Six days of hearings took Russian Supreme Court to rule on the claim of the Ministry of Justice of the liquidation and ban the activities of all the 396 registered Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia.
“When the judge refused the application in one after the other, it seemed that all the matter had already been decided in advance,” – says Yaroslav Sivulskii, a member of the Steering Committee of the Administrative Center of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia. Lawyers stated various applications for admission to participation in the case of local organizations on attraction of experts on the study of various documents, but in the hall again and again heard the words of the judge: “The Court, after hearing the opinion of the persons participating in the case, said that: deny the petition “.
 
Jaroslav Sivulskii: “In general, was dismissed about seventeen motions and only one was granted by the court. We have not seen any evidence to support the claim of the Ministry of Justice. On the specific questions are often representative of the Ministry of Justice said: “I do not know”, “I do not know. ‘”
A fragment of a dialogue between the Court and a representative of the Ministry of Justice (the process of the transcript). Judge Ivanenko: “You’re getting ready for the process …” – “Yes.” – “I’m sure you know, about what all the same it is a threat?” – “Who is it difficult to answer.”
A fragment of a dialogue between a lawyer and a representative of the Ministry of Justice Zhenkovym. Little wife: “Tell me, if violations of Jehovah’s Witnesses public order are fixed under the influence of read literature of Jehovah’s Witnesses? Do you have such facts? “-” No, I have no such facts. “
A fragment of a dialogue between a lawyer and a representative of the Ministry of Justice Omelchenko. Omelchenko: “Please tell me, what the local religious organization has spent how much and what kind of extremist activity” – “Local religious organizations, we do not check.” – “That is, you do not have such information?” – “No”.
In court, witnesses were questioned by 8, 4 of them witness by the plaintiff. “They failed to cite a single fact confirming the extremist activities of Jehovah’s Witnesses,” – says Yaroslav Sivulskii.
At gunpoint dozen cameras Judge Yuri Ivanenko announced the verdict: “The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation decided to administrative claim of the Russian Federation Ministry of Justice to meet …” And in the same day, unknown persons threw stones liturgical building of Jehovah’s Witnesses in St. Petersburg. Such developments forecast during court debate, the representative of the defendant Maksim Novakov: “Because of this status,” extremists “will follow the widespread use of violence against Jehovah’s Witnesses.”
The decision of the Supreme Court, has caused widespread international attention, it will be appealed.
https://www.jw-russia.org/news/17050117-152.htmlÂ
