Russian Supreme Court ruling banned Jehovah's Witnesses in the country
According to the decision, the denomination was considered an "extremist organization", which will now have to hand over all its properties to the state - at least 395 temples spread across Russian territory.
Any kind of religious practice from now on will also be criminalized.
Prosecutor Svetlana Borisova, one of the plaintiffs, told Interfazas news agency that Jehovah's Witnesses represent "a threat to citizens' rights, public order and public safety."
Borisova also said that the opposition of adherents of that religion to undergoing blood transfusions violates Russian health laws.
Representatives of Jehovah's Witnesses have already said they will try to appeal the decision to the European Court of Human Rights.
The religion was founded in the United States at the end of the 19th century and during the regime of Josef Stalin in the Soviet Union was banned there - thousands of followers were sent to Siberia at the time.
Its members are known for their door-to-door preaching and rejection of military service and blood transfusions.
Fight in court
When the case began to be tried on Wednesday, lawyers representing the movement filed a motion alleging that religious followers were victims of political repression and that the prosecution's action was "illegal."
The prosecutor said that the activities of Jehovah's Witnesses violated "the Russian law to combat extremism" and that their pamphlets incited hatred against other groups.
One of them, according to BBC correspondent Sarah Rainsford, quoted the novelist Leon Tolstoy in describing the doctrine of the Russian Orthodox Church as superstition and witchcraft.
Yaroslav Sivulsky, a representative of Jehovah's Witnesses, replied that the movement had nothing to do with extremism and said that in all cases brought to justice, his arguments were never heard.
"I would never think that this would be possible in modern Russia, where the Constitution guarantees freedom of religious practice."
It is estimated that 175,000 people follow the now forbidden religion in the country.
Second prohibition
Stalin's regime banned not only Jehovah's Witnesses but also other Christian religions. The ban was only repealed by Russia in 1991.
In recent years, however, the government has been hardening its attitudes towards the movement. In 2004, a group was banned after allegations involving recruiting children and banning believers from accepting medical care.
According to the Sova human rights group, a "repressive official campaign" has been conducted against religion for years, and many of its members would have been physically attacked.
Comentários
Postar um comentário