A/54/386 legislation forbidding discrimination against women, the latter are apparently still affected by religious traditions, especially with regard to marriage. The religious authorities are said to counsel their faithful in ways detrimental to women. 82. Ukraine. The duration of alternative service for conscientious objectors is apparently punitive in character. Moreover, it is said that only members of officially registered religious communities whose doctrines prohibit military service can perform alternative service. Christian communities which are not indigenous to Ukraine reportedly encounter difficulties. The legislation on freedom of conscience and religion apparently states that the religious activities of foreigners must be confined strictly within the framework of the host organizations and must be approved by the authorities which registered the congregations concerned. The procedures for the registration of religious organizations originating outside Ukraine were said to be delayed by the local and regional authorities, which allegedly impedes the acquisition of property. The Seventh Day Adventists reportedly encounter difficulties in educational institutions in the case of examinations scheduled for the sabbath. The same problem apparently arises in the workplace. 83. Yemen. Christian communities reportedly cannot engage in religious activities vis-à-vis Muslims. The correspondence of the clergy is apparently sometimes monitored by the authorities in order to prevent any proselytism. Women are allegedly affected by certain laws, which seem to be based on religious rules: in particular, a woman wishing to obtain a passport and travel abroad is said to need the permission of her father or husband. C. Late replies/failure to reply to communications sent for the fifty-fifth session of the Commission on Human Rights 84. Germany (reply to the communication contained in document E/CN.4/1999/58 (para. 29)). The authorities confirmed that the tennis player Arnaud Boetsch had lost a contract with a private tennis club which had come under pressure from its main sponsors because of his membership in the Church of Scientology. They added: “If Boetsch’s contract ... were subject to German labor law (dependent working relationship), he could have challenged the club’s decision to end his contract at court. It is not known whether this was the case. In any case, such a step was not taken by A. Boetsch who, in his later correspondence with 12 the tennis club, was represented by a lawyer.”The authorities were unable to obtain any information about the Spanish musician Enrique Ugarte. With regard to the Berlin police director, the authorities confirmed that an investigation had been opened to determine whether he was a member of the Church of Scientology; in the meantime, he had not been suspended from work but had in fact been assigned to non-sensitive special duties. The inquiry having shown that he was not a member of the Church of Scientology, he had been reinstated in his previous field of work in July 1998 and had received a promotion. 85. Bulgaria (ibid., para. 46) provided a detailed reply concerning the cases and situations mentioned by the Special Rapporteur. The authorities confirmed that a workshop on Islam organized by citizens of Saudi Arabia in violation of the law had been discontinued at the express request of the regional mufti. According to the law on religious denominations, religious manifestations may be organized only by, or with the consent of, officially registered denominations. In this case, the office of the chief mufti had not been informed that the workshop was to be held. Moreover, the Saudi Arabian clerics had entered the country with tourist visas, which did not authorize them to carry out religious activities. 86. The expulsion of an Austrian Jehovah’s Witness following an earlier sanction under the Law on Foreigners Residing in the Republic of Bulgaria was confirmed. With regard to the case of two Bessarabian Jehovah’s Witnesses, it was explained that an order banning them from entering the country had been issued because their residence permits had expired and not because of their beliefs. During their appeal, the couple had been granted Bulgarian nationality and the order banning them from the country had thus been annulled. The authorities stated that the Directorate on Religious Denominations and the Chief Prosecutor’s Office had not received any information concerning attacks on the Bulgarian Church of God. The Directorate had nevertheless contacted the High Priest of that church, who according to the authorities had described the incidents as insignificant. The confiscation of the religious building of the Emmanuel Bible Centre was confirmed. This case, which is linked to violations of the Law on Territorial and Urban Development, is being prosecuted in the courts. Concerning the programmes hostile to the Jehovah’s Witnesses, broadcast by a local television station, the authorities stated that the programmes, which contained accusations concerning the kidnapping of children and incitation to suicide, resulted from a private investigation conducted by a journalist and that the local leaders of the Jehovah’s Witnesses community had not complained about