
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: Memorial Human Rights Centre
Memorial Human Rights Centre has recognized a further 36 Jehovah’s Witnesses as political prisoners, of whom 16 are in custody and 20 under house arrest. We have recognized a further 91 believers as victims of politically motivated prosecutions. These individuals are defendants in criminal cases, but have been given bail.
Most of the Jehovah’s Witnesses have been charged with organizing the activities of an extremist organization (Article 282.2, Part 1, of the Russian Criminal Code), participation in such an organization (Article 282.2, Part 2) or involving others in such activities (Article 282.2, Part 1.1). Some have also been charged with financing extremist activities (Article 282.3, Part 1).
General Statistics

Altogether in our list of political prisoners there are a total of 86 Jehovah’s Witnesses imprisoned on charges related solely to their religious affiliation. Fifty-two of them are in custody and 34 are under house arrest. Of those in custody, 28 await the outcome of their trials in pre-trial detention and 24 have been sentenced to terms ranging from two to eight years.
Eighty Jehovah’s Witnesses have been given suspended sentences and at least 349 others are being prosecuted but are not in custody at the pre-trial or trial stages.
Moreover, according to our information, there are currently:
- Fifteen Jehovah’s Witnesses who have been sentenced to fines;
- Thirteen have already served their sentences, of whom two were deprived of their Russian citizenship while serving their sentence and have been deported;
- Criminal charges against six others have been dropped;
- A further five Jehovah’s Witnesses have died.
Altogether, at least 554 Jehovah’s Witnesses have been prosecuted during the large-scale campaign of criminal prosecutions against adherents of the faith that began in April 2017. The number continues to grow.
A regularly updated list of those prosecuted is available on our website.
We consider the designation of Jehovah’s Witness organizations as extremist to be groundless and in violation of the rights to freedom of conscience and association. The criminal prosecution of the followers of this peaceful religion is unlawful and discriminatory.
We demand the immediate release of Jehovah’s Witnesses who are in custody or under house arrest and an end to the criminal prosecution of all members of this faith.
The list of those prosecuted (which can also be found on our website) is as follows:
16 new defendants who are in custody:
- Adestov, Roman Aleksandrovich
- Deshko, Vladimir Viktorovich
- Filatov, Aleksandr Nikolaevich
- Isakov, Anatoly Vladimirovich
- Kuzhelkov, Anton Vladimirovich
- Kupriyanov, Aleksei Vyacheslavovich
- Lubin, Aleksandr Nikolaevich
- Melnik, Vladimir Vasilievich
- Piskarev, Vladimir Vladimirovich
- Putintsev, Artur Vladislavovich
- Serebryakov, Aleksandr Georgievich
- Siyukhov, Inver Ruslanovich
- Skudaev, Sergei Vladimirovich
- Temirbulatov, Yury Rafikovich
- Usanov, Yury Aleksandrovich
- Velizhanina, Tatyana Yurievna
20 new defendants who remain under house arrest:
- Ananin, Sergei Viktorovich
- Chaikovsky, Ivan Stepanovich
- Chernyshev, Yury Evgenievich
- Derendyaev, Maksim Ivanovich
- Dubovenko, Aleksandr
- Kazakov, Sergei
- Komarov, Vitaly Viktorovich
- Kretov, Sergei Pavlovich
- Litvinyuk, Aleksandr
- Loginsky, Yury Vladimirovich
- Merkulov, Denis Aleksandrovich
- Moskalev, Yury Vladimirovich
- Reshetnikov, Evgeny Borisovich
- Safronova, Anna Arnoldovna
- Shatalov, Sergei Grigorievich
- Simonenko, Boris Nikolaevich
- Urazbakhtin, Ildar
- Yagovitov, Boris Yurievich
- Zakaryan, Vardan Pegatosovich
- Zhiltsov, Petr
91 believers who are on bail:
- Anufriev, Nikolai Filippovich
- Ashikhmin, Sergei Aleksandrovich
- Balabkin, Vladimir Moiseevich
- Bitusov, Evgeny Vladimirovich
- Chesnokov, Vladimir Aleksandrovich
- Danielyan, Andrei Emikovich
- Degtyarenko, Ilya Olegovich
- Dominova, Aksana Otarovna
- Druzhinin, Leonid Ivanovich
- Dubovkina, Svetlana Aleksandrovna
- Dutkin, Vladimir Vitalievich
- Efremova, Svetlana Evgenievna
- Eliseev, Aleksei Nikolaevich
- Ermak, Anna Vladimirovna
- Ermilova, Valentina Valerievna
- Ershov, Aleksei Nikolaevich
- Ershov, Ilya Vladimirovich
- Filiznov, Petr Vyacheslavovich
- Gobozev, Sergei Borisovich
- Godunov, Evgeny Nikolaevich
- Golik, Kristina Valentinovna
- Gushchin, Kirill Olegovich
- Gushchina, Svetlana Georgievna
- Ilyasova, Yunona Alekseevna
- Kazadaev, Pavel Alekseevich
- Ketov, Aleksandr Valerievich
- Kharlamov, Andrei Vladimirovich
- Khmil, Valery Anatolievich
- Kobelev, Sergei Aleksandrovich
- Kobeleva, Galina Alekseevna
- Kolesnichenko, Andrei Vasilievich
- Kostenko, Aleksandr Viktorovich
- Kochneva, Nataliya Andreevna
- Kruglyakov, Aleksandr Viktorovich
- Krupnov, Petr Sergeevich
- Krupnova, Maya Leonidovna
- Kuznetsov, Aleksandr Aleksandrovich
- Kuznetsov, Sergei Aleksandrovich
- Kuznetsova, Maria Sergeevna
- Kuzio, Daria
- Kutin, Aleksandr Georgievich
- Labadze, Gurami Noeevich
- Ledyaikin, Andrei Sergeevich
- Manzyrykchi, Vitaly Alevtinovich
- Meleshko, Vasily Vladimirovich
- Menchikova, Elena Alekseevna
- Merinkov, Eduard Valerievich
- Minsafin, Valery Igorevich
- Mirgorodskaya, Olga Vladimirovna
- Mironchik, Igor Evgenievich
- Morlang, Tatyana Yurievna
- Naumenko, Sergei Aleksandrovich
- Nekrasova, Lidiya Semenovna
- Nikolaev, Aleksandr Georgievich
- Ogorodov, Pavel
- Olshevskaya, Ekaterina Sergeevna
- Ortanova, Zareta Aniuarovna
- Perekaty, Nataliya Ivanovna
- Peresunko, Denis Petrovich
- Pechko, Galina Aleksandrovna
- Ponomareva, Olga Vladimirovna
- Ponomarenko, Yury Viktorovich
- Popkova, Yuliya Yurievna
- Popov, Pavel Nikolaevich
- Popras, Aleksandr Ivanovich
- Portnaygina, Maria Aleksandrovna
- Potapov, Mikhail Nikolaevich
- Prilepsky, Aleksandr Sergeevich
- Prokhorov, Nikolai Vladimirovich
- Putivskaya, Anzhela Nikolaevna
- Redozubov, Yury Yurievich
- Reshetnikov, Mikhail Nikolaevich
- Savelieva, Elena Petrovna
- Salmanov, Nikolai Sergeevich
- Senin, Anatoly Anatolievich
- Shulgina, Olga Panteleevna
- Shutov Aleksandr
- Shchanikov, Viktor Nikolaevich
- Starikov, Aleksandr Mikhailovich
- Sushilnikov, Sergei Vasilievich
- Syrykh, Vitaly Yurievich
- Tsikunov, Aleksandr Gennadievich
- Ushakhin, Sergei Vitalievich
- Vyushin, Andrei Evgenievich
- Vorontsov, Aleksandr Aleksandrovich
- Vyrezkova, Svetlana Vitalievna
- Yakovlev, Valery Porfirievich
- Zabora, Sergei Vasilievich
- Zhivolupov, Roman Vladimirovich
- Zinich, Evgeny Nikolaevich
- Zotov, Konstantin Aleksandrovich
Translated by Rights in Russia