious organizations a choice between ownersip, free use or rent", said Nilov.

Diplomatically, the deputee notes that the standpoints of "various relogious organizations" were taken into account, since the parliament "cannot draft tailor-made laws for the Russian Orthodox Church". Nevertheless, Civil Code writers are in contact with the Moscow Patriarchate, adds Nilov. "We, the legislators, and the Moscow Patriarchate legal department are in close working contact. We saw many things in a different light".

The interaction between the patriarch and the State Duma reflects a common practice of lobbying community interests, says United Russia deputee Robert Schlegel.

"We deal with issues that affect communities, and they get in contact with us. In this regard, the church is no different from the business community, for instance". The second reading is scheduled for Autumn, with no fixed date yet. According to United Russia, this will happen in the last week of October, while a Duma source expects the draft to be read in late October at the earliest.

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