ECHR RULING: JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES REPORT RUSSIA TO COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS OF COUNCIL OF EUROPE

MOSCOW, Russia – Jehovah’s Witnesses(JWs) have intensified pressure on the Russian authority following the decision of Moscow to outlaw their form of peaceful worship after branding them religious extremists.

The JWs hit back at Putin by reporting Russia to Committee of Ministers of the Council for Europe, (CMCE) for refusing to honour ruling of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

The Golovinsky District Court had in March 2004 granted an order to liquidate Jehovah’s Witnesses in Moscow. Based on this development, the JWs lodged a complaint with ECHR.

In June 2010, ECHR ruled in favor of the JWs and ordered Russia to pay them € 20,000 in compensation and €50,000 as cost and expense.

But Russia has failed to honour the judgement up to this moment, forcing the JWs to file application with the CMCE. A copy of the application has been uploaded on the website of the CMCE.

“The situation is now critical. On April 20, 2017, the Supreme Court of Russia granted the application of the Ministry of Justice of Russia and banned Jehovah’s Witnesses nationwide and ordered the liquidation of their national legal entity, the Administrative Centre of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia (Administrative Centre), and 395 local religious organizations (LROs) of Jehovah’s Witnesses, including the Moscow LRO. This is now the second time the applicant organization has been liquidated”, lawyer John M. Burns said in the statement.

The Justice Ministry said that violations of the law “On Combatting Extremism” had been revealed during inspection conducted in the organization. The Prosecutor General’s Office’s notice concerning inadmissibility of carrying out extremist activities by Jehovah’s Witnesses has taken effect, the Ministry said.

The JWs however released video footage of Russian officials planting extremist materials in their Kingdom Halls. See the video here.

Jehovah’s Witnesses is an international religious organization based in Brooklyn, New York. They are known for non-violent form of worship.