Kemerovo, Russia, July 9, 2020
Photo: userapi.com
A local court in the central Russian Kemerovo Province has fined an Orthodox parish for violating anti-epidemic measures by holding a mass service on Pascha night.
The court ruled that the local religious organization of the Orthodox parish of the Church of the Archangel Michael in the Kemerovo District of the Kemerovo Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church is guilty of committing an administrative offense under part 2 of article 6.3 of the Russian Codex of Administrative Violations and is subject to administrative punishment in the form of an administrative fine of $1,412 (100,000 rubles), reports the press service of the Kemerovo District Court.
It is reported that from 11:00 PM to 2:00 AM on April 18-19, the parish violated the mandatory anti-epidemic measures established in connection with the threat of the importation and spread of a new coronavirus infection caused by COVID-19, while allowing the event (service) with a mass gathering of people.
In appointing the administrative punishment, the judge took into account the nature of an administrative offense and the property and financial situation of the legal entity, and felt that given the nature of the offense and the totality of the violations, the punishment should be imposed only in the form of an administrative fine.
