ECtHR awards compensation to Jehovah’s Witnesses* from two regions of Southern Russia for their disrupted meetings

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) recognized the disruption of meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses* by law enforcers in Kabardino-Balkaria and the Rostov Region as a violation of the right to freedom of religion and awarded compensation to the complainants in the amount of 7500 euros. However, Russia has withdrawn its obligation to comply with the decisions of the European Court, issued after March 15, 2022.

Earlier, on March 16, 2022, due to the Russia’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe (CoE), the ECtHR suspended consideration of complaints coming from Russia. At the same time, the cases under the complaints that were received by the ECtHR from Russian citizens before March 16, 2022, should be considered, and the decisions pronounced before that date should be executed, analysts point out.

The ECtHR awarded compensation to Jehovah’s Witnesses* for meetings of believers disrupted by the police in nineteen Russian cities, including the cities of Volgodonsk in the Rostov Region and Prokhladny in Kabardino-Balkaria, the “Kavkaz.Realii” reports**.

In all cases, religious meetings were disrupted by law enforcers. “The police disrupted some meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses* on the grounds that they were held without prior notifications,” the court’s decision states.

All the applicants complained to the domestic courts about the lack of grounds for searches conducted, but the courts did not grant their claims. The ECtHR found a violation of Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights on the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and awarded the complainants the compensations amounting to 500-7500 euros. Jehovah’s Witnesses* Tumakov and Akhmatov were awarded the compensations amounting to 7500 euros.

*396 Russian organizations of Jehovah’s Witnesses are recognized as extremist, and their activities in Russia are banned by a court’s decision.

**Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.