RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION INTHE SOVIET UNION (Part II) HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEES ON EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST AND ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS OF THE COM1ITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIIS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NINETY-NINTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION JULY 30, 1986 Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Affairs U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 64-805 0 WASHINGTON: 1986 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402 COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS DANTE B. FASCELL, Florida, Chairman LEE H. HAMILTON, Indiana WILLIAM S. BROOMFIELD, Michigan GUS YATRON, Pennsylvania BENJAMIN A. GILMAN, New York STEPHEN J. SOLARZ, New York ROBERT J. LAGOMARSINO, California DON BONKER, Washington JIM LEACH, Iowa GERRY E. STUDDS, Massachusetts TOBY ROTH, Wisconsin DAN MICA, Florida OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine MICHAEL D. BARNES, Maryland HENRY J. HYDE, Illinois HOWARD WOLPE, Michigan GERALD B.H. SOLOMON, New York GEO. W. CROCKETT, JR., Michigan DOUGLAS K. BEREUTER, Nebraska SAM GEJDENSON, Connecticut MARK D. SILJANDER, Michigan MERVYN M. DYMALLY, California ED ZSCHAU, California TOM LANTOS, California ROBERT K. DORNAN, California PETER H. KOSTMAYER, Pennsylvania CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey ROBERT G. TORRICELLI, New Jersey CONNIE MACK, Florida LAWRENCE J. SMITH, Florida MICHAEL DEWINE, Ohio HOWARD L. BERMAN, California DAN BURTON, Indiana HARRY M. REID, Nevada JOHN McCAIN, Arizona MEL LEVINE, California EDWARD F. FEIGHAN, Ohio TED WEISS, New York GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York BUDDY MACKAY, Florida MORRIS K. UDALL, Arizona ROBERT GARCIA, New York JOHN J. BRADY, Jr., Chief of Staff ROXANNE PERUGINO, Staff Assistant SHIRLEY DAWSON, Staff Assistant SUBCOMMITTEE ON EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST LEE H. HAMILTON, Indiana, Chairman TOM LANTOS, California BENJAMIN A. GILMAN, New York ROBERT G. TORRICELLI, New Jersey MARK D. SILJANDER, Michigan LAWRENCE J. SMITH, Florida ED ZSCHAU, California MEL LEVINE, California ROBERT K. DORNAN, California HARRY M. REID, Nevada CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey EDWARD F. FEIGHAN, Ohio GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York MICHAEL H. VAN DusEN, Staff Director HILLEL WEINBERG, Minority Staff Consultant KENNETH B. Moss, Subcommittee Staff Consultant CHRISTOPHER A. KoJM, Subcommittee Staff Consultant SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS GUS YATRON, Pennsylvania, Chairman GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York GERALD B.H. SOLOMON, New York DON BONKER, Washington CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey TOM LANTOS, California MARK D. SILJANDER, Michigan EDWARD F. FEIGHAN, Ohio DAN BURTON, Indiana GEO. W. CROCKETT, JR., Michigan MARI J. TAVLARIDES, Subcommittee Staff Director DAVID LONIE, Minority Staff Consultant BERNADETTE PAOLO, Subcommittee Staff Consultant KERRY BOLOGNESE, Subcommittee Staff Consultant (II) CONTENTS WITNESSES Page Hon. Edward J. Derwinski, counselor, Department of State, and former Member of Congress from the State of Illinois ...................................................... 3 Hon. Richard Schifter, Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs ............................................................ 31 Catherine Fitzpatrick, representing Helsinki Watch ................................................ 56 Nikita Moravsky, former deputy chief, U.S.S.R. division, Voice of America, and Professor of Russian Culture at George Washington University ............... 80 Rev. Ernest Gordon, president, Christian Rescue Effort for the Emancipation of Dissidents ............................................................. 96 Natalia Vins, international representation for the Council of Evangelical Baptist Churches of the Soviet Union, Inc ............................................................ 129 APPENDIXES ]. Document entitled "The Persecuted Church in the Soviet Union, Prisoner List 1986," submitted by Ms. Vins ............................................................ 171 2. Prepared statement of Leonid Rudnytzky, executive secretary, St. Sophia Religious Research Institute, "St. Sophia" Religious Association of Ukrainian Catholics, Inc. U.S.A ............................................................. 182 (III) RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION IN THE SOVIET UNION (Part II) WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 1986 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AF- FAIRS, SUBCOMMITTEES ON EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST, AND ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL OR- GANIZATIONS, Washington, DC. The subcommittees met at 11:05 a.m., in room 2200, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Gus Yatron (chairman of the Subcom- mittee on Human Rights and International Organizations) presid- ing. Mr. YATRON. The subcommittees will come to order. The Subcom- mittee on Human Rights and International Organizations and the Subcommittee on Europe and the Middle East meet today to con- tinue our investigation into religious persecution in the Soviet Union. I want to thank the co-chairman of this hearing, Congressman Lee Hamilton, for his leadership on this issue and for his efforts in putting together these important hearings. Last year, we conducted a hearing on the plight of Soviet Jewry and found that pervasive and brutal repression continues against the Jewish population, in particular those interested in emigrating. Today, we will take a look at how the Soviet system treats Chris- tians, Muslims, and others who wish to exercise their fundamental right of religious expression. President Reagan and the Soviet leader Gorbachev have signed a joint statement calling for greater cooperation between our two countries on a number of important issues, including humanitarian concerns. In addition, the Soviets have made some gestures on human rights issues in releasing Mr. Shcharansky, allowing Dr. Yelena Bonner to travel to the West for medical treatment, and permitting some of their citizens to join relatives in the United States. Whether or not these actions indicate any meaningful change in overall Soviet human rights policy can partly be determined by the manner in which the Kremlin treats its citizens. Unfortunately, the Soviet Government continues to have in place an extensive system to control religious activity. Religious congre- gations must continue to register with Soviet authorities and are closely monitored. Believers cannot engage in charitable activities, (1) 2 reach prestigious positions in society or provide formal religious training to their children. There is an extreme shortage of places of worship, seminaries, and clerics. In addition, victims of religious persecution have de- picted gruesome accounts of prison beatings, house raids, arrests, and staged trials, confiscation of Bibles and other religious materi- als, disruption of services, slander campaigns, removal of children from homes and abuses in psychiatric hospitals. While belief in God is incompatible with Marxist/Leninst doc- trines, some other Communist states have allowed greater religious freedom than the Soviet Union. Moreover, this inconsistency has not prevented the Soviets from acknowledging religious rights in its constitution and authorities have apparently recognized the propaganda value of tolerating the minimal level of religious activ- ity. Therefore, it should not be considered futile to continue to press the Soviets to relax restrictions on religious expression. That is one of the purposes of the hearing today. We want to focus public at- tention on the millions of Soviet citizens who suffer various forms of persecution for exercising their belief in God, a fundamental, internationally recognized right. I look forward to hearing our witnesses today. Any recommenda- tions or suggestions on actions the United States might pursue to promote religious freedom in the Soviet Union are welcome. I would now like to call on the co-chair of this hearing, Congress- man Lee Hamilton, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Europe and the Middle East. Mr. HAMILTON. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. We appre- ciate your initiative in these matters on human rights, and we want to follow your leadership. We welcome today Assistant Secretary Schifter. We are very glad to have him, and, of course, we are especially pleased to have our former colleague with us, Mr. Derwinski. He is always welcome in these rooms, and it is good to see him with us. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. YATRON. Thank you, Chairman Hamilton. I would like to call on Mr. Torricelli. Did you have a comment or statement? Mr. TORRICELLI. No. I prefer to move forward. Mr. YATRON. Thank you. Our first panel of witnesses today are from the Department of State. We are pleased to welcome our former colleague, Hon. Edward Derwinski, Counselor of the Department of State, and former Member of Congress from the State of Illinois; and Hon. Richard Schifter, Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs. We are very pleased to have both of you with us today. Mr. Der- winski, you may proceed with your statement when you are ready. Let me just state for the record that your entire statements will be included in the hearing record. You may summarize your state- ments, if you would like. Mr. Derwinski. 3 STATEMENT OF HON. EDWARD J. DERWINSKI, COUNSELOR, DE- PARTMENT OF STATE, AND FORMER MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF ILLINOIS Mr. DERWINSKI. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will be brief in order to give the panel more time to ask ques- tions. I would like to touch on just one or two highlights of my pre- pared testimony. I would like to make the point that according to our latest data,