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 RUSSIA Cassation Court in Kemerovo Upheld Sergey Ananin's 6-Year Prison Term January 31, 2024 Kemerovo Region Sergey Ananin from the Kemerovo region is preparing to serve a 6-year sentence for his faith. On January 30, 2024, the cassation panel of the Eighth Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction in Kemerovo dismissed his cassation appeal against the verdict. Sergey Ananin was taken into custody on March 31, 2023, immediately after the Belovo City Court handed down a harsh sentence. Judge Galina Proshchenko then sent the believer to a penal colony for 6 years. An appeal in June of the same year upheld the decision of the court of first instance. In fact, the believer was found guilty of extremism only for communicating with fellow believers via video conferencing. In the cassation appeal, the lawyer noted: "In the course of the trial, it was reliably established that the actions of the convicted S.V. Ananin were in fact nothing more than an external manifestation of his a...

 RUSSIA  The last word of the defendant Dmitry Mikhailov in Shuya January 24, 2024 Ivanovo region In his last word, the believer said: "I have no resentment and anger against those who are involved in my criminal prosecution for believing in God… No matter how the events unfold in this criminal case, I intend to remain devoted to God no matter what." Transcript of the court session in the Shuisky city Court of the Ivanovo region in Shuya dated 01/24/2024 in the case 1-2/2023 (1-138/2022; 1-169/2021) according to the accusation of Mikhailov Dmitry Vasilyevich and others. of committing a crime under Parts 1 and 2 of Articles 282.2 and Part 1 of Article 282.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Mikhailov Dmitry Vasilyevich: Dear Court, Dear participants of the process! Not so long ago, an article entitled "The term "truth" in the legal culture of Ancient Russia" was published in the journal "Legislation" in 2017. And here's what'...

 RUSSIA A Court in Shuya Fined Five Jehovah's Witnesses for Reading the Bible together. They Must Pay the State From 380 to 950 thousand Rubles January 29, 2024 Ivanovo Region On January 29, 2023, Anton Mokin, judge of the Shuya City Court of the Ivanovo Region, sentenced Aleksey Arkhipov, Svetlana Ryzhkova, Svetlana Shishina, and spouses Dmitriy and Yelena Mikhailova to large fines for believing in Jehovah God. Aleksey Arkhipov was fined 380,000, Svetlana Shishina 400,000, Svetlana Ryzhkova 480,000, Yelena Mikhailova 560,000, and her husband Dmitriy Mikhailov 950,000 rubles. The prosecution requested a fine of 1,200,000 rubles for Mikhailov, taking into account the time of detention; for Mikhailova and Ryzhkova—600,000 rubles each; for Shishina and Arkhipov—400,000 rubles each. The believers insist on their innocence and have the right to appeal. "In fact, I am accused of believing in God," Dmitriy Mikhailov commented on the accusation. "I am accused of communicatin...

 RUSSIA A Court in Samara Sent Four Jehovah's Witnesses to a Penal Colony for Seven Years January 29, 2024 Samara Region Aram Danielyan, Denis Kuzyanin, Sergey Polosenko and Nikolay Vasiliyev were sentenced to 7 years in prison for practicing their faith. This decision was made by the judge of the Samara District Court Dmitriy Derunov on Thursday, January 25. The believers were taken into custody. Their friends and relatives accompanied the paddy wagon with applause and shouts of "we love you!" The six-month trial against the Samara residents ended rapidly: the last hearing with interruptions lasted more than 10 hours. During this time, the debates of the parties, the last word and the announcement of the verdict took place. The charges of organizing extremist activities are based on hidden recordings of worship services and personal conversations about the Bible, as well as some documents from the computer of one of the defendants, which, as it turned out in court, were ...

 RUSSIA  The last word of the defendant Svetlana Shishina in Shuya January 24, 2024 Ivanovo region The believer pointed out to the court the absurdity of the criminal case: "There are people in the dock who try to comply with the laws of their country and show respect for the authorities, work honestly and pay taxes ... worship God as it is written in the Bible… And for this they are accused of extremism." Transcript of the court session in the Shuisky city Court of the Ivanovo region dated 01/24/2024 in the case 1-1/2024 (1-2/2023; 1-138/2022) on the accusation of Svetlana Yurievna Shishina and others. of committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Shishina Svetlana Yurievna: Your Honor, perhaps I can repeat myself in some thoughts with other defendants, but I also sincerely want to thank you for your professionalism, for treating this really difficult criminal case in which my friends and I are defendants with all serious...

 SPAIN Sectarian ignorance stalks against the Jehovah’s Witnesses By Gabriel Carrion Lopez 26 January 2024 On 14 December 2023, the Court of First Instance of Torrejón ruled that freedom of expression was protected for a group of “former followers” of the Jehovah’s Witnesses religious organisation, in terms of being able to describe it (insulting) as a destructive sect. And it condemns this religious organisation to pay the costs of the proceedings. Justice thus adds to the ignorant treatment that people who have not done well within a religious organisation arrogate to themselves the right to vilify and insult without the religious organisation, at least in some European countries and, in this specific case in Spain, having the right to defend its honour. Sectarian ignorance stalks against the Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah’s Witnesses arrived in Spain at the end of the 1950s from the USA. The General Directorate of Security, linked to the National Catholicism of the time, began a pe...

 RUSSIA    The last word of the defendant Sergei Vasiliev in Irkutsk January 24, 2024 Irkutsk region Sergei Vasiliev, addressing the court, said: "With the help of the Bible, I try to show love to all people and respect the state authorities… I'm sure there's nothing wrong with people getting better by studying the Bible. The Bible has helped me, and I want it to help many more people." Transcript of the court session in the Oktyabrsky District Court of Irkutsk dated 01/24/2024 in the case 1-6/2024 (1-105/2023; 1-857/2022) according to the accusation of Vasiliev Sergey Evgenievich and others. of committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Vasiliev Sergey Evgenievich: Your Honor, I am almost 73 years old, and I have lived more than half of them without knowing God. My life without a Creator could not be called successful. Judge for yourself. As a child, I grew up without parents and therefore absorbed everything that...

 RUSSIA  The last word in the retrial of the defendant Elena Menchikova in Cherkessk January 18, 2024 Karachay-Cherkessia Addressing the court, the believer stated: "I am being judged only for the fact that I ... welcomed at home all those who share my interests, my views and beliefs, in other words, my friends. I did not imagine that hospitality in the Caucasus would turn out to be such a grave crime." Transcript of the court session in the Cherkess City Court of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic dated 01/18/2024 in the case 1-489/2021 on charges of Menchikova Elena Alekseevna of committing a crime under Part 2 and Part 1.1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Menchikova Elena Alekseevna: Your Honor, I would like to begin my last word by expressing my gratitude to you personally. When people go to court, they think mostly about themselves in order to hear the decision they would like to hear. But few people think about what the judges themselves face...

 RUSSIA The First Sentence for Faith in the Samara Region. Sona Olopova, 36, From Tolyatti Was Sentenced to Two Years of Forced Labor January 25, 2024 Samara Region On January 25, 2024, Judge Tatyana Begunova of the Central District Court of Tolyatti found Sona Olopova guilty of extremism because of her religion and sentenced her to 2 years of forced labor. She will serve her sentence in a correctional center. The believer considers the sentence unfair. "The evidence presented by the prosecution does not confirm my guilt in committing a crime. All arguments boil down to the fact that . . . in the city of Tolyatti, a small group of people professing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses held worship services, which began with song and prayer and were aimed at discussing the Bible," Sona said in court. The state prosecutor asked for 4 years in prison and 8 months of restriction of freedom for the believer. At the same time, according to the believer, the prosecutor could not ...

 AUSCHWITZ-BIRKENAU - NAZI GERMANY  Jehovah's Witnesses among the first sent to the Extermination Camp In Memory of Auschwitz January 24, 2024. On January 27, 2024, the 79th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz  The commemoration of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau recalls the atrocities committed against specific groups that were targeted by the Nazis. In its almost five years of operation, Auschwitz Four gas chambers killed up to 6,000 people a day. On Saturday, January 27, 1945, the Soviet Union's Red Army released about 7,000 prisoners from the death complex. Among the victims of the notorious camp were about 400 Jehovah's Witnesses of various nationalities, including Poles and Germans. A purple triangle of cloth, sewn next to the prisoner's number on the left side of the uniform, identified witnesses who had been imprisoned, not because of their national or ethnic identity, but because of their religious beliefs.  "As early as 1933, the activity of J...

 RUSSIA    The last word of the defendant Nikolai Saparov in Maykop January 17, 2024 Adygea The believer mentioned that the victims were not listed in the case and compared his trial with the trial of Christ. He stated that he and his family were the only victims in this case.: "We suffered not as criminals... but as those who believe and worship the only living God, Jehovah." Transcript of the court session in the Maykop City Court of the Republic of Adygea dated 01/17/2024 in case 1-14/2024 on charges of Saparov Nikolay Vladimirovich of committing a crime under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Saparov Nikolay Vladimirovich: I would like to express my gratitude to all participants in the process: to you, Your Honor, for not preventing visits with my wife and daughter; to the state prosecution for not rejecting all our petitions; to the secretary for his work. I would also like to thank my defender, Ruslan Kazbekovich Dedukhov, for t...

 GERMANY Germany Recognizes Simone Arnold-Liebster With Nation’s Highest Award for Efforts to Educate Young People January 24, 2024 On December 15, 2023, Sister Simone Arnold-Liebster received the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. The Order of Merit is Germany’s highest award extended to individuals for their outstanding service to society. It was presented to Simone by Consul General Thomas Pröpstl at a ceremony in Chambéry, France. Simone, who is now 93 years old, was acknowledged for her efforts to preserve the memory of Nazi tyranny and those who resisted its ideology of hate and violence. To date, Simone has spoken to audiences in 25 countries. Nearly 65,000 have attended her appearances, including many students and school faculty members. Despite her age, she continues to make these visits via videoconference, during which she answers questions from young people and relates lessons learned when she was their age. After attending one such appearance, a student...

 RUSSIA In Orenburg, An Appellate Court Upholds the Suspended Sentence of Five Believers January 24, 2024 Orenburg Region According to the decision of the Orenburg Regional Court, on January 24, 2024, the sentence came into force for five Jehovah's Witnesses - Vladislav Kolbanov, Vladimir Kochnev, Pavel Lekontsev, Nikolay Zhugin and Sergey Logunov received from 2.5 to 3.5 years suspended for friendly meetings with fellow believers. The state prosecutor asked the court of appeal to appoint a real imprisonment instead of a suspended one. The believers' lawyer called the accusation's demands unfounded, stressing that in the verdict the court specifically noted: "Actions aimed at inciting hatred and enmity, calls for violence ... the defendants are not charged." The believers themselves once again stated that they consider any guilty decision unjust and infringing on their right to freedom of religion. "It is impossible to establish from the appealed verdict on w...

 RUSSIA A Court in Cherkessk Reviewed Yelena Menchikova's Case and Found Her Guilty of Extremism Again for Talking About the Bible January 24, 2024 Karachay-Cherkessia Yelena Menchikova, 59, was found guilty again - on January 23, 2023, the judge of the Cherkessk City Court, Nauruz Shukurov, sentenced the woman with a disability to four and a half years suspended with a probation period of two and a half years because of her religion. As Yelena noted, speaking in court, the charges boil down to the fact that she invited friends "to study the Holy Scriptures (Bible), consisting of collective singing of songs, prayers, and the study of religious articles." "I never imagined that hospitality in the Caucasus would turn out to be such a grave crime and that punishment would follow," the believer said. At the same time, the indictment does not contain a specific description of what manifestations of extremism, when and under what circumstances Menchikova allowed. The ...