In Russia the state is building a cooperative model of relations with religious organizations, which involves cooperation and partnership in solving vital issues of social development, mainly in the social and charitable spheres. The legislative framework for state-confessional relations and freedom of conscience continues to improve, and the institution for the protection of believers’ rights is developing. However, the issue of human rights protection continues to be actual. A study of the topics and dynamics of appeals to the Ombudsman for Human Rights in the Russian Federation (OHR) in 2017–2024 revealed that the most pressing issues for citizens were issues such as disagreement with the use of digital technologies in identifications, as well as concerns about leakage and insufficient security of personal data. Also, against this background, the problems related to the restriction of freedom of conscience, violation of the rights of believers, as well as the narrowing of the possibilities of religious and public organizations, including disagreement with decisions to recognize some of them as extremist, have intensified; problems with alternative civil service. As the checks showed that some of the complaints were groundless. It has been established that, depending on changes in the geopolitical and domestic political conditions during the period under study, the relevance of certain issues in the exercise of freedom of conscience has changed. At the same time, the institution of the Ombudsman, being a link between citizens and States, has established itself as an effective mechanism for protecting the constitutional rights of citizens to freedom of conscience. It is classified as a human rights model based on its key characteristics.
Key words: Ombudsman for Human Rights, citizens’ rights, freedom of conscience and religion, state-confessional relations
DOI: 10.22250/2072-8662-2026-2-167-176
About the authors
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Regina M. Mukhametzyanova-Duggal – PhD (Political Sciences), Сhief Researcher of the Department of Religious Studies, Institute for Ethnological Studies – Subdivision of the Ufa Federal Research Centre RAS; 6 Karl Marx St., Ufa, 450077, Russia; Associate Professor, Professor of the Department of Theory of State and Law, Institute of Law, Ufa University of Science and Technology; 131 Dostoevskogo St., Ufa, 450005, Russia; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |
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Denis A. Efimov – Junior Researcher of the Department of Religious Studies, Institute for Ethnological Studies – Subdivision of the Ufa Federal Research Centre RAS; 6 Karl Marx St., Ufa, 450077, Russia; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |