![]() Tom Balmforth in RFE/RL reports that 'Putin has frequently touted what he calls traditional values and has held out the dominant Russian Orthodox Church as a moral authority for the country during his third presidential term. Passage of the [2013] legislation deepened the concerns of liberals, Kremlin opponents, rights activists, and representatives of other religions who fear relations between church and state are too tight. Russia’s constitution says it is a secular state.' In a report published in 2015, 'Misuse of Anti-Extremism Legislation in October 2015,' the Moscow-based Sova Center wrote: 'We consider this prosecution inappropriate, since we don’t see anything that can be qualified under Article 148 in Krasnov’s actions. In addition, the experts have no right to make judgments on whether the statements have been offensive or aimed at insulting the feelings of believers, since such matters should be decided in court. We regard the prosecution against Krasnov as a violation of his right to freedom of conscience.' Tanya Lokshina, Russia Program Director at Human Rights Watch, has written about the case of Viktor Krasnov: 'This absurd trial, however, fits well within the increasingly aggressive campaign by the Russian government to stifle free expression online with the use of numerous restrictive laws pushed through parliament since Vladimir Putin’s return to the Kremlin. The law on “offending religious feelings of believers” appears to be one of the tools created by the authorities specifically for the purpose of narrowing the space for free expression in Russia.' Photo: RFE/RL Sources: 'Russian atheist faces year in jail for denying existence of God during webchat,' The Guardian, 3 March 2016 Tom Balmforth, 'Russian Man Could Be Jailed For Saying God Doesn't Exist,' RFE/RL, 2 March 2016 Tanya Lokshina, 'Dispatches: Prosecuted in Russia for Lack of Faith,' Human Rights Watch, 3 March 2016 |