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The Jehovah’s Witnesses were designated an extremist organisation on 20 April 2017. At that time, the Supreme Court issued a ruling dissolving the Administrative Centre and nearly 400 regional congregations across the Russian Federation. Previously, Jehovah’s Witnesses had only been banned in certain regions. In May 2017, reports emerged of a wave of pressure on Jehovah’s Witnesses’ children from teachers and police officers. Believers have also reported repeated acts of vandalism targeting sites associated with the organisation.
Cases against Jehovah’s Witnesses are often built on covert recordings made by undercover agents, and the testimony of “secret witnesses.”
The authorities consider any communal prayer, singing of religious hymns or Bible reading over video calls as “continuing the activities” of a banned organisation. Experts recruited by the investigators often interpret believers’ conviction in the truth of their own faith-a feature common to any religion-as proof of “religious superiority” and extremism.
We recommend checking out the interactive dashboard with analytics on the persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia.