Russian religious communities should have an opportunity to influence state immigration policies, a high-placed cleric in the Russian Orthodox Church said on Friday, calling on the government and businesses to support such communities which help immigrants integrate into Russia’s society.
The role of religious groups in immigration-related issues, including their influence on “immigration policies as a whole,” should become “more systematic,” said Vsevolod Chaplin, who heads the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for Relations between the Church and Society, addressing members of the Public Chamber.
Religious communities often offer moral and other support for immigrants, helping them to get used to their new life in Russia – for example, they organize Russian language courses for immigrants with the backing of regional branches of the Federal Migration Service, Chaplin said.
“Unfortunately, the state almost never supports such activities financially, but the drive, the kind attitude, cooperation and support are very important,” he said.
He said he hoped that “sooner or later, we will achieve organized and systematic financial support” for such activities.
“Maybe the state will offer such support in the future. Maybe we should count more on businesses, which, as we know, uses immigrant labor, sometimes in a barbaric way so that immigrants are deprived of their rights and get beggarly salaries, often being unable to legally defend their rights,” he added.
He expressed hope that businesses “will become more responsible” and that immigrants in Russia will be given “firm guarantees of their rights.”
Chaplin is known for controversial statements that sometimes go beyond religious matters. His latest remarks are likely to add to growing concerns among observers about attempts by the Russian Orthodox Church to influence state policies in a secular country.