Chair of the Riigikogu's Legal Affairs Committee Madis Timpson (Reform) said that the committee came to the unanimous view that the law ought to be amended taking into account the president's views and to bring it into line with the Estonian Constitution.

"We were reassured at the meeting that the necessary changes can be made to the law without changing the spirit and purpose of the law, which is to prevent religious organizations from being used to incite hatred or violence," Timpson said.

The committee proposed that the debate on the issue be included on the agenda for the Riigikogu's plenary session on Wednesday May 14.

Mall Gramberg, deputy head of the President's Office's internal affairs department, and a counsellor from the Ministry of the Interior attended the committee meeting.

Varro Vooglaid (EKRE), who is a member of the Legal Affairs Committee, wrote on social media that the committee had decided to make only a cosmetic change to the draft.

The Riigikogu adopted a draft amending the Act on Churches and Congregations, which was initiated by the government on April 9. Among other things, the draft aims to ensure religious organizations operating in Estonia cannot be used to incite hatred or violence.

According to the explanatory memorandum accompanying the draft, Estonia stands for freedom of religion and everyone has the freedom to choose whether and which religion to follow, but in addition to respecting freedom of religion, belief and association, the state must also take into account challenges that threaten national security and the security of society.

However, on April 24, President Alar Karis did not promulgate the law, saying that the restriction on religious freedom and freedom of association it created was not proportionate. Karis considered it necessary to re-debate the law in the Riigikogu and bring it into line with the Estonian Constitution.

The law also specifies who can serve as a member of the clergy on the board of a religious community in Estonia. Neither clergy nor religious community board members can be a person who is not allowed to reside or stay in Estonia. The bill also specifies the requirements for the constitution of a religious community and creates the possibility to leave a church whose activities, constitution or governing board do not meet the requirements to be established. To this end, the congregation or monastery would be required to adopt a new constitution, after which it will be possible to register the changes that comply with the requirements without the approval of the church's governing body, since gaining such approval may not be a realistic option.

A law that has not been promulgated will be discussed again in a plenary session of the Riigikogu after the Legal Affairs Committee has also taken a position on it. The plenary assembly is addressed by a representative of the Constitutional Committee and the Legal Affairs Committee, to whom each deputy may pose a question. Negotiations will then be opened, with the floor given to MPs as well as representatives of the committees and political groups. Once those negotiations have been concluded, a vote will be taken on the re-adoption of the law as it stands at that point.

The plenary session of the Riigikogu will re-debate the unannounced law when it is added to the agenda. The Plenary Assembly is addressed by a representative of the Constitutional Committee and the Committee on Legal Affairs, to whom each deputy may put an oral question. Negotiations are then opened, at which members of the National Assembly and representatives of committees and political groups may speak. After the negotiations, a vote will be taken on the re-adoption of the law as amended.

If the law is not re-adopted in its unamended form, a deadline for putting forward new amendments will be set before proceedings continue further.

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