IV 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 190 
Expressing the sense of the Congress that the Russian Federation should 
fully protect the freedoms of all religious communities without distinction, 
whether registered and unregistered, as stipulated by the Russian Con-
stitution and international standards. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 23, 2005 
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. WOLF, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. PITTS, 
and Mr. MCINTYRE) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which 
was referred to the Committee on International Relations 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the Congress that the Russian Fed-
eration should fully protect the freedoms of all religious 
communities without distinction, whether registered and 
unregistered, as stipulated by the Russian Constitution 
and international standards. 
Whereas the Russian Federation is a participating State of 
the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe 
(OSCE) and has freely committed to fully respect the 
rights of individuals, whether alone or in community with 
others, to profess and practice religion or belief; 
Whereas the Russian Federation specifically committed in the 
1989 Vienna Concluding Document to ‘‘take effective 
measures to prevent and eliminate discrimination against
•HCON 190 IH 
individuals or communities on the grounds of religion or 
belief’’ and to ‘‘grant upon their request to communities 
of believers, practicing or prepared to practice their faith 
within the constitutional framework of their States, rec-
ognition of the status provided for them in the respective 
countries’’; 
Whereas Article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Fed-
eration declares ‘‘everyone shall be guaranteed the right 
to freedom of conscience, to freedom of religious worship, 
including the right to profess, individually or jointly with 
others, any religion’’ and Article 8 of the 1997 Law on 
Freedom of Conscience and Religious Associations pro-
vides for registration for religious communities as ‘‘reli-
gious organizations,’’ if they have at least 10 members 
and have operated within the Russian Federation with 
legal status for at least 15 years; 
Whereas registration is critical for religious groups to fully 
enjoy their religious freedoms, as many rights and privi-
leges afforded to religious communities in the Russian 
Federation are contingent on obtaining registration; 
Whereas many religious groups refuse to seek registration on 
theological or other grounds, while other communities 
have been unjustly denied registration or had their reg-
istration improperly terminated by local authorities; 
Whereas many of the unregistered communities in the Rus-
sian Federation today were never registered under the 
Soviet system because they refused to collaborate with 
that government’s anti-religious policies and they are now 
experiencing renewed discrimination and repression from 
the authorities;
•HCON 190 IH 
Whereas over the past 2 years there have been an estimated 
ten arson attacks on unregistered Protestant churches, 
with little or no effective response by law enforcement of-
ficials to bring the perpetrators to justice; 
Whereas in some areas of the Russian Federation law en-
forcement personnel have carried out violent actions 
against believers from unregistered communities peace-
fully practicing their faith; and 
Whereas the United States has sought to protect the funda-
mental and inalienable human right to seek, know, and 
serve God according to the dictates of one’s own con-
science, in accordance with the international agreements 
committing nations to respect individual freedom of 
thought, conscience, and belief: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that the 
United States should— 
(1) urge the Russian Federation to ensure full 
protection of freedoms for all religious communities 
without distinction, whether registered and unregis-
tered, and end the harassment of unregistered reli-
gious groups by the security apparatus and other 
government agencies; 
(2) urge the Russian Federation to ensure that 
law enforcement officials vigorously investigate acts 
of violence against unregistered religious commu-
nities, as well as make certain that authorities are 
not complicit in such attacks;
•HCON 190 IH 
(3) continue to raise concerns with the Govern-
ment of the Russian Federation over violations of re-
ligious freedom, including those against unregistered 
religious communities, especially indigenous denomi-
nations not well known in the United States; 
(4) ensure that United States Embassy officials 
engage local officials throughout the Russian Fed-
eration, especially when violations of freedom of reli-
gion occur, and undertake outreach activities to edu-
cate local officials about the rights of unregistered 
religious communities; 
(5) urge both the Personal Representative of 
the OSCE Chair-in-Office on Combating Racism, 
Xenophobia and Discrimination, also focusing on In-
tolerance and Discrimination against Christians and 
Members of Other Religions, and the United Nations 
Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief 
to visit the Russian Federation and raise with fed-
eral and local officials concerns about the free prac-
tice of unregistered religious communities; and 
(6) urge the Council of Europe and its member 
countries to raise with Russian Federation officials 
issues relating to freedom of religion, especially in
•HCON 190 IH 
light of the Russian Federation’s responsibilities as 
President of the Council in 2006. 
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