Legal Case of the Week: Jehovah’s Witness charged with extremism acquitted by court in Vladivostok

Week-ending 26 November 2021 On 22 November 2021 a court in Vladivostok acquitted Dmitry Barmakin, a Jehovah's Witness, of charges of extremism in the first such acquittal for a member…

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Law of the Week: Anti-extremism legislation used to suppress freedoms of association, expression and conscience

Wee-ending 19 November 2021 The Russian legislation on extremism has been used, among other things, to prosecute Jehovah's Witnesses and to outlaw organisations supporting Aleksei Navalny. This week Fedor Telin,…

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They are not extremists! Statement by the Yakunin Committee in Defence of Jehovah’s Witnesses

8 November 2021 Pictured: Lev Levinson, member of the Public Committee on Freedom of Conscience (The Yakunin Committee), expert at the Institute of Human Rights, head of the Library of…

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Law of the Week: Jehovah’s Witnesses, designated ‘extremist’ since 2017

Week-ending 29 October 2021 In 2017 the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation designated Jehovah's Witnesses as an extremist organisation, banning the faith's organisations in Russia. Since then scores of…

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Legal Case of the Week: Four Jehovah’s Witnesses sentenced to long terms in prison.

Week-ending 24 September 2021 On 23 September 2021 a district court in Volgograd sentenced four Jehovah’s Witnesses to more than six years in prison each on charges of extremism. Valery…

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Memorial Human Rights Centre: 127 more Jehovah’s Witnesses are political prisoners or victims of politically motivated prosecutions

12 August 2021 Memorial Human Rights Centre has recognized an additional 36 Jehovah's Witnesses as political prisoners and a further 91 Jehovah's Witnesses as victims of politically motivated prosecutions. Source:…

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Legal Case of the Week: Three Jehovah’s Witnesses sentenced to long terms in prison for their faith

Week-ending 30 July 2021 https://memohrc.org/ru/news_old/v-rostove-na-donu-troim-svidetelyam-iegovy-dali-za-veru-sroki-ot-shesti-do-shesti-sPhoto: Memorial Human Rights Centre On 29 July 2021 a court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced three Jehovah's Witnesses to terms in prison for organising the activities of…

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Legal Case of the Week: Three Jehovah’s Witnesses fined for organising and financing an ‘extremist organisation’

Week-ending 23 July 2021 On 19 July 2021 a court in Kirov in the Urals district fined three Jehovah's Witnesses for organising and financing an extremist group. The Russian Supreme…

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Legal Case of the Week: Two Jehovah’s Witnesses sentenced to long prison terms

Week-ending 2 July 2021 Source: RFE/RL On 30 June 2021 Blagoveshchensk City Court in Amur region sentenced two Jehovah's Witnesses, Dmitry Golik and Aleksei Berchuk, to prison terms of seven…

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Lev Ponomarev on the persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia: “The whole world sees this tragic absurdity”

10 June 2021 by Lev Ponomarev, human rights activist, member of the Moscow Helsinki Group - with a full translation of a letter from former prisoners of the Dachau concentration…

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