01776nas a2200145   4500000000100000000000100001000000100002008004100003100001600044245021700060856014400277490000700421520118900428022001301617       2023                            d1 aM.T. Najman00aCriminal Law Response to Shamanism—Is Combating Immaterial Culture a Means to Civilisation Progress on the Example of Penal Code Regulations of the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo?  uhttps://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85146746419&doi=10.3390%2frel14010023&partnerID=40&md5=a20687e40c3877ad42c57d8861ebc8da0 v143 aThe function of the law in shaping social values is exposed in the article. Thispaper considers whether certain practices penalised in the surveyed countries (carrying our rituals with the use of human remains) could be classified as intangible cultural heritage and, thus, whether these practices should be legally protected. The main conclusion of the analysis is the statement that criminal law as a response to shamanism is inconsistent with the basic principles of a democratic state oflaw, including the right to expression and self-determination. Assuming that described social phenomenon exists in a society, and at the same time, this practice does not threaten other members of this society and is commonly accepted, the legislator should avoid creating regulations that are inconsistent with the current axiological system in a given community. The elimination of certain practices should take place by creating civilisation awareness inside a community. Criminal law does not fulfil this function. On the contrary, it contributes to the deepening and consolidation of the existence of certain pathological phenomena, as well as to the disappearance of indigenous cultures.  a20771444