Moscow
In the Spring of 1945, Russia Freed Jehovah's Witnesses From Concentration Camps. Why, 75 Years Later, Are They Again in Prisons?
More than 4,000 prisoners of concentration camps wore purple triangles on their chests. Because of their faith, they refused to salute Hitler, pick up weapons and fight. On the 75th anniversary of the liberation, the peace-loving Jehovah’s Witnesses are again in prison, this time in Russia. How did the liberating country become an oppressor?
6 May 2020
Rosfinmonitoring Treats as Terrorists More Than 200 Believers. How Jehovah's Witnesses Are Deprived of Livelihoods
Federal Financial Monitoring Service of the Russian Federation (Rosfinmonitoring) has included more than 200 innocent believers in the list of individuals involved in extremism and terrorism. They lose their jobs, business, pensions, bank accounts and even the opportunity to buy a SIM card or get insurance.
6 February 2020
“Imprisoned for Their Faith” infographic has been updated. It reflects the geography of arrests, their chronicle, the number of searches and much more
16 January 2020
Jehovah's Witnesses Under the Yoke of Repression: Results of 2019
As of December 31, 2019, 313 Jehovah’s Witnesses became defendants in criminal cases in 52 regions of Russia. During the last year, 18 people received sentences of various types and duration - up to six years in prison. In total, 149 believers have been sent to jail, 84 of them during the year. For the past 12 months, 489 house searches were carried out.
31 December 2019
“Imprisoned for Their Faith” infographic has been updated. It reflects the geography of arrests, their chronicle, the number of searches and much more
16 December 2019
District Court in Moscow extended by more than three months the house arrest of Konstantin Zherebtsov, Zinaida Krutyakova and Vitaliy Nikiforov, all from the town of Chekhov
29 November 2019
Moscow City Court approved the house arrest of three Witnesses from Chekhov. The ambiguous role of the FSB officer attracted dozens of observers, including diplomats, to court
8 November 2019
Committee of Ministers Checked How Russia Executes the European Court's Judgments on Jehovah's Witnesses
September 23-25, 2019, in Strasbourg, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, comprising the Foreign Affairs Ministers of all its member states and supervising the execution of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, “insistently urged the [Russian] authorities to rapidly take all necessary measures to ensure that members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses can enjoy the unhindered exercise of their individual right to freedom of religion.”
More Than 500 Searches in Homes of Jehovah's Witnesses
As of July 31, 2019, the total number of searches in the homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses had reached 587. In two years since the ban took effect, 90 criminal cases were opened against Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia. At least 241 people are either suspects, accused or convicted. After the verdict against Dennis Christensen in February 2019, Russian law enforcement increased the pressure, evident by the fact that as of February 6, 2019, searches numbered only 296. In total at least 129 Witnesses have been sent to detention centers, and 39 of them, including six women, are still behind bars.
19 July 2019
Russian Ombudsperson Points to the Root of Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses
For the first time, Russia’s Commissioner for Human Rights Tatyana Moskalkova drew attention to the unjustified criminal prosecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses, and also pointed out the root of the problem.
11 June 2019
Number of Jehovah's Witnesses Under Criminal Prosecution Reaches 200
As of May 24, 2019, 43 women and 157 men across Russia are being prosecuted in connection with the ban imposed on the organization of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Exactly half of the victims—100 people—were sent to Russian prisons.
24 May 2019
International Joint Statement by 36 Civic Organizations in Defense of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia
Human rights organizations from 18 countries urge the Russian authorities to release immediately and unconditionally all Jehovah’s Witnesses in detention and to drop the charges for the involvement in extremism.
25 January 2019
Vladimir Putin: “Jehovah’s Witnesses Are Also Christians. I Don’t Understand Either Why They’re Being Persecuted”.
“This is complete nonsense. We have to investigate this carefully”, Vladimir Putin commented regarding Jehovah’s Witnesses being included on the list of extremist organisations.
17 December 2018
Human Rights Council Responds to Appeal of Wives of Men Arrested
The Prosecutor General’s Office was asked to verify the legality of the massive arrests of Jehovah’s Witnesses. The Council for Human Rights believes that this violates the Supreme Court decision.
21 June 2018
Collective Open Letter From Wives of Men Arrested
A letter was published, addressed to the whole Council for Human Rights. It begins with the words: “An open letter to you — our cry of despair”.
7 June 2018
