10/03/97-1083

Hindu Religious Freedom Foundation Calls For Support

(VNN) - A call for support:

International Protest of Russian Law Attacking Religious Freedom and Discriminating Against Vaishnavism and Hinduism

Namaste. I am writing to enlist your aid in protesting a law passed by the Russian government, which takes away religious freedom and the right to exist for many religions in that country, including many Hindu and Vaishnava groups. Furthermore, the law must be seen as a direct snub and insult to Vedic religions of all persuasions.

The main organization behind this law is the Russian Orthodox Church, which has tried to establish itself as the state religion in Russia, and which desires to wipe out other religions and prohibit them from preaching.

Here are some important facts about this law:

It acknowledges the right to exist in Russia for the following religions: Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, and Islam. Vaishnavism and Hinduism are conspicuous by their absence. Although there are one billion Hindus, Vaishnavas and followers of Vedic religions around the world (second in number only to Christianity), no mention is made of the right of Hinduism to exist. Hinduism is the only major religion in the world that was not listed as a legitimate religion by the Russian government.

The law is craftily designed to take the above mentioned rights away from any religion not registered for at least 15 years. Thus, in addition to the Vedic religions, most Christian religions, including the Roman Catholic church, will have most of their rights taken away.

This law even takes away the rights to invite brahmins, swamis, yogis, and Vaishnava acharyas to come to Russia as missionaries, and will prohibit them from either printing Hindu literature in Russia, importing any Vedic literature into Russia, or from distributing any such religious literature in Russia. In short, one practical effect is that it will strangle Vaishnavism and Hinduism in Russia.

There are currently at least four Vaishnava missions actively preaching in Russia, as well as a number of smaller Hindu organizations of various persuasions. Prior to the end of communism, Krishna bhaktas in Russia were severely persecuted. Many were put in jail; others were sent to mental institutions. Some died, because they would not give up their faith. Please help us make sure this does not happen again.

We need your help to protest this law. The Hindu Religious Freedom Foundation has set up a web site on the Internet to coordinate worldwide protests from Vaishnava & Hindu organizations and their individual members all over the world. The address of that web site is: http://www.tropicmall.com/hindu

Please lend your support to this important cause. The web site makes it easy for you to send letters of protest to the Russian government, Russian embassies and ambassadors, the Russian Orthodox Church, the Russian Parliament, and the president of Russia, Boris Yeltsin. Links are also set up to Indian government officials, the United Nations, and the United States government, so that you can send them your plea to speak out on this issue, and to impose sanctions on the Russian government if they do not overturn this law.

Just as it was the duty of Arjuna to pick up his bow and fight for righteousness, similarly, it is the duty of each and every one of us to "pick up the pen" and fight for righteousness by making his or her voice heard on this important cause.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Your servant, Tusta Krishna das