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 RUSSIA   The last word of the defendant Alexander Kuznetsov in Yaroslavl July 7, 2023 Yaroslavl region In the last word, the defendant said: "My faith in God Jehovah has nothing to do with extremism, which they are trying to accuse me of." Transcript of the court session in the Dzerzhinsky District Court of Yaroslavl dated 07.07.2023 in the case 1-7/2023 (1-387/2022) on the charges of Kuznetsov Alexander Alexandrovich and others. in committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Kuznetsov Alexander Alexandrovich: First of all, I want to thank you, Your Honor, for the kind, calm atmosphere that prevailed at the meetings. Thank you, Your Honor, for always being attentive to me, being interested in my well-being, wishing me good health and being ready to make concessions when my health did not allow me to attend meetings. I express my sincere gratitude to the State Prosecutor Irina Alexandrovna for showing respect for our religi...

 Russia Maria Kuznetsova's last word in Yaroslavl July 7, 2023 Yaroslavl region "My views are directly opposite to what is called extremism," the defendant said, speaking with the last word. "I am not being tried for any crime, but only because I believe in God, whose name is Jehovah." Transcript of the court session in the Dzerzhinsky District Court of Yaroslavl dated 07.07.2023 in the case 1-7/2023 (1-387/2022) on charges of Kuznetsova Maria Sergeevna and others. in committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Kuznetsova Maria Sergeevna: Your Honor, thank you for the opportunity to deliver the last word. I would also like to express my gratitude to you for your patience, for the respectful, calm atmosphere that was throughout the trial. You made sure that everything was organized. Also thank you for showing sympathy when my husband got sick, giving him the opportunity to be examined and treated. Many thanks t...

 RUSSIA Case of Starikov and others in Konakovo Oleg Katamov Updated: September 28, 2023 Name: Katamov, Oleg Viktorovich Date of Birth: January 3, 1962 Current status: accused Article of the Russian Criminal Code: 282.2 (2) Biography Oleg Katamov from Konakovo peacefully practiced his religion for many years, not suspecting that one day he would become a defendant in a criminal case for believing in Jehovah God. Oleg was born in January 1962 in the city of Konakovo (Tver region). His parents are no longer alive. As a child, Oleg loved to fish, pick mushrooms and berries. After school, he studied as a construction technician. For many years he worked as a stamper at a factory. Recently, he has been cleaning the yard area. In 1985, Oleg married Larisa, a music teacher. After 5 years, they became interested in Bible teachings together. They were impressed by the fulfillment of the prophecies described in this ancient book and touched by the fact that Christians have the opportunity to...

 RUSSIA The Court of Cassation Upheld the Decisions of the Lower Courts Regarding Five Believers from Blagoveshchensk September 28, 2023 Amur Region On September 26, a panel of judges of the Ninth Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction in Vladivostok upheld the verdict of Sergey Afanasyev, Anton Olshevskiy, Sergey Kardakov, Adam Svarichevskiy and Sergey Yermilov. Each of them received more than six years in prison for their faith. "Even in Soviet times, during the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses, believers were not always sentenced to imprisonment, especially for such a long period as in the present case," one of the cassation appeals noted. All five believers from Blagoveshchensk plead not guilty and believe that they are being persecuted not for any crime, but for professing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses. In support of this, believers point out that law enforcement agencies have not established a single fact of their illegal activities. All this runs co...

Russia Andrey Vyushin's last word in Yaroslavl July 7, 2023 Yaroslavl region "I do not consider life according to the principles of God a crime," Andrei Vyushin told the court, speaking with the last word. He also told how he came to believe in God and how, thanks to this, he became a good family man and a happy person. Transcript of the court session in the Dzerzhinsky District Court of Yaroslavl dated 07.07.23 in the case 1-7/2023 (1-387/2022) on the accusation of Andrey Yevgenyevich Vyushin of committing a crime under Parts 1 and 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Vyushin Andrey Evgenievich: At the very beginning, I would like to express my gratitude to all participants in the process. Although there were tense and nervous moments at times, but in general there was a rather friendly atmosphere that contributed to the calm flow of the process. Your Honor, what I would like to tell you about myself. I grew up in an ordinary Soviet family. ...

 Russia The last word of the defendant Elena Yatsyk in Zee September 21 , 2023 Amur region In her last word, Yelena Yatsyk said that the biblical principles helped her to save her marriage. So she decided to tell others about them. She stated: "In my thoughts and actions, there was never any intention to harm anyone." Transcript of the court session in the Zeysky District Court of the Amur region dated 09/21/2023 in the case 1-62/2023 on the accusation of Yelena Vladimirovna Yatsyk and others. in committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Yatsyk Elena Vladimirovna: Your Honor, I want to thank you for your patience and understanding shown to us. I want to tell you a little about myself. I was born in the city of Zea in 1972. Like everyone else, I went to kindergarten, to school, got a profession. She got married, gave birth to a daughter, raised her as a decent person. When I decided to get married, I had little biblical kn...

 RUSSIA An appeal in Novosibirsk confirmed the sentence of Dmitry Dolzhikov - 2 years of forced labor for faith in Jehovah God September 25, 2023 Novosibirsk Region On September 22, 2023, the Novosibirsk Regional Court upheld the sentence of Dmitry Dolzhikov. Previously, the court of first instance sentenced him to 3 years in a general regime colony, but replaced the term with forced labor. Taking into account the term of arrest, he will only have to serve 2 years of forced labor. The appeal court ignored the arguments of Dolzhikov, who stated: “The law does not consider professing, including together with others, the religion to which the liquidated religious associations belonged as a sign of extremism.” In his complaint, Dmitry stated: “The court did not establish the presence of motives of religious hatred or enmity in my actions; it is not established which specific social group I acted against. All my actions were completely peaceful. “I did not do anything that would indicat...

 RUSSIA   The last word of the defendant Galina Yatsik in Zee September 21 , 2023 Amur region In her last word, the believer spoke about how biblical knowledge has influenced her life, and noted that she always wanted to share it with others. "There is no corpus delicti in my actions, as their motive is love for God and love for people." Transcript of the court session in the Zeysky District Court of the Amur region dated 09/21/2023 in the case 1-62/2023 on charges of Yatsik Galina Ivanovna and others. in committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Yatsik Galina Ivanovna: At the beginning of my speech, I want to thank all the participants in the trial. Your Honor, thank you for listening carefully and patiently to me and other participants in order to understand the essence of the charges. Thanks to Prosecutor Chursina Olga Alexandrovna for reading the text of the criminal case and the efforts made to get acquainted with th...

 TAJIKISTAN Secret Supreme Court hearing bans Jehovah's Witnesses 22 September 2023 A 2021 secret Supreme Court ban on Jehovah's Witnesses as allegedly "extremist" was not revealed until over a year later. "The participation of the organisation was not necessary," a Supreme Court official told Forum 18. Despite a 2022 UN Human Rights Committee View that the reasons to ban Jehovah's Witnesses were not lawful, appeals were rejected by a military court and on 31 August 2023 by the Supreme Court. A Court official refused to explain why the Court refused to heed the UN Human Rights Committee finding. At the instigation of the General Prosecutor, a secret Supreme Court hearing in Dushanbe on 29 March 2021 banned Jehovah's Witnesses for a second time, nearly 14 years after they were first banned in Tajikistan. No one informed the Jehovah's Witness community either before the 2021 hearing or afterwards. They found out about the hearing and renewed ban on...

 RUSSIA The case of Sveshnikov and Popov in Kovrov Mikhail Sveshnikov Updated: September 22, 2023 Name: Sveshnikov, Mikhail Vladimirovich Date of Birth: December 20, 1969 Current status: accused Article of the Russian Criminal Code: 282.2 (2) Time spent in prison: 1 day in temporary holding facility, 29 days under house arrest Current restrictions: house arrest Biography In 2012, the eldest daughter of Mikhail Sveshnikov died in a car accident. Faith in the biblical doctrine of the resurrection gave the family strength to survive this. However, it was precisely because of his love for the Bible that the man found himself involved in a criminal case in August 2023. Mikhail was born in 1969 in the city of Kovrov (Vladimir region). When he was 4, his parents divorced. Mother worked at the plant as a quality control inspector. Later, she married her colleague, and 12-year-old Mikhail had a younger brother. In primary school, Mikhail was engaged in artistic gymnastics, in the older grad...

 RUSSIA   The last word of Margarita Moiseenko in Zee September 21 , 2023 Amur region Defending her faith in court, the defendant stated: "Jehovah's Witnesses do not pose a danger to the state, because they are far from violence and strive for peace." Transcript of the court session in the Zeysky District Court of the Amur region dated 09/21/2023 in the case 1-62/2023 on charges of Margarita Anatolyevna Moiseenko and others. in committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Moiseenko Margarita Anatolyevna: Thank you to all the participants in the trial for treating me with respect as a defendant. Your Honor, thank you for allowing my husband to be the defense attorney in this case. Elena Nikolaevna, thank you for drawing up the minutes of the court session. Veronika Vasilyevna, thank you for your sincere, conscientious efforts to protect me! Olga Alexandrovna, thank you for trying to pronounce the name of God correctly — J...

 RUSSIA A court in the Amur region sentenced three women to 2 to 3 years probation for reading the Bible September 21, 2023 Amur Region On September 21, 2023, judge of the Zeya District Court of the Amur Region, Ivan Moiseenko, found 44-year-old Margarita Moiseenko, 51-year-old Elena Yatsyk and 72-year-old Galina Yatsik guilty of participating in the activities of an extremist organization and sentenced them to suspended sentences. The prosecutor asked to send the believers to a colony for terms of 2.5 to 3 years, but the court sentenced Margarita Moiseenko to 3 years of probation with deprivation of the right to engage in activities related to the leadership and participation in the work of public organizations for 3 years and restriction of freedom for 10 months with probationary period of 3 years. Galina Yatsik received a 2-year suspended sentence with deprivation of the right to engage in activities related to leadership and participation in the work of public organizations for...

 RUSSIA New Searches and a Criminal Case in Moscow and the Moscow region. Aleksandr Serebryakov, Previously Convicted for his Faith, Was Detained September 21, 2023 On September 19, 2023, at least 9 families of Jehovah's Witnesses were searched in several districts of Moscow and in the Moscow region (Solnechnogorsk, Fryazino, Dmitrov, and Chekhov). Aleksandr Serebryakov, who is serving a suspended sentence, was sent to a pre-trial detention center on the basis of a new charge. Six days earlier, the senior investigator of the Main Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the city of Moscow, Captain of Justice Roman Ivanov, opened a case against Serebryakov and unidentified persons under the article on financing the activities of an extremist organization. According to the lawyer, Aleksandr is charged with actions in the period from 2018 to 2019, when he was already accused under another article. The search in the apartment where the Sere...

 RUSSIA Appeal in Krasnoyarsk Upheld Ivan Shulyuk's Sentence: Seven Years Suspended for Convictions September 21, 2023 Krasnoyarsk Territory On September 19, 2023, by decision of a panel of judges of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court chaired by Diana Davydenko, the sentence against Ivan Shulyuk, 47, a Jehovah's Witness from Siberia, entered into force. In May 2023, the court imposed a 7-year suspended sentence on Shulyuk with a 4-year probationary period, considering the discussion of the Bible, prayers and singing religious songs with friends of the court as organizing the activities of an extremist organization. The believer does not agree with the sentence that has entered into force. In his last word, addressing the court of appeal, he stated that the investigation is substituting concepts, as it "deliberately interprets legitimate religious activity as the activity of a banned legal entity." In the Krasnoyarsk Territory, 30 Jehovah's Witnesses have already faced...