JW. New York – This year, Russian courts sentenced over 40% more Jehovah’s Witnesses (45) to prison than last year (32). This resulted in a peak of 115 men and women in prison at one time—the most since the 2017 Supreme Court ruling that effectively banned the Witnesses’ activities.
Persecution has intensified, despite a landmark ruling in June 2022 by the European Court of Human Rights declaring the 2017 ban on Jehovah’s Witnesses as baseless violation of international human rights covenants that should be reversed. The Court directed Russia to halt all pending criminal proceedings against Jehovah’s Witnesses and release those imprisoned. [See p. 85, §11 of judgment (link).] Just weeks ago, the Council of Europe’s Secretary General urged Russia to comply with the ECHR’s judgement, as it is obligated to do, and reverse the ban on Jehovah’s Witnesses. [See p. 2 of letter (link).]
Jarrod Lopes, a spokesperson for Jehovah’s Witnesses, stated:
* Being on the list—which is publicly accessible—stigmatizes them and has prevented many from getting jobs. Other burdensome consequences include having their bank accounts blocked and having difficulty obtaining or renewing insurance policies, selling property, managing investments, receiving inheritances, or even purchasing mobile phone SIM cards.
121 convicted for so-called extremist activity and sentenced to various penalties. This figure has steadily increased—18 in 2019; 39 in 2020; and 111 in 2021
45 sentenced to prison to a total of 250 years in prison. This is more than a 40% increase to the 32 sentenced to prison in 2021
35 out of the 45 were sent to prison for six years
In September 2022, the number of Witnesses in prison at one time exceeded 100 for the first time since the 2017 Supreme Court ruling. As of Dec. 23, 2022, there was a peak of 115 behind bars
19 in prison are over the age of 60
Oldest is Boris Andreev, 71, from Primorye Territory. He was 70 when ordered to pretrial detention in October 2022 (link)
The most inhumane sentence in 2022 is 7 years for Andrey Vlasov, who is disabled and struggles to manage daily activities without assistance (link to video)
A total of 367 believers have spent some time behind bars since May 2017
200 searches of JW homes conducted this year in 39 localities of Russia
Over 1,800 homes have been searched since 2017 ban, leading to criminal investigations or charges filed against more than 670 Witnesses
Criminal cases against Jehovah’s Witnesses have been filed in 72 regions of Russia by the end of 2022—this is two more than in 2021
What do experts think?
Alexander Verkhovsky, director of Moscow-based SOVA Center for Information and Analysis, former member of Russia’s Human Rights Council (bio)
Doug Bandow, senior fellow at Cato Institute, foreign policy and civil liberties specialist (bio)
Emily Baran, chair of history department at Middle Tennessee State University, Russia and church-state relations expert, author of Dissent on the Margins: How Soviet Jehovah’s Witnesses Defied Communism and Lived to Preach About It (bio)
Natalia Arno, founder and president of Free Russia Foundation (bio)
Sir Andrew Wood, British ambassador to Russia 1995-2000 (bio)
Andrew Weiss, vice president for studies at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, former National Security Council director for Russian, Ukrainian, and Eurasian affairs (bio)
Dawid Bunikowski, visiting scholar at University of Eastern Finland’s School of Theology, academic associate at Cardiff School of Law and Politics’ Centre for Law and Religion (bio)
Elizabeth Clark, associate director for Brigham Young University’s International Center for Law and Religion Studies, international human rights and European Union law expert (bio)
Eric Patterson, executive vice president of Religious Freedom Institute, former dean of Regent University’s Robertson School of Government (bio)
Photos | Courtesy of Jehovah’s Witnesses
Some of the over 360 brothers and sisters in Russia and Crimea who have spent time in prison since the 2017 Russian Supreme Court ruling (link to more info)
After being sentenced to 6 years in prison, Alexander Seredkin hugs his son goodbye, Novosibirsk, November 2022 (link to more info)
Jehovah’s Witnesses from Astrakhan during a court hearing held via video conference in 2022 (link to additional info about the prisoners)
Boris Andreev, 71, currently held in Detention Center No. 2 in Primorye Territory (link to additional info)
Russian authorities raiding an apartment in Tolyatti, Samara Region, September 2022 (link to additional info)
Yevgeniy Korotun in a courtroom holding cell. He was sentenced to 7 years in prison, leaving behind a preteen son, Aleksandr (link to additional info)
Yevgeniy Korotun with his wife, Yevgeniya, and son, Aleksandr