Cassation Sent the Case of 71-year-old Lyudmila Salikova, for a New Appeal

On January 11, 2022, the Seventh Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction in Chelyabinsk overturned the appeal ruling against Lyudmila Salikova. An appeal against a verdict for the faith of a veteran of the nuclear industry and a veteran of labor will be considered by a different composition of the Court of Appeal.

“If the courts had correctly applied the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, they would have acquitted me,” Lyudmila told the court of cassation. “For communicating, reading and studying the Bible with my fellow believers, singing songs, praying, as well as telling others about my Bible-based beliefs, the investigation charged me with a crime.”

Here is how Lyudmila Salikova commented on the decisions of the courts against her and hundreds of other Jehovah's Witnesses, including the disabled and the elderly: “This criminal case is part of a large-scale campaign to suppress [followers of this religion] and has an ulterior motive – to silence me and my fellow believers, or for us to renounce our faith, and to punish me for my religious beliefs and openly expressing them.”

In a recent decision, the European Court reminded that convictions for extremism must be based “only on religious expressions and actions that contain or call for violence, hatred or discrimination” (§ 271). Despite this, the Russian authorities continue to persecute Jehovah's Witnesses for peaceful worship and discussions about the Bible.