THE Decision of the Governor of Pernambuco, Paulo Câmara (PSB)
, which requires the presentation of negative Covid-19 tests or proof of complete vaccination against the disease to allow the presence of believers in religious ceremonies with more than 300 people, endangers religious freedom. In addition to calling into question fundamental rights, the decree also risks the collaboration that the country’s churches provide to the states in preventing the disease.
The diagnosis is made by the vice president of the IBDR (Brazilian Institute of Law and Religion) Jean Regina. In an interview with R7, the jurist explains that the churches are mature enough about the pandemic and, consequently, how to adopt measures to avoid contamination.
“We live in a Brazilian secularism that is collaborative, the church is collaborating with the State. Religious authorities were already mature enough to understand the complexity of the problem. But the great danger of the state creating restrictions on religious freedom is that they want to build reasoning in the sense of restricting religious freedom,” he warns.
For the president of Anajure (National Association of Evangelical Jurists), lawyer Edna Zilli, the decree represents an arbitrary measure because, according to her, it is possible to combat the spread of the pandemic with the adoption of sanitary protocols recommended. “This type of requirement for churches is not common, because it hurts both religious freedom and the right to conscientious objection”, he says.
“Furthermore, not everyone had access to the vaccine at all stages of the immunization or have the means to undergo tests at each religious schedule, which is usually on several days of the week”, he completes.
The president of the association agrees that the decision of the government of Pernambuco violates constitutional rights. “This requirement represents an offense to the constitutionally enshrined right to religious freedom, as it constitutes an embarrassment to one of its basic dimensions, which is the free exercise of worship,” he says. Cults: central nucleus of religious freedom
According to the IBDR jurist, the determination, which is contained in an edited decree on Monday (27) by the governor of Pernambuco, it hurts the core of religious freedom: the cults. In addition, it is considered disproportionate to the current moment of pandemic control in the country. “Religion has a key role in people’s mental health. Worship is a central core of the exercise of religion. If the religious authority establishes worship as essential, it is essential that the person attend this space to profess their faith”, explains Jean.
“What happens is that, often over the months of 2020 and 2021, we saw that some attitudes of municipal and state managers were disproportionate in relation to religious activity, despite the activity being considered essential to human life, generating legal questions”, he adds.
According to the jurist, Pernambuco was one of the Brazilian states that imposed more restrictions on cults. “The state created restrictions on lives, which did not last, and now we are at this moment when there is an obligation to present a complete vaccination picture or a negative test”, he explains. Jean, from the IBDR, clarifies that the requirement affronts two rights, freedom of belief and religious freedom. “The essential core of religious freedom is the worship that takes place in the temple in person”, he says.
The jurist explains that, in a country where less than half of the population managed to complete the vaccination program against Covid-19, the decision of the government of Pernambuco is considered unfair. “There is not for everyone, if it had, most people would already be vaccinated”, he argues. High cost of testing
The other possibility, of taking tests, is considered by the lawyer to be a costly and invasive option. “It is an invasive procedure, bad, expensive and sometimes not easily accessible. A faithful who attends two services a week would have to spend between R$200 and R$300 to be able to go to church. It is an unfair decision because we are in the least serious phase of the pandemic and with an absolutely restrictive measure, which violates constitutional equality and imposes a burden on citizens who want to profess their faith,” he says.
Jean also points out that the churches have followed the imposed sanitary protocols with discipline. “They have been an example of their own conduct. Most cults from all headquarters have adopted precautionary measures, distance and rational use of space. Many practices have been adapted, closer counseling has been avoided”, she explains. The president of Anajure states that the requirement can generate false security and the consequent relaxation of sanitary measures. “This can lead to contamination, given that the vaccines do not have a guarantee of full immunization, nor are all the steps completed.”Source: R7
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