Valentine’s Day banned in Russia’s Belgorod province
February 9th, 2011 - 10:57 pm ICT by Aishwarya BhattMoscow, Feb 9 (THAINDIAN NEWS) Authorities in the Russian province of Belgorod have placed a ban on the celebration of Valentine’s Day.
The authorities have urged schools and other state institutions under its jurisdiction not to engage in the celebration of the day because it has no significance in the Russian culture.
An official of the province was quoted by the media in Russia as saying “The very atmosphere of these holidays does not foster the formation of spiritual and moral values in youth, and holding them primarily benefits commercial organizations”.
The Russian local media reports that the province has similar opinion about the observation of the Halloween.
The deputy governor of Belgorod signed the letter that was sent to the schools and the institutions. The letter and the directive in it had the full backing of the Orthodox Church in the province. The Russian Orthodox bishop for the province reportedly “blessed” the letter.
The directive will hit bars and other businesses that were hoping to make some cash during the day hard. They have been ordered not to organize any special events on the day.
The Russian Orthodox Church remains a powerful institution in the country. The Soviet Union was officially an atheist state until it came apart in 1991.
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