[{"body":"\n","date":"2026-05-28T00:00:00Z","permalink":"/en/docs/650.html","regions":["switzerland"],"tags":["un-working-group","international-community","international"],"title":"Opinions Adopted by the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention at Its 105th Session, March 23–April 1, 2026","type":"docs"},{"body":"The UN Human Rights Committee (CCPR) has ruled that Russia violated the rights of Jehovah\u0026#39;s Witnesses from Ufa who were subjected to searches, interrogations and — in one case — detention. In its Views adopted on March 13, 2026, the Committee for the first time applied articles 26 and 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in a case of Jehovah\u0026#39;s Witnesses, noting that Jehovah\u0026#39;s Witnesses are a \u0026quot;vulnerable religious minority\u0026quot; facing discrimination by the state.\nCaption: In this video, produced in June 2018, the applicants describe what they had to go through during and after the searches.\nThe believers filed their complaint 8 years ago — on April 30, 2018. A few weeks earlier, the authorities had authorized searches of their homes, seized Bibles, religious publications and personal belongings, and then interrogated them at the Investigative Committee. In their submission to the CCPR the believers said that \u0026quot;the authorities tried to intimidate them and force them to renounce their faith aiming to suppress the religious practice of Jehovah\u0026#39;s Witnesses,\u0026quot; and noted that \u0026quot;without any reasonable or objective grounds, they were subjected to criminal prosecution that no other religious organization in Russia had faced.\u0026quot;\n\u0026quot;At the time of my detention, only one Witness, Dennis Christensen, had been arrested,\u0026quot; recalled Anatoliy Vilitkevich, one of the applicants. \u0026quot;My wife and I were following the news and were really worried about how things would unfold. We thought that if the police did come, it would be during a meeting for worship; they would question everyone and let them go — because then, as now, we were sure we hadn\u0026#39;t done anything illegal.\u0026quot; After the raid, Anatoliy spent 2 months behind bars. He was charged with organizing the activity of a banned organization for friendly gatherings and conversations on spiritual topics. In September 2021, Anatoliy was given a 2-year suspended sentence.\nThe Committee called the restrictions imposed on Jehovah\u0026#39;s Witnesses by the state under the banner of \u0026quot;counteracting extremism\u0026quot; unfounded. \u0026quot;Rather than pointing out any extremist activities perpetrated by the authors [of the complaint], the authorities effectively banned their religious practice in its entirety by subjecting any manifestation thereof to criminal prosecution,\u0026quot; the Views state (para. 9.9). The Committee finds that such excessive interpretation and application of the Supreme Court decision resulted in denial of the authors' \u0026quot;right to profess and practice their own religion in community with the other members of their religious minority group\u0026quot; and \u0026quot;threatened the continued existence of their religious community.\u0026quot;\nIn the case Vilitkevich and Others v. Russia (No. 3192/2018), there were 12 applicants (in addition to Anatoliy, they were Alyona Vilitkevich, Venera Mikhaylova, Viner Ganiev, Alfiya Ilyasova, Syuzanna Ilyasova, Yelena Kozhevnikova, Oksana Lapina, Gulfiya Khafizova, Lilianna Khafizova, Nadezhda Yakimova and Olesya Yakimova). The oldest was born in 1960, the youngest in 2001. The Committee ordered the state to pay the believers adequate compensation for court costs and legal expenses, and to compensate Anatoliy Vilitkevich additionally for his time in detention.\nIn the concluding part of its Views, the Committee effectively takes the case beyond a single Ufa story. It obliges the state to provide an effective remedy, \u0026quot;to make full reparation,\u0026quot; and \u0026quot;to take all steps necessary to prevent similar violations from occurring in the future\u0026quot; — a demand for justice for all Jehovah\u0026#39;s Witnesses prosecuted in Russia, who now number around 1,000.\n","category":"victory","date":"2026-03-13T00:00:00Z","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2026/04/241429/image_hu_73546cb5427c4351.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2026/04/241429/image_hu_4b07cb1f6205a42.jpg","webp":"/news/2026/04/241429/image_hu_5b2a5c091088a2a.webp","webp2x":"/news/2026/04/241429/image_hu_b630357744e78a82.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2026/04/241429.html","regions":["moscow","bashkortostan"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["unhrc","international-community","compensation","video"],"title":"For the First Time CCPR Recognizes Discrimination Against Jehovah’s Witnesses as Religious Minority: Based on the Experience of 12 Believers From Ufa","type":"news"},{"body":"The liquidation of the religious organization of Jehovah's Witnesses in Elista and the confiscation of its property violated the applicant's rights to freedom of religion and association. Russia is obliged to reconsider this decision and compensate the applicant for losses.\n","date":"2025-06-09T16:09:51+03:00","permalink":"/en/docs/548.html","regions":["kalmykia"],"tags":["unhrc","international-community","international","mro","liquidation"],"title":"Views of the UN Human Rights Committee on the liquidation of the local religious organization of Jehovah's Witnesses in Elista","type":"docs"},{"body":"The liquidation of the Abinsk religious organization of Jehovah's Witnesses violated the applicant's rights to freedom of religion; the wording in the Russian law on extremism is too vague. Russia is obliged to reconsider the decision to liquidate and take measures to prevent similar violations in the future.\n","date":"2025-06-09T15:54:06+03:00","permalink":"/en/docs/547.html","regions":["krasnodar"],"tags":["unhrc","international-community","international","mro","liquidation"],"title":"Views of the UN Human Rights Committee on the liquidation of the local religious organization of Jehovah's Witnesses in Abinsk","type":"docs"},{"body":"In 2023, the number of Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses criminally prosecuted for their faith reached almost 800, and the number of searches exceeded 2,000. Cases are fabricated against the elderly, women and the disabled. More than a quarter of all prosecuted are persons over 60 years of age. By the end of the year, there were already six Jehovah’s Witness women in penal colonies. The tendency to prosecute entire families has increased. The length of imprisonment requested by prosecutors has reached 10 years. Statistics and details are included in this article. The Year in Numbers As of December 25, 2023, the total number of homes of Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses searched is 2,058. In 2023, law enforcement officers raided 183 addresses, 43 people were detained, 15 of whom have been or are still in pretrial detention. During the year, Russian courts issued rulings regarding 147 Jehovah’s Witnesses, 47 of whom were sentenced to imprisonment for a cumulative term of more than 257 years (the previous year 44 people were sentenced to a cumulative term of 244 years in penal colonies). Thirty-three people received sentences in penal colonies of 6 years or more. Of these, the longest term of 8 years in a penal colony was given to Dmitriy Barmakin, whose story will be discussed below. On December 22, 2023, the court sentenced Aleksandr Rumyantsev from Moscow to 7.5 years in penal colony (Sean Pike, a citizen of Guyana, and Eduard Sviridov from Moscow, are in the same case and were sentenced to 7 and 6.5 years in a penal colony, respectively). Astrakhan residents Rinat Kiramov, Sergey Korolev and Sergey Kosyanenko, as well as Aleksandr Skvortsov from Taganrog and Evgeniy Bushev from Chelyabinsk received 7 years of imprisonment. In the Bushev case, it took the court just five sessions to conclude that talking about a Bible topic is such a serious crime. Later, it turned out that an officer of the National Guard had participated in the conversation, pretending to be interested in the Bible. On December 19, 2023, a court in Novosibirsk sentenced Marina Chaplykina to 4 years in a penal colony. She became the sixth woman from among Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses to receive a prison sentence for their faith.\nEight of Jehovah’s Witnesses were released from prison this past year. Seventy-nine people remain in penal colonies.\n\"The believers trials do not end with being released from the penal colony,\" explains Yaroslav Sivulskiy, a representative of the European Association of Jehovah’s Witnesses. \"The believers continue to serve additional punishments. For example, during a period appointed by the court, they cannot leave their place of residence. An electronic tracking bracelet is put on the ankle of some for many months, by which the authorities track the location of the person. This device must not be removed. After serving their sentences many are forbidden from working in certain areas, such as education.\"\nThe total number of criminal cases initiated against believers since 2017 has reached 376. The defendants amount to 789 people; 444 believers were convicted, 141 of whom received imprisonment. In all cases, there are no victims, actual crimes or evidence of illegal actions. The cases are initiated for ordinary religious activities: praying, reading the Bible, singing religious songs, etc. Most of the Jehovah’s Witnesses who are prosecuted for their faith are included in the list of extremists and terrorists maintained by the Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring). The state imposes a number of serious economic restrictions on those who are listed on it; for example, their bank accounts are blocked, which makes it difficult to receive salaries, pensions and complete other transactions. At the time of publication of this article, there are 521 believers on the list, 72 of whom were added to the list in 2023.\nTerms are Breaking Records In Magadan, the case of 13 believers, including Ivan Puyda, the son and grandson of Jehovah’s Witnesses who had been repressed under Soviet rule, reached its conclusion. Now he too could receive a lengthy sentence – 10 years. That is how much the prosecutor requested in the closing arguments on November 24, 2023.\nIf Puyda gets 10 years in prison, it will be a unprecedented record in the cases of Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses. Currently, the maximum term in a penal colony is 8 years, and five believers are serving this: Aleksey Berchuk, Rustam Diarov, Yevgeniy Ivanov and Sergey Klikunov.\nOn December 4, 2023, in Irkutsk, the prosecutor requested terms ranging from 3 to 7 years for a group of nine Jehovah’s Witnesses, the longest for Yaroslav Kalin, Nikolay Martynov, Aleksey Solnechny and Sergey Kosteyev. Yaroslav Kalin also comes from a family of those repressed for their faith. Kalin’s lawyer said: \"My client is being tried for the same thing for which his parents were exiled to Siberia, more than 70 years ago.\" Ironically, Kalin’s parents have been officially exonerated, but their son is now being tried for the same \"crime\".\nNew Regions In 2023, the territory affected by prosecutions has expanded. In February, the first searches in the Leningrad Region took place in the cities of Kingisepp and Slantsy, five people were detained and a criminal case was initiated. On April 4, 2023, searches were carried out for the first time in St. Petersburg.\nAt the end of February, searches in at least three addresses took place in Elista, the capital of Kalmykia. Kishta Tutinova, 62, was detained, and after 2 days behind bars she was placed under house arrest.\nIn total, Jehovah’s Witnesses are already being prosecuted in 74 regions of the Russian Federation.\nVladimir Piskarev, Vladimir Melnik and Artur Putintsev were kept in a cage during their trial in Oryol Aleksandr Skortsov and Valeriy Tibiy did not lose heart despite unjust prosecution Konstantin Sannikov in the so-called \u0026#34;aquarium\u0026#34; — an enclosure where usually especially dangerous criminals are held during the trial During the announcement of the verdict, the bailiff handcuffs the seriously ill Vladimir Balabkin Sergey Klimov with his wife immediately after his release from the penal colony Defendants in the case of Tchaikovsky and others in Moscow are taken into custody after the verdict is announced Aleksandr Nikolayev with his wife and daughters after his release from the penal colony Convicted residents of Gukovo communicate via video call from the pretrial detention center with the group of supporters that came to the cassation hearing On the day of Yuriy Savelyev’s release from the penal colony, he was met by a large group of supporters Rustam Seidkuliev’s wife and friends are taking pictures with him after his release from the penal colony in Saratov From left to right: Sergey Kosyanenko, Rinat Kiramov and Sergey Korolev behind bars in the courtroom Muscovites Anatoliy Marunov, Sergey Tolokonnikov and Roman Mareyev were sentenced to long terms for their faith In Surgut, friends came to the courthouse to support their convicted fellow believers, on the day of the verdict. Outdoor temperature was -29°C Marina married Sergey Shulyarenko, convicted for his faith, right in the penal colony Prosecution of the Elderly and Disabled Almost 26% of Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses who have been prosecuted for their faith since 2017 (205 people) are over 60 years old. Criminal cases were initiated against 17 believers in this category in 2023. The oldest of them is 85 years old (the youngest is 19 years old).\nLaw enforcement officers and judges are not troubled by the age, serious illnesses or disabilities of those they accuse. So, on September 13 of this year, a court in the Amur Region sentenced Vladimir Balabkin, 71, suffering from cancer, to 4 years in a penal colony (the prosecutor had requested 2.5 times longer). Immediately after the verdict, he was taken into custody. About three months later, on December 19, 2023, the court of appeal replaced the sentence with a a 1-year suspended sentence, and the believer was released.\nOn September 14, 2023, the Maykop City Court sent 68-year-old Nikolay Voishchev to a penal colony. Even before his arrest, he was diagnosed with a tumor that required immediate treatment. While in prison he is not receiving the adequate medical care he still needs.\nIn the Novosibirsk Region, Andrey Vlasov, a 54-year-old disabled person, continues to serve his sentence for his faith. He suffers from serious illnesses, including deforming arthrosis of both hip joints, which makes it impossible for him to take care of himself. But both the court of appeal and the court of cassation upheld the guilty verdict.\nRepression of Entire Families By the end of the year, more than 70 families in 35 regions of the Russian Federation had become easy prey for law enforcement officers, for whom this is often an easy way to improve their performance and move up the career ladder. In some cases, the husband and wife were sent to prison at the same time, for example, Yelena and Georgiy Nikulin from Saransk. Both received more than 4 years in a penal colony.\n\"Other family members who are not under investigation are also subjected to direct or indirect pressure. After the searches, the security forces interrogate them, threaten to imprison them or a relative if they do not begin to give the investigation the testimony requested against their relative and fellow believers. Simply put, they are invited to become secret agents, to conduct covert audio and video recordings of how believers discuss Bible teachings, pray and sing religious songs together, in order to later call it \"the activity of a banned religious organization,\" says Yaroslav Sivulskiy. \"Another form of indirect pressure on relatives is denying visits to imprisoned family members.\"\nReversal of Acquittals One of the significant trends of 2023 was canceling the acquittals of Jehovah’s Witnesses. This happened on July 6, 2023, with the case of Aleksandr Pryanikov and Venera and Darya Dulova; the case reached the Supreme Court, which overturned the acquittal, although before that the Sverdlovsk Regional Court had twice overturned the guilty verdicts.\nIn the case of Ivan Sorokin and Andrey Zhukov in Yugorsk, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region, the acquittal was overturned on November 20, 2023.\nDmitriy Barmakin from Vladivostok became the first Russian Jehovah’s Witness to be acquitted in a criminal case for his faith on November 22, 2021. This decision lasted only until April 27, 2023, when the same court, the Pervorechensky District Court of Vladivostok, sentenced the believer to 8 years in a penal colony. However, later, on August 8, 2023, the Primorsky Regional Court overturned this decision and sent the case for review.\nAleksey Khabarov from Porkhov, Pskov Region, who was initially acquitted, was sentenced at the third trial on October 25, 2023, to 2 years and 6 months in a penal colony. The court of appeal reduced the term by only 2 months.\nThe Supreme Court Does Not Comply With Its Own Judgement It seems paradoxical that acquittals of Jehovah’s Witnesses are consistently overturned by the Supreme Court, whose position is that meeting for worship in itself cannot be considered a crime (in the cases of Jehovah’s Witnesses, this is the only corpus delicti). On October 28, 2021, the Plenum of the Supreme Court published a ruling stating: \"If a court adopts a decision, which enters into force, to liquidate or ban the activity of a public or religious association or other organization regarding extremist activity, subsequent actions of persons that are not related to the continuation or resumption of the activity of the relevant extremist organization and consist solely in exercising their right to freedom of conscience and freedom of religion, including through individual or joint practice of religion, meetings for worship or other religious rites and ceremonies, in themselves, if they do not contain signs of extremism, do not constitute a crime\" (emphasis added).\nHowever, in practice, some judges of the Supreme Court do not consider it necessary to follow this position. They simply repeat the prosecution’s narrative that any collective practice of worship by Jehovah’s Witnesses is \"extremist.\"\nIn total, the Supreme Court has already overturned two acquittals of Jehovah’s Witnesses. In addition to the above-mentioned case of Pryanikov and the Dulovs, a similar decision was made on December 15, 2022 in the case of the Bazhenovs and Vera Zolotova.\nJudgments of the European Court of Human Rights On January 31, 2023, the European Court of Human Rights considered seven applications by Jehovah’s Witnesses from Russia relating to events from 2010 to 2014. In all of them, the court sided with the applicants and ordered Russia to pay compensation in the amount of 345,773 euros and another 5,000 euros as legal costs.\nThis is the second judgement of the ECHR in the case of Russian Jehovah’s Witnesses in the last 2 years. In the summer of 2022, the ECHR also exonerated believers in a larger lawsuit related to the illegal liquidation of all legal entities of the Witnesses and the seizure of their property. The total amount of compensation under this decision exceeds 63 million euros.\nAlas, so far the decisions of the ECHR have no visible impact on the practice of the Russian law enforcement system. The Russian authorities are in no hurry to pay compensation to exonerated believers, and continue to sentence them to long prison terms.\nExactly on the day of the decision of the ECHR, June 7, 2022, the State Duma of the Russian Federation adopted laws under an accelerated procedure, according to which ECHR judgments issued after March 15, 2022 are not enforceable in Russia.\n\u0026quot;The Case of the Eighteen\u0026quot; in Surgut: Faith is a Crime, Torture is Heroism In 2023, a high-profile case in Surgut approached its conclusion, which received wide publicity because the believers were tortured. The case against 18 men and one woman from Surgut, including a man whom the investigation mistakenly mistook for one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, has been dragging on since February 2019. Seven defendants went through severe torture during interrogation, and one of them, Timofey Zhukov, was forcibly placed in a psychiatric hospital and later obtained compensation for this. The torture in Surgut was widely covered in the Russian media; the believers met with the Human Rights Ombudsman for the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region and employees of the offices of the Human Rights Ombudsman of the Russian Federation and conferences were held with the participation of human rights defenders.\nIn November 2023, the prosecutor requested harsh terms for the believers \u0026ndash; up to 9.5 years in a penal colony (for Sergey Loginov). On December 5, 2023, all the defendants in the Surgut case were given suspended sentences ranging from 4 to 7 years. Sergey Loginov and Timofey Zhukov were given the longest sentences of 7 years.\nAt the same time, not a single criminal case has been initiated for the torture of the believers. Moreover, later the head of the Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee, where Jehovah’s Witnesses were tortured, Vladimir Yermolaev and his subordinate Sergey Bogoderov received awards, and the soldiers of the National Guard of Russia who participated in the operation were rewarded.\n\"Have They Succeeded in Intimidating Jehovah’s Witnesses?\" Sergei Ivanenko, Ph.D. in Philosophy, a religious scholar who attended as an expert at 14 judicial trials against Jehovah’s Witnesses in different regions of Russia, writes his impressions in his book \"The People Who Are Steadfast in Persecution\" published in 2023: \"Jehovah’s Witnesses... consider it their religious responsibility to preach Christianity to law enforcement officials, judges, and also to prisoners... Have they succeeded in intimidating Jehovah’s Witnesses? No, they have not. They continue to preach, to help each other, and to support prisoners of conscience. According to the believers, persecution strengthens their faith in Jehovah, and strong faith brings inner peace... Those who know the history of Jehovah's Witnesses understand that they have endured the most severe persecution and have not forsaken their faith. Nor does persecution in today's Russia frighten them.\"\n","category":"analytics","date":"2023-12-27T13:08:20+02:00","duration":"1:56","image":{"jpg":"/news/2023/12/271308/image2_hu_8ce5188d4fbb9f2c.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2023/12/271308/image2_hu_7d61162a90e88d55.jpg","webp":"/news/2023/12/271308/image2_hu_c30bde6a69fa6960.webp","webp2x":"/news/2023/12/271308/image2_hu_7cb627d2f70ce16.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2023/12/271308.html","regions":[],"subtitle":null,"tags":["search","elderly","disability","video","rosfinmonitoring","medical-rights","siloviks-violence","torture","international","supreme-court","echr","international-community","expert-conclusions","fabrications","statistics","analytics","review"],"title":"Jehovah’s Witnesses Under the Yoke of Repression — 2023 Overview","type":"video"},{"body":"As of September 30, 2022, 95 men and 5 women professing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses are behind bars. Of these, 32 are in the penal colony and 68 in the pre-trial detention centers. Dmitriy Dolzhikov, arrested after a raid on Jehovah's Witnesses in Chelyabinsk, became the 100th prisoner.\nOn May 13, 2020, A. Bryuzgin, investigator of the Investigative Committee of the RF Investigative Committee for the Novosibirsk Region, opened a case against Dolzhikov. Two years later, the believer was detained in Chelyabinsk, and then placed in pre-trial detention center No. 1 in the Novosibirsk region. The search at Dmitriy's place of residence in Chelyabinsk was authorized by investigator A. Chepenko, who is known for the criminal persecution of believers in the Chelyabinsk region.\nDolzhikov is charged with Part 2 of Art. 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, because he allegedly “intentionally, out of extremist motives, took part in the activities of a religious association . . . in the form of participation in religious meetings and meetings of an extremist organization, conducting conversations . . . demonstrations and watching educational videos.”\nWhile there are simultaneously 100 people in custody, another 249 of Jehovah's Witnesses have been to prisons and pre-trial detention centers, some of whom have spent more than five years behind bars. Information about these people, including their criminal prosecution history, can be found at jw-russia.org under \"Prisoners of Conscience\" using a filter system. A total of 643 people have been criminally persecuted for believing in Jehovah God.\nWhat is happening to Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia is of concern to the international community. For example, on September 28, 2022, the OSCE held a conference in Poland to discuss religious freedom and protection of human rights. The speakers drew attention to the fact that \"Russia's actions against... Jehovah's Witnesses... include raids, arrests, long prison sentences, and probably torture.”\n","category":"analytics","date":"2022-09-30T16:15:16+03:00","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2022/09/301615/image_hu_6c45459f3b56b73d.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2022/09/301615/image_hu_5f690ff17e43f63a.jpg","webp":"/news/2022/09/301615/image_hu_48621369ed711b6.webp","webp2x":"/news/2022/09/301615/image_hu_76888d2fbe3dd170.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2022/09/301615.html","regions":["novosibirsk","chelyabinsk"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["sizo","analytics","review","statistics","282.2-2","international-community"],"title":"The 100th Jehovah's Witness Has Been Sent Behind Bars in Russia: Dmitriy Dolzhikov, 44, Is in a Novosibirsk Pre-Trial Detention Center","type":"news"},{"body":"On 23 July 2020, at a meeting of the Permanent Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), 30 member States issued a statement strongly criticizing the repression of Jehovah's Witnesses by the Russian authorities.\nThe joint statement of OSCE member States said: “We have heard the Russian delegation claim more than once at the Permanent Council that Jehovah’s Witnesses are, and will continue to be, able to practice their religion freely, and that freedom of religion or belief is guaranteed in the Russian Federation. However, we continue to see numerous reports about home raids, detentions, and criminal investigations concerning Jehovah’s Witnesses. This is in strong contrast with the claims by the Russian delegation.”\nThe statement stresses: \"All people, including members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, must be able to peacefully enjoy their human rights, including the right to freedom of religion or belief, freedom of association and peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, without discrimination, as guaranteed by the Constitution of the Russian Federation, Russia's OSCE commitments and obligations under international law.”\nOf particular concern to European leaders were the mass arrests and beatings of believers in the city of Voronezh in mid-July this year. Nicola Murray, Deputy Head of the UK Delegation with the OSCE, drew attention to “increasing number of searches, as well as use of simultaneous large-scale home raids, creates the impression of an organised campaign of persecution against Jehovah’s Witnesses.” She added: \"So-called ‘evidence’ used against those investigated and prosecuted includes regular aspects of communal religious life.”\nThe US joined the OSCE statement. Lane Darnell Bahl, representative of the U.S. Mission to the OSCE, called on the Russian authorities to cease criminal investigations against Jehovah's Witnesses, halt the seizure of their headquarters in Russia, and immediately release all imprisoned or detained believers.\nThis is not the first time that EU countries have demanded that Russia stop persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses on the basis of their religion. Similar statements on this topic were published onMarch 12, 2020 and May 10, 20188. Many other foreign and Russian organizations have made similar calls.\n","category":"rights","date":"2020-08-28T11:03:00+03:00","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2020/08/8/image_hu_17c1bf7f45be9c2a.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2020/08/8/image.jpg","webp":"/news/2020/08/8/image_hu_86e1e63efe5828ce.webp","webp2x":"/news/2020/08/8/image_hu_35999351caac64a5.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2020/08/8.html","regions":["eu","voronezh"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["eu","international-community","osce","human-rights-defenders"],"title":"Thirty European nations condemned the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia","type":"news"},{"body":"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?\nWhy were Jehovah's Witnesses considered \"enemies of the Reich\" in Nazi Germany? Jehovah's Witnesses believed that participation in the leader's personality cult, participation in elections, work in party structures and military enterprises, as well as military service were contrary to the commandments of the Gospel. Of the 35,000 followers of this religion who lived in the territories controlled by Berlin, 11,300 were arrested, 4,200 were sent to concentration camps, and 1,600 died.\nIn 2020, visitors to the memorial museums of former concentration camps will be able to see monuments, plates and stands telling about the feat of faith of Jehovah's Witnesses. For example, the plaque in Sachsenhausen tells the story of 29-year-old Jehovah's Witness August Dieckmann, the first in Nazi Germany to be executed for refusing to serve in the Wehrmacht. In 1939, just three days after the outbreak of World War II, August was summoned to the Gestapo and ordered to sign a conscription document. When he refused, he was placed in solitary confinement, and the camp commander asked the SS for permission to execute Dickmann in the presence of all camp prisoners. Here is how one of the participants of those events told about it: \"The SS shot August Dieckmann and threatened to shoot the others if we did not sign a renunciation of our faith. No one did. We were no longer afraid of their bullets, but of not pleasing Jehovah.\"\nIn 1944-1945, the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army participated in the liberation of concentration camp prisoners, including Jehovah's Witnesses. For example, some of the 387 Jehovah's Witnesses sent to Auschwitz were still in the camp on the day of liberation, January 27, 1945. The world as a whole learned about the existence of the concentration camps of the Third Reich only in 1945. Meanwhile, as early as 1937, Jehovah's Witnesses reported on poison gas experiments in the Dachau camp in their journal Consolation, and in 1940 they published the names of 20 concentration camps and described what was happening there. Then they did not attach any importance to this.\nWhy were Jehovah's Witnesses considered \"enemies of the people\" in the Soviet Union? In 1941, when Wehrmacht troops attacked the borders of the USSR, there was not a single Jehovah's Witness among the attackers. The believers were ready to die at the hands of the executioners, but not to shoot at people. At the end of the war, however, when the number of Jehovah's Witnesses in the USSR increased dramatically at the expense of new territories, the Soviet government responded with ingratitude.\nJehovah's Witnesses in the USSR still believed that participation in the cult of personality of the leader, participation in elections, work in party structures and military enterprises, as well as service in the Soviet army contradicted the Gospel commandments. Already in the early 1950s, thousands of Soviet Jehovah's Witnesses were deported to Siberia without means of subsistence (the infamous Operation North), many died in the Gulag institutions. Some of Jehovah's Witnesses went first to Nazi and then to Soviet camps. Here's one example.\nIn 1943, in Bessarabia, German-controlled authorities sentenced 23-year-old Ephraim Platon to 25 years of hard labor for refusing to take the military oath and take up arms. He told what happened at the recruiting station: \"Eight conscripts, including me, stepped forward. We said that we would not participate in the war, because we adhere to the position of neutrality. We were arrested and severely beaten, so that even my wife barely recognized me. Then we were sent to Chisinau, where we had to appear before a military court. In the bitter cold, we, eight people, chained and urged on by soldiers who did not allow us to eat or drink, walked 140 kilometers in 21 days. When we arrived at the next police station, we were beaten - there were 13 such stations on our way! We survived only by the fact that the locals fed us when we stayed overnight at the polling stations. In May 1945, Bessarabia became part of the USSR, and the believer was released after 2 years of hard labor. But already in 1949, he was again separated from his family and sent on wanderings through the Gulag: first to Kurgan, then to Vorkuta. Only in 1965, the Platon family was able to be released from prison, and they were allowed to return to Moldova only in 1989.\nWhy are Jehovah's Witnesses classified as \"extremist organizations\" in modern Russia? In the indictment documents against believers, there are no victims or harm caused. In the Russian Federation, which considers itself the legal successor of the USSR, the vague concept of \"extremist activity\" is used to persecute Jehovah's Witnesses.\nSince 2017, the authorities of the Russian Federation have launched the most massive repression of Jehovah's Witnesses in the modern world. Law enforcement officers prey on peaceful believers throughout the country, seize Bibles and spiritual books, take them to courts, beat them, and torture them. Among them are the elderly, the disabled, parents of minor children, labor veterans, representatives of professions necessary for society. All Jehovah's Witnesses turned out to be potential criminals in Russia, who could be arrested at any time simply because of their religious views. If in the USSR Jehovah's Witnesses were accused of \"anti-Soviet propaganda\" and were seen as \"enemies of the people\", then in the Russian Federation they are accused of \"extremism\" and \"encroachment on the constitutional order.\" But behind the new formulations are old approaches: a person does not have to commit a crime to be behind bars. It is enough to believe in Jehovah and discuss this faith with others. In modern Russia, what in Germany and the rest of Europe is considered a long-lived nightmare has become a reality again. The EU countries in general (e.g., July 2017, February 2019, March 2020) and Germany in particular (May 2017, June 2019) strongly condemn Russia's actions towards Jehovah's Witnesses.\nDennis Christensen, Sergey Klimov, Konstantin Bazhenov, Felix Makhammadiyev, Alexei Miretsky, Alexey Budenchuk, Roman Gridasov, Gennady German are the names of Jehovah's Witnesses who are currently serving sentences in Russian colonies because of their religious affiliation. Hundreds of their fellow believers are involved in similar cases, dozens are imprisoned in pre-trial detention centers and under house arrest, awaiting sentences under serious criminal articles. \"I love my country, and I don't want my grandchildren to be ashamed of Russia, just as I am ashamed today in front of my grandparents for Stalin's repressions. Just as the citizens of Germany today are ashamed of the years of Nazi rule,\" said the convicted Saratov resident Alexei Miretsky in his last word, after which he added: \"I am sure that sooner or later justice will be restored. All prisoners of conscience who have been subjected to humiliation, insults, theft of property, deprivation of liberty will be acquitted and rehabilitated, as has happened more than once in the history of mankind. The only question is when?\n","category":"analytics","date":"2020-05-06T08:26:00+03:00","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2020/05/3/image_hu_a9615847afff934b.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2020/05/3/image.jpg","webp":"/news/2020/05/3/image_hu_4d97848f2717aa0d.webp","webp2x":"/news/2020/05/3/image_hu_49152367c0ab5cb2.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2020/05/3.html","regions":["moscow"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["nazi-germany","ussr","review","international-community","deportation"],"title":"In the Spring of 1945, Russia Freed Jehovah's Witnesses From Concentration Camps. Why, 75 Years Later, Are They Again in Prisons?","type":"news"},{"body":"On April 7, 2020, the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Belarus refused to extradite Nikolai Makhalichev to the Russian Federation, against whom a criminal case had been initiated in his homeland on the basis of religion. On the same day, he was released from the Vitsebsk pre-trial detention center, where he had been held since the end of February.\nThe case against Nikolay Makhalichev was initiated in Urai (Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug) on January 31, 2019. He was one of 23 residents of the region who were persecuted for discussing the Bible. On February 21, 2020, he was detained by Belarusian law enforcement officers near the border with Russia. Belarusian and international human rights organizations have called for the refusal to extradite Makhalichev, as they are convinced that his persecution in Russia is connected exclusively with his religion.\nImmediately after the decision of the Prosecutor General's Office, the Deputy Prosecutor of the Vitebsk Region G. A. Korenko signed a decree on the release of the believer from the pre-trial detention center.\nNikolay Makhalichev was released a few hours before the start of the Lord's Supper, the only religious celebration among Jehovah's Witnesses, which in 2020 was celebrated on April 7 after sunset.\n","category":"victory","date":"2020-04-08T17:30:00+03:00","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2020/04/8/image_hu_ce8b5991b2f6f0aa.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2020/04/8/image_hu_69b33692609497c3.jpg","webp":"/news/2020/04/8/image_hu_4999d6a87b2316a6.webp","webp2x":"/news/2020/04/8/image_hu_90b433f43a06faf9.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2020/04/8.html","regions":["belarus","khanty-mansi"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["international-community","sizo"],"title":"Nikolay Makhalichev Will Not Be Extradited to Russia. He Was Released From Belarusian Pre-trial Detention Center","type":"news"},{"body":"On November 24, 2019, the Sweden Ministry of Culture concluded that Jehovah’s Witnesses “contributed to maintaining and strengthening the fundamental values upon which society is based.” It allows them to receive state funding for religious communities. The same happened in Norway a month later.\nIn 2007, the Swedish authorities decided to arbitrarily remove Jehovah's Witnesses from the list of such organizations because they do not vote in elections. However, the Supreme Administrative Court declared this decision inconsistent with the law on three occasions. Finally, on October 24, 2019, the Ministry of Culture confirmed that Jehovah's Witnesses meet all the requirements for religious organizations that receive state grants for public benefit activities under the Swedish Law on the Support of Religious Communities.\nA similar thing happened in Norway, where the state regularly provided grants to all religious organizations, but denied it to Jehovah's Witnesses because of their position of political neutrality. However, on November 18, 2019, after further study of the situation and decisions on a similar issue by public authorities in Sweden, Italy and Germany, Oslo County Governor Valgerd Svarstad Hoagland issued a statement: \"Voting in elections is a fundamental right of Norwegian citizens, but not an obligation. Refraining from this right seems to be part of the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses.\" Believers will be entitled to receive state grants in accordance with the Norwegian law \"On Religious Communities\".\nIn Europe, Russia, and elsewhere in the world, Jehovah's Witnesses strive to be guided by the \"golden rule\" of Jesus Christ: \"In all things, as you want people to do to you, do you also to them\" (Matthew 7:12).\n","category":"opinions","date":"2020-02-11T10:47:05+03:00","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2020/02/33/image_hu_6ca08cfc1ef4f47c.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2020/02/33/image_hu_88a2b2f308c50b8a.jpg","webp":"/news/2020/02/33/image_hu_88961c33a71ffc4b.webp","webp2x":"/news/2020/02/33/image_hu_b8e8458664080dbc.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2020/02/33.html","regions":["sweden","norway"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["international-community","international"],"title":"Sweden and Norway Recognize Jehovah’s Witnesses as a Religion That Contributes to Society","type":"news"},{"body":"No. According to the statement of the Government of the Russian Federation, \"the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of 20.04.2017 and the appellate ruling of the Appellate Board of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of 17.07.2017 do not assess the doctrine of Jehovah's Witnesses, do not contain a restriction or prohibition to practice the above teaching individually.\" Commenting on the unfair verdicts against Jehovah's Witnesses, the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation, Tatiana Moskalkova, said on June 10, 2019: \"These events make us think about the existence of a conflict between the constitutional right to profess one's religion individually or jointly with others and the signs of extremist activity specified in Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.\" On October 28, 2021, the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation ruled that the divine services of Jehovah's Witnesses, their joint rituals and ceremonies do not in themselves constitute a crime under Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, despite the liquidation of their legal entities.\nWhat did the Supreme Court of Russia ban in 2017? The court banned the activities of 396 registered and operating Jehovah's Witnesses organizations. This decision has been challenged in the European Court of Human Rights. The statement of the Presidential Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights of 20.06.18 says: \"This decision of the [Supreme] Court contains an exhaustive list of legal entities subject to liquidation. At the same time, the court's decision does not contain conclusions about the ban on the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses as such.\" Is it allowed in Russia to practice religion without forming a legal entity? Yes. Jehovah's Witnesses have lived in Russia for more than a hundred years, and for most of that time they practiced their faith without the organizations that emerged in the late 1990s under the Freedom of Conscience Law and lasted less than 20 years. The presence or absence of such organizations does not mean the prohibition of entire religions, and even more so does not give grounds for criminal prosecution of citizens for their beliefs. Is it possible to ban people, ideas, beliefs, thoughts, and feelings? This is both impossible and unacceptable. According to Article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, everyone has the right \"to freely choose, have and disseminate religious and other beliefs and to act in accordance with them.\" This right extends to believers of all views and beliefs, including Jehovah's Witnesses. No court in Russia has ever recognized the religion or beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses as criminal. Such a decision would be discriminatory and unconstitutional. How does the international community regard connivance with the actions of Russian officials who persecute Jehovah's Witnesses? The campaign of persecution of believers was unanimously condemned by the UN, the Council of Europe, the OSCE, the European Union, individual countries of the world (Germany, USA), and a large number of international organizations. ","category":"faq","date":"2019-09-10T11:28:42+03:00","duration":null,"image":false,"permalink":"/en/news/about/faq/5.html","regions":["moscow"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["supreme-court","commissioner-rf","analytics","review","international-community","international","mro","liquidation"],"title":"Are Jehovah's Witnesses Actually Banned in Russia?","type":"news"},{"body":"On February 8, 2019, the board of the International Historical, Educational, Charitable and Human Rights Society Memorial issued a statement demanding the immediate release of Dennis Christensen and the rest of the arrested Jehovah's Witnesses.\nRecalling the decision of the Supreme Court to ban Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia as an extremist organization, human rights activists stressed: \"This shameful and anti-legal decision has put Russia among the countries with the most odious regimes. Jehovah's Witnesses were brutally persecuted in Hitler's Germany. In all democratic countries, Jehovah's Witnesses operate freely. [...] The six years that Christensen received for exercising his constitutional right to freedom of religion are quite comparable to the terms that Jehovah's Witnesses received under the Soviet regime.\nHuman rights activists again drew attention to the incompatibility of the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses with common sense: \"It is absurd when Jehovah's Witnesses convicted under the Soviet regime (Memorial knows many hundreds of such ruined destinies) are recognized as victims of political repression in accordance with the Federal Law on Rehabilitation (1991) - and at the same time sent to prison current followers of Jehovah's Witnesses.\"\nSummarizing the above, International Memorial stated: \"This verdict once again confirms the flawedness of Russia's 'anti-extremist' legislation, which makes it possible to enroll almost everyone as extremists. We demand the lifting of the unconstitutional ban on Jehovah's Witnesses.\"\n","category":"rights","date":"2019-02-15T20:15:26+03:00","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2019/02/620/kristensen_web5841_3_0_hu_386a4ff49f328df7.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2019/02/620/kristensen_web5841_3_0.jpg","webp":"/news/2019/02/620/kristensen_web5841_3_0_hu_4825278593b675b5.webp","webp2x":"/news/2019/02/620/kristensen_web5841_3_0_hu_51248a6f399e4612.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2019/02/620.html","regions":["oryol"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["international-community","international","liberty-deprivation"],"title":"International Memorial defends Dennis Christensen ","type":"news"},{"body":"\"This is complete nonsense, we must carefully look into it,\" Vladimir Putin commented on the inclusion of Jehovah's Witnesses in the list of extremist organizations. The corresponding question was asked to him at a meeting of the Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights, which was held in Moscow on December 11, 2018. \"We have to be much more liberal at some point... Treat all religions equally. [We should not] be enrolled in some kind of destructive, let alone terrorist organizations.\"\nHuman rights activist Ekaterina Shulman. Photo source: www.kremlin.ru\nHuman rights activist Ekaterina Shulman drew attention to the problem. She pointed out that in the official \"List of Terrorists and Extremists\" the majority are 404 organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses. \"They certainly do not call for violence and do not carry it out,\" the human rights activist said. In response, Vladimir Putin said: \"Regarding Jehovah's Witnesses. Perhaps we can, and even should at some point, be much more liberal towards representatives of various religious sects, but we must not forget that our society does not consist exclusively of religious sects. 90 percent of the citizens of the Russian Federation or so consider themselves Orthodox Christians. We have three more religions that are practically traditional and receive help from the state. We should treat the representatives of all religions equally, this is true, but we should still take into account the country and the society in which we live. True, this does not mean at all that we should enroll representatives of religious communities in some kind of destructive, let alone terrorist organizations. Of course, this is complete nonsense, we must carefully look into it, here I agree with you. A little later, the President again returned to the topic of the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses: \"Jehovah's Witnesses are also Christians, for which they are persecuted, I also do not really understand.\"\nIn international instances, the Russian government has repeatedly stated that the decisions of the Russian courts on the liquidation and prohibition of organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses \"do not assess the doctrine of Jehovah's Witnesses, do not contain a restriction or prohibition to practice the above teachings individually.\" Meanwhile, dozens of Russian citizens are currently in prison or under house arrest just because they practice the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses.\n","category":"rights","date":"2018-12-17T16:44:06+03:00","duration":null,"image":{"jpg":"/news/2018/12/544/181211_spch6659_hu_6b0abece4848f2bf.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2018/12/544/181211_spch6659.jpg","webp":"/news/2018/12/544/181211_spch6659_hu_b8b20b5e6209617a.webp","webp2x":"/news/2018/12/544/181211_spch6659_hu_f88c8aa341a5bf5b.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2018/12/544.html","regions":["moscow"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["human-right-organizations","human-rights-defenders","international-community","head","presidential-council"],"title":"Vladimir Putin: \"Jehovah's Witnesses are also Christians, I also don't really understand why they should be persecuted\" ","type":"news"},{"body":"\"Jehovah's Witnesses in France are citizens like everyone else. There is no reason to think otherwise. Some of their beliefs are unique to them. But these beliefs do not contradict the values of the French Republic and do not conflict with the teachings of other religions that exist in France. I would like to emphasize that France has always been a multi-confessional country, and even more so today. We are a secular state, and it is not always easy for foreign countries to understand this. That is, we proceed from the fact that everyone is free to believe what he wants, and the state does not interfere in religious matters. Therefore, we can coexist peacefully. The government does not impose its ideology, and religions, in turn, do not dominate each other. That is why, I think and hope, Jehovah's Witnesses can practice their faith in an acceptable way without disturbing public order. But so far they have never been seen in such violations.\nI believe that a democratic society should clearly define what it means to violate public order, to harm the common interest. A democratic country can blame and condemn someone in clear terms. Extremism is an obscure concept. Each of us will always be an \"extremist\" for someone. There is political diversity in France, and views can range from the extreme left to the extreme right. Does this mean that people who hold opposing views are extremists who violate public order? Absolutely not. Public order is violated by someone who causes damage to property or people, for example, in public places. We all know what it looks like. But the concept of \"extremism\" does not make any sense to me if it does not include specific actions that can be qualified as extremism. For this reason, if they try to bring Jehovah's Witnesses under this law, then the concept of \"extremism\" is not applicable in this case. Perhaps the law on extremism is a way to convey to religious groups, whether Jehovah's Witnesses or someone else, that they must obey this law without clarifying concepts and any clarifications. In this case, in practice, this means that the fight is not against extremism, but against religion itself. Consequently, the principle underlying international human rights instruments — the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms — is violated. Both documents contain an article that clearly defines freedom of conscience and religion. According to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, freedom of conscience and religion is unconditional. The European Convention on Human Rights states that such freedom may be restricted if public order is affected. A Russian judge should take into account that if the fact of violation of public order is not proven, then Jehovah's Witnesses are persecuted for completely different reasons - they are persecuted as a religion. In this case, we ignore the fundamental freedom enshrined in the most important international laws. I would like you to persuade the Supreme Court, which is obliged to decide on the case, to carefully weigh two conditions: on the one hand, the fact of violation of public order, and on the other hand, freedom of religion is a fundamental right that cannot be taken away without serious consequences.\nJean-Marie Delarue, member of the French Council of State, former director of civil liberties at the French Ministry of the Interior.\n","category":"opinion","date":"2017-04-18T13:43:09+03:00","duration":"4:37","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/04/145/photo_delarue_0_hu_6a802309b3f4b75c.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/04/145/photo_delarue_0.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/04/145/photo_delarue_0_hu_e6293b4cc25e6916.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/04/145/photo_delarue_0_hu_ecf11ceed2c8b349.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/04/145.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["video","international-community","human-rights-defenders","expert-comments","eu"],"title":"Jean-Marie Delarue: \"In practice, this means that the fight is not against extremism, but against religion itself\"","type":"video"},{"body":"\"First of all, I must say that I do not belong to Jehovah's Witnesses, so I do not know the details of their doctrine. But on duty, I had the opportunity to work and get to know some of their responsible persons in Spain. We have a great relationship. My impression of the Witnesses is that they are very kind people who never create difficulties in cooperation.\nThe only \"extremist activity\" I have seen from Jehovah's Witnesses is their extreme kindness and politeness. In Spain, their legal status was established many years ago, they are recognized as a well-known religion. This gave them great legal powers. For example, now they have the right to register marriages. In other words, the state has a lot of trust in this religious group. And, of course, as far as I know, in our country there have never been any occasions for lawsuits, complaints or accusations against this group because of any of its activities that could be considered extremist or illegal.\n[Russia should take into account] the norms of international law, as well as the rulings of courts, primarily the European Court of Human Rights in cases of freedom of religion, including Jehovah's Witnesses, especially in Russia. For example, the rulings in the case of Kuznetsov in 2007 and Krupko in 2014, as well as in the case of 2010 on the illegal denial of the right of Moscow Jehovah's Witnesses to have a registered community. In its decision, the European Court emphasized at least two principles that should serve as a guide when deciding in such cases imposing a ban on religious activity.\nFirst of all, the state must be neutral and impartial in relation to religious beliefs. And secondly, and most importantly, citizens as a group professing their faith in community with others must be guaranteed that the State will not illegally and arbitrarily interfere with their activities. In other words, the right to separate the state from religion, that is, from views or their expression. This implies autonomy for religious associations, freedom from interference by the state in internal organization and activities.\nI think that the reaction should be the same as we are already seeing in some forums. A statement was issued by the International Helsinki Group, an organization affiliated with the OSCE, which considers the application of anti-extremist legislation (and it was not intended to apply to religious organizations as such) as arbitrary. The dangers associated with the overly broad application of this law may lead to the fact that it will be applied to any creed that for some reason is considered extremist. In fact, in 2010, when the European Court of Human Rights expressed its opinion in the case of the Moscow Jehovah's Witnesses community, it had already considered the arguments that led to the ban of this organization to be arbitrary and baseless. And now they again intend to go beyond the law, to misuse the law. Therefore, international organizations and democratic states must respond to protect the right to freedom of religion of all citizens, in this case, citizens of Russia.\"\nMercedes Murillo Muñoz is a professor of ecclesiastical law at the University of King Juan Carlos (Spain).\n","category":"opinion","date":"2017-04-18T13:36:58+03:00","duration":"5:17","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/04/144/photo_mercedes_murillo_hu_9c2a9241628e3.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/04/144/photo_mercedes_murillo.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/04/144/photo_mercedes_murillo_hu_dbcffafed24b90b8.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/04/144/photo_mercedes_murillo_hu_8dc402127078e71e.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/04/144.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["eu","expert-comments","human-rights-defenders","international-community","video"],"title":"Mercedes Murillo Muñoz: \"Our state has a lot of confidence in this religious group\"","type":"video"},{"body":"\"In Spain, they [Jehovah's Witnesses] have been registered in the Register of Religious Organizations of the Ministry of Justice since 1970.\nFrom that day until now, this denomination encourages its members to live in harmony with their faith and views, which include obedience to the law, respect for the rights of others and cooperation with the authorities. Therefore, I do not consider them dangerous in any way. In fact, it's quite the opposite.\nFrom my professional point of view, they exercise their rights, or try to do it without going beyond the legal framework, and go to the courts when they believe that their rights have been violated.\nReligious freedom is a part of social well-being, the right of citizens, one and all, to adhere to certain religious views, to hold worship services, to profess or not to profess a particular religion. I believe that the peaceful exercise of this right actively and passively contributes to the social well-being of citizens and society as a whole. Thus, restricting religious freedom will have a negative impact on a society that thrives only when everyone's rights are respected.\nI believe that this is unacceptable, because the activities of this denomination in our country over the past more than 40 years have not led to anything that could be called extremism. The activities of this denomination, as well as others, are carried out by believers who, professing their religion, are guided by a personal conscience. By trying to share their faith with others, they remain within the framework of religious freedom.\nIn our country, they have never participated in activities that can be described as extremist, and their religious views have nothing to do with extremism — if by this term we mean propaganda of violence and enmity. On the contrary, Jehovah's Witnesses preach peace, and above all they apply their teachings in their lives. They try to exercise their legal rights, respecting the legitimate rights of others, peacefully and never resorting to violence.\"\nConsuelo Madrigal, lawyer, teacher, until 2016 Attorney General of Spain.\n","category":"opinion","date":"2017-04-17T21:33:08+03:00","duration":"2:34","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/04/143/photo_consuelo_madrigal_hu_cc18f6e94f11dfdb.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/04/143/photo_consuelo_madrigal.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/04/143/photo_consuelo_madrigal_hu_16da032b8507335a.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/04/143/photo_consuelo_madrigal_hu_c3ca82bf2fe19138.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/04/143.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["eu","international-community","expert-comments","human-rights-defenders","video"],"title":"Consuelo Madrigal: \"I don't consider Jehovah's Witnesses dangerous in any way\"","type":"video"},{"body":"\"I have experience with Jehovah's Witnesses, and quite extensive. I know them as gentle people and very convinced in their views, but this does not distinguish them from many others.\nTo call extremism the idea that your religion is true and someone else's false, or to call it terrorism, is, frankly, absurd. I can't imagine that at least some country agreed with this. I fully share the conviction that the Russian government is behaving in this situation in an extreme way.\nThere is nothing in the case evidence that I have read, on which the charges against Jehovah's Witnesses are based, that would in any way support the accusations of extremism.\nRecognizing Jehovah's Witnesses as extremists will do nothing to help Russia consolidate its reputation as a civilized country. Any decision against Jehovah's Witnesses will affect others. It will be a red flag for everyone - if you disagree with the Russian authorities, you are at risk. This is a direct signal: you need to do what you are told, you need to refrain from expressing your views and not have beliefs that are at odds with the state ideology. This application of the law forms an image of religious freedom in Russia as extremely negative: \"You can believe in anything, as long as you believe in what I tell you.\"\nIn my opinion, this is a shocking example of how a bad law is being used for an even worse purpose.\nOf course, Jehovah's Witnesses can appeal to the Strasbourg Court. This, of course, will take time and a lot. But such draconian, extraordinary measures, as well as the irreparable consequences of confiscation of property, should prompt the Strasbourg Court to maintain their status quo until the case is heard. Of course, it will be a very difficult time, and they will be persecuted even more than before.\nHaving worked with them, I find the idea that Jehovah's Witnesses are extremists or dangerous to society to be extremely strange. Perhaps someone is irritated by them. But irritation is not a reason to close them or deprive them of their rights.\nRichard Clayton, Queen's Counsel, UK Representative to the Venice Commission.\n","category":"opinion","date":"2017-03-31T11:02:58+03:00","duration":"2:55","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/03/123/photo_clayton_hu_d3de5570ba49f98.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/03/123/photo_clayton.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/03/123/photo_clayton_hu_4518e956a91f1f29.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/03/123/photo_clayton_hu_f474dfd206a3c6aa.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/03/123.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["eu","international-community","human-rights-defenders","expert-comments","video"],"title":"Richard Clayton: \"A shocking example of how a bad law is being used for an even worse purpose\"","type":"video"},{"body":"\"I worked closely with Russia, which is an active member of the OSCE and which has done a lot in the interests of persecuted Christians around the world. Therefore, it seems to me somewhat paradoxical that the problems of religious freedom now exist within Russia itself. As I understand it, the law used against Jehovah's Witnesses is the law on countering extremism. And it is quite understandable that Russia is concerned about problems related to extremism because of its geopolitical position and the fight against terrorism. However, religious freedom is a fragile concept and the definition of extremism can easily be turned against groups that are not particularly popular, and it is usually a test of the quality of religious freedom in a country.\nI have been studying Jehovah's Witnesses for 40 years, and it is especially important that they are a \"peaceful community,\" to put it formally in the terminology of historians and sociologists. They are peaceful people who reject violence and have never used violence themselves. The only connection between Jehovah's Witnesses and violence is that they are victims of violence. The Nazi regime murdered more than 2,000 Jehovah's Witnesses. Here is a well-known fact that testifies to their peacefulness: when Jehovah's Witnesses were in concentration camps, they were the only prisoners whom the Nazis allowed to visit as barbers, because only they could be trusted with a dangerous razor, confident that they would not use the blade against Nazi guards. As can be seen, Jehovah's Witnesses are a supremely peaceful community.\nAnd now, as far as I know, they are sometimes accused of extremism under Russian law, because their publications claim that they are the only true religion. But there are two observations in this regard. First, a certain emphatic style of writing is characteristic of religious literature in general. This can be found in the Holy Quran of Muslims, and in the Old Testament in the Bible. Second, Jehovah's Witnesses are not in favor of being treated better by states or governments than by members of any other religion.\nTherefore, I believe that declaring Jehovah's Witnesses extremists is based on a misinterpretation of what is the typical literary style of their publications. Banning and discriminating against Jehovah's Witnesses in any way would be a mistake and a danger to the religious freedom of many other groups. This would tarnish the image of Russia, both as a government and as a country, which does a lot in an international forum, advocating for religious freedom for persecuted Christians in many countries of the world.\nDr. Massimo Introvigne, Founding Director of the International Centre for the Study of New Religions (Italy), has served as OSCE Commissioner for Combating Racism, Xenophobia and Discrimination since 2011. ","category":"opinion","date":"2017-03-30T17:06:47+03:00","duration":"3:39","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/03/122/photo_introvigne_hu_eba3e5243957c140.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/03/122/photo_introvigne.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/03/122/photo_introvigne_hu_7ed8f745b039233.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/03/122/photo_introvigne_hu_a5634848975d3499.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/03/122.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["eu","international-community","expert-comments","human-rights-defenders","video"],"title":"Massimo Introvigne: \"The only connection between Jehovah's Witnesses and violence is that they are victims of violence\"","type":"video"},{"body":"\"During the years when I served as UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, I often came into contact with Jehovah's Witnesses in different countries during fact-finding missions, because Jehovah's Witnesses are one of the communities that is most threatened, while society as a whole ignores their situation. Therefore, it is especially important that we learn about the tragedy that is now unfolding there.\nIf we talk about legislation on extremism, everyone agrees that it is important to fight extremist tendencies, but the concept of \"extremism\" remains completely blurred. Which creates a kind of access for the authorities, a loophole, an excuse to do what they want. And Jehovah's Witnesses are the perfect scapegoat.\nAfter all, many people regard them with suspicion: Jehovah's Witnesses are active, engaged in missionary work. Not everyone likes it — even if they do it exclusively for peaceful purposes — but they exercise their right to freedom of religion and belief.\nIf Jehovah's Witnesses are extremists, then we are all extremists.\nThis is an example of legislation so vague that it gives the authorities carte blanche to prosecute anyone.\nAll this creates an atmosphere of fear, threat, and, of course, contradicts the letter and spirit of human rights. So the people of Russia and the entire international community should pay close attention to what is happening there.\nThis affects all Russians, because the more space is taken away from minorities, the more democracy itself is at risk.\nEither we have a space where freedom of religion or belief can be exercised without imposition, intimidation and absurd threats in the name of fighting extremism, or this space will shrink more and more. And we have already seen this in many countries. If the state makes a religious community a target, a scapegoat, it reduces the scope for all. Therefore, it is in the interest of all religious communities to have space for the free expression of their faith. Including the majority, because the freedom to talk about one's faith is freedom of religion. At the end of the day, it serves the interests of the majority, even if they don't understand it.\"\nDr. Heiner Bielefeldt, Professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. Since 2010, he has served as UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief.\n","category":"opinion","date":"2017-03-30T14:42:42+03:00","duration":"2:58","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/03/121/photo_bielefeldt_hu_8d136ed69f111c3b.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/03/121/photo_bielefeldt.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/03/121/photo_bielefeldt_hu_779475c7a815a7f7.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/03/121/photo_bielefeldt_hu_cd700229e6e9aa41.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/03/121.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["eu","international-community","expert-comments","human-rights-defenders","video"],"title":"Heiner Bielefeldt: \"If Jehovah's Witnesses are extremists, then we are all extremists\"","type":"video"},{"body":"\"I have been researching Jehovah's Witnesses for many years. I visited Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia, in the USA, in England, in Copenhagen, in Denmark. I have talked with many of Jehovah's Witnesses. They are a religious minority, but a minority that coexists peacefully with the rest of society. They go to the same schools, work in regular jobs. They do not separate themselves from society, but adapt to it.\nThe law on extremism is rather vague, it was created with the specific purpose of preventing incitement to violence and hatred on racial or religious grounds. But the law does not say what types of actions are extremist.\nJehovah's Witnesses are a Christian organization, and Christianity by its nature claims to be exclusive. This means that Christian organizations claim to possess the absolute truth. If the extremists are Jehovah's Witnesses, then most Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant versions of Christianity can be called the same.\nJehovah's Witnesses are known for their opposition to violence, especially for their refusal to serve in the military and not to carry weapons. And yet there is a law accusing Jehovah's Witnesses of inciting violence, which in itself is ironic.\nState laws on religious movements are often problematic, especially with regard to the worldviews of religious movements. Because such laws often apply to some currents, and do not apply to others, although they have a very similar worldview.\nDr. Annika Hvithamar, religious scholar, associate professor at the University of Copenhagen (Denmark).\n","category":"opinion","date":"2017-03-29T14:41:43+03:00","duration":"1:58","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/03/117/foto_hvithamar_hu_592b1429f987ed5a.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/03/117/foto_hvithamar.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/03/117/foto_hvithamar_hu_655cf842f017938c.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/03/117/foto_hvithamar_hu_ae56697ddd900640.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/03/117.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["eu","international-community","expert-comments","human-rights-defenders","video"],"title":"Annika Vitamar: \"If Jehovah's Witnesses are extremists, then most versions of Christianity can be called the same\"","type":"video"},{"body":"\"The religious association of Jehovah's Witnesses in Germany is quite famous. Largely due to their preaching activities. But there are also many prejudices against them. In particular, for this reason, the process of recognizing Jehovah's Witnesses as a public law corporation has been so delayed. On the other hand, in the course of all court proceedings, all arguments were exhausted and it was proved that prejudices against Jehovah's Witnesses were unfounded. So now—and I'm happy about that—Jehovah's Witnesses in Germany are recognized by both the court and the state authorities as the official religion, and thus equated with the big churches.\nI must say that in Germany there is no such legal concept as extremism. I can only guess what is meant by this in Russia. For example, in Germany, this may mean some acts of violence with political overtones, that a crime is committed for political reasons. If the term \"extremism\" is applied to Jehovah's Witnesses in this sense, then it is completely absurd.\nEveryone knows that Jehovah's Witnesses do not pursue political goals. By the way, I can say about Germany, here, I think, there are few groups whose crime rate is lower than that of Jehovah's Witnesses.\nOf course, Jehovah's Witnesses have their own ideas about morality, which seem strict in many respects compared to German ideas. For example, strict sexual morality or conservative, from the point of view of the majority, view of the family. However, I don't know what extremism has to do with it.\nI can't imagine that a court with enough information could come to the conclusion that Jehovah's Witnesses are extremists or could be politically dangerous.\nIn addition, do not forget that in Russia there is also a Constitutional Court. I don't know if you can contact him. But what I do know is that it was absolutely right and legal of us to do everything possible to convey the information, as I am doing at the moment, that Jehovah's Witnesses, as far as we know, are in no way connected with politics.\nIn addition, it is worth recalling that Jehovah's Witnesses were banned only by dictatorial regimes, for example, Nazi Germany. And I don't think today's Russia is like that.\"\nDr. Hubert Seiwert, Professor Emeritus of Comparative Religious Studies at the University of Leipzig (Germany).\n","category":"opinion","date":"2017-03-29T11:42:40+03:00","duration":"4:07","image":{"jpg":"/news/2017/03/116/foto_seiwert_hu_5939c3b323ecc2bd.jpg","jpg2x":"/news/2017/03/116/foto_seiwert.jpg","webp":"/news/2017/03/116/foto_seiwert_hu_2f5a1d76435a006d.webp","webp2x":"/news/2017/03/116/foto_seiwert_hu_4f3b562208b00f9a.webp"},"permalink":"/en/news/2017/03/116.html","regions":["eu"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["video","international-community","expert-comments","human-rights-defenders","eu"],"title":"Hubert Seiwert: \"Prejudice against Jehovah's Witnesses is unfounded\"","type":"video"},{"body":"STRASBOURG. The European Court of Human Rights has unanimously ruled that the actions of the police and the chairperson of the Human Rights Commission, Ekaterina Gorina, violated justice and violated the right to religious freedom of citizens when they disrupted a legitimate Christian meeting of 150 deaf Jehovah's Witnesses in Chelyabinsk. In ruling in favour of Jehovah's Witnesses, the Court reaffirmed an important principle upheld by the Russian Federation: the right to freedom of religion.\nThe Court's judgment in this case, known as Konstantin Kuznetsov and Others v. the Russian Federation, states: \"It is undeniable that the joint study and discussion of liturgical texts by members of the community of Jehovah's Witnesses is a recognized form of professing [their] religion during worship and teaching. [...] In addition, [the Court] notes the consistency of the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, which recognizes that the holding of liturgical meetings and congresses requires the prior permission of the authorities and there is no need to notify them of the holding of these meetings.\"\nThe Court also found that the actions of the Chairman of the Human Rights Commission and the police officers were unlawful.\nThe Court ruled that the plaintiff, and in his person all the applicants, should be paid an amount of EUR 30,000 in respect of non-pecuniary damage and EUR 60,544 in respect of costs and expenses.\nThe Kuznetsov case became more significant when the activities of the registered Jehovah's Witnesses community in Moscow were banned in 2004. It is this ban, as well as the related issue of religious freedom, that is the subject of a complaint in another case before the European Court.\nSpeaking about the significance of this decision, Vasily Kalin, chairman of the Administrative Center of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia, said: \"Today's decision is a victory for all Russians who value the constitutional right to freedom of peaceful assembly.\"\n","category":"victory","date":"2007-01-11T14:00:00+03:00","duration":null,"image":false,"permalink":"/en/news/2007/01/21.html","regions":["chelyabinsk","france"],"subtitle":null,"tags":["echr","international-community","international"],"title":"The European Court declared illegal the disruption of worship services of Jehovah's Witnesses in Chelyabinsk ","type":"news"}]