An unofficial leader of a Scientologist community in Astrakhan has been fined for violating a provision of the anti-terrorism legislation known as the "Yarovaya Package." Amendments to the package of legislation permit missionary work for officially registered organizations and only in authorized places.
The organizer, who has not been named, had set up a booth in a local shopping center where patrons could learn about the Church of Scientology and the works of its founder, the late L. Ron Hubbard. She was found guilty of violating the provision on missionary work and fined the minimum amount of 5,000 rubles ($79).
"The organizer of this action also arranged a "Volga tour of goodwill," during which they distributed information on the works of L. Ron Hubbard," said Elena Lidzhi-Goryaeva, an assistant to the prosecutor for Astrakhan's Kirov district.
Previously, a Protestant pastor in Kemerovo and an Archbishop for the Russian Orthodox Reformed Church were fined under the same provision.
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