RT, 21 Apr, 2017
Russia’s Supreme Court has banned the Jehovah’s Witnesses,
declaring it an “extremist organization” and ordering to hand over its
property to the state. The Christian group says it is planning to appeal
the decision.
Delivering the verdict on Thursday, Judge Yury Ivanenko ruled
that all 395 branches of the religious group on Russian territory are
subject to disbandment and the property is to be forfeited to the state.
In
the run-up to the ruling on its liquidation, based on a lawsuit filed
by the Russian Justice Ministry, the Jehovah’s Witnesses group has
repeatedly found itself in trouble with Russia’s anti-extremism
legislation. In October last year, a lower court notified the
organization of a looming ban if it did not stop engaging in what it
considered extremist activity. In January this year, the warning was
upheld by the Moscow City Court.
Jehovah's Witnesses leaflets promoting information “posing a threat to health”
were provided as evidence by the Ministry of Justice during the
hearings, Svetlana Borisova, the ministry’s representative said, as
cited by RIA Novosti. More than 90 printed booklets of the organization
have been found to contain extremist materials.
One of Jehovah’s
Witnesses strict beliefs – a complete ban on blood transfusions – can
potentially endanger the life of a child, argued Borisova. She cited a
case when devout followers of the group refused to give consent for the
procedure needed by their child.
The present lawsuit was revolving
around Jehovah’s Witnesses’ chief managing organization in Russia,
based in St. Petersburg, which is in charge of all its outfits scattered
on the Russian territory. RT
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