RUSSIA: In 2015, 89 known individuals and communities prosecuted for religious literature
Unemployed Jehovah's Witness A. Bokov served six days in prison for possessing Jehovah's Witness literature the Russian authorities deem "extremist". Yevgeny Menshenin served five days in prison for sharing an Islamic video on a social network. Elista's Jehovah's Witness community and an Islamic community in Komsomolsk-on-Amur were each fined 100,000 Roubles for religious literature (Jehovah's Witnesses say the literature in Elista had been planted). These were some of the 89 known individuals and communities brought to court in 2015 under Administrative Code Article 20.29 for religious literature, Forum 18 News Service notes, a rise of a third on 2014. While more than half the prosecutions resulted from Islamic materials (many of them online), more than a third (a marked increase on 2014) were Jehovah's Witness texts. The other two were from Chinese spiritual movement Falun Gong.
A total of 89 individuals and religious communities across Russia are known to have been brought to court in 2015 for possession of literature dealing with religion or beliefs, Forum 18 News Service has found in an analysis of court records. None of this literature appears to incite the violation of human rights, violence or hatred. Of these, 79 ended up with punishments, including four individuals who received jail sentences.These figures represent an increase on the previous year, when 56 punishments (all fines) resulted from 65 prosecutions for possession of religious literature the authorities deem "extremist" (see F18News 31 March 2014 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2052).
The cases were brought under Article 20.29 of the Code of Administrative Offences ("Production or mass distribution of extremist materials"). In 33 cases, courts ordered the confiscated religious literature to be destroyed.
Short-term imprisonment
Two Muslims and two Jehovah's Witnesses received short-term jail sentences. Jehovah's Witness A. Bokov was initially detained for 10 days in Voronezh because he was unemployed with no source of income to pay a fine – his sentence was reduced on appeal to six days and he was released immediately after his appeal hearing on 9 December. In Krasnodar Region, Jehovah's Witness Vladimir Yeltavsky was sentenced to 12 days on 2 July but released on appeal the next day (see below).
Metin Karakoch, director of the Turkish Language Centre at Astrakhan State University, was detained for two days on 27 May for posting text from books by Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen on a local internet forum – he subsequently left Russia for Turkey. In Perm Region on 26 March, Yevgeny Menshenin received a five-day sentence for sharing the video "The Wonders of the Koran" on the VKontakte social network (see below).
Islamic prosecutions continue, Jehovah's Witness prosecutions increase
Although a majority of cases involved banned Islamic texts or videos, prosecutions for alleged dissemination of Jehovah's Witness material have shown a marked increase throughout 2015, Forum 18 has observed (see below).
This is consistent with a general increase in state attention towards Jehovah's Witnesses in 2015 and 2016. This has included several attempts to liquidate local communities (see F18News 22 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2161), blocks on imports of Jehovah's Witness literature (see F18News 14 December 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2133), and an ongoing prosecutor's suit to outlaw as "extremist" the Jehovah's Witness translation of the Bible.
Article 20.29
Article 20.29 of the Administrative Code punishes "production or mass distribution of extremist materials included in the published Federal List of Extremist Materials, as well as their production or storage for mass distribution". Once a court – even a low-level court - has ruled a text "extremist" and the verdict has come into force, the ruling must be communicated within three days to the Justice Ministry, which maintains the Federal List. The item will then be added to the List within a further 30 days, banning its distribution throughout Russia.
Despite the term "mass distribution", prosecutors have often brought charges even if only one copy of a text is discovered. No state agency has answered Forum 18's questions on whether it is right that people should be punished for their possession and whether such prosecutions are a sensible use of police and prosecutors' time (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
The Russian authorities began similar prosecutions in Crimea soon after they annexed the territory from Ukraine in March 2014 (see Forum 18's Crimea religious freedom survey http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2051).
The Federal List now runs to over 3,000 items, often does not include full bibliographical details, and is irregularly updated. Checking whether a particular item is on the List can be very difficult or even impossible. The removal of an item from the Federal List is rare and can be short-lived, and in recent years, new texts have been added at an increasing rate (see F18News 27 July 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2084).
From 23 November 2015, an amendment to the Extremism Law stops some, but not all, sacred texts - "the Bible, the Koran, the Tanakh and the Kanjur, their contents, and quotations from them" - from being ruled "extremist" and placed on the Federal List (see F18News 30 November 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2126).
Massive fine increases in 2015
From May 2015, organisations in Russia – including religious communities – have faced sharply increased fines for the distribution of items on the Federal List (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062). Amendments signed into law by President Vladimir Putin doubled the minimum fine for "juridical persons" (which include commercial, publishing, media and registered religious organisations) to 100,000 Roubles (now 12,300 Norwegian Kroner, 1,300 Euros or 1,500 US Dollars). The maximum fine was raised 10-fold to 1 million Roubles.
The amendments have not increased fines for individuals or officials. If convicted, individuals continue to face a fine of between 1,000 and 3,000 Roubles, or up to 15 days' imprisonment. Fines for people acting in an official capacity (including individuals such as bookshop owners) range from 2,000 to 5,000 Roubles. (Each 1,000 Roubles is now equivalent to 120 Norwegian Kroner, 13 Euros or 15 US Dollars.)
Many other individuals are charged with offences under Article 20.29 for dissemination of material which does appear to incite the violation of human rights, violence or hatred. Forum 18 found a total of 849 cases under Article 20.29 in 2015 – this figure includes prosecutions for both religious and non-religious texts, videos, images, and songs, and for both material which does appear to be violent or racist and that which does not.
Consequences
Prosecutors may use convictions under Article 20.29 as evidence of "extremist" activity and grounds for the dissolution of a religious organisation. This has been the experience of six Jehovah's Witness communities so far (in Taganrog, Samara, Abinsk in Krasnodar Region, Tyumen in Siberia, and Belgorod and Stariy Oskol, both in Belgorod Region), although the Russian Supreme Court overturned the dissolution of the Tyumen congregation on 15 April 2016. Liquidation proceedings are continuing against a seventh community in Cherkessk in the North Caucasus (see F18News 22 March 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2161). One Muslim community, in Borovsky village in Tyumen Region, has also been dissolved for this reason (see F18News 3 December 2014 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2020).
If an entire religious community is banned as "extremist", its former members may face criminal prosecution if they continue to meet informally. Sixteen Jehovah's Witnesses in Taganrog were convicted on 30 November 2015 of "continuing the activities of a banned extremist organisation" (see F18News 3 December 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2128). Rostov Regional Court rejected their appeals on 17 March 2016 and the convictions have now come into force.
On 2 March 2016, Russia's General Prosecutor's Office issued a written warning "that engaging in extremist activity is not permitted" to the Administrative Centre of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia. This document, seen by Forum 18, makes specific reference to the distribution of prohibited literature as "extremist" activity which the Administrative Centre must prevent or face dissolution. The General Prosecutor's Office advises that "practical and organisational measures" must be taken within two months (ie. by 2 May) or the entire Jehovah's Witness association will be subject to liquidation.
2015 prosecutions
Fifty-five of the 89 known Article 20.29 cases for religious literature in 2015 were brought in relation to Islamic texts or videos, the same number as in 2014 (55 out of 65 cases). The number involving Jehovah's Witness literature, however, rose significantly, from only ten in 2014 (out of 65 cases) to 32 in 2015 (out of 89 cases). The other two cases in 2015 involved material produced by the Chinese spiritual movement Falun Gong.
Prosecutions for Jehovah's Witness texts also show an increase throughout 2015, with nine coming to court between January and April and five between May and August, rising to 18 in the last four months of the year.
Of the 89 known cases, 84 resulted in conviction in the first instance, and five in acquittal. Defendants appealed against 23 convictions, only one of which was overturned and another seven returned to the original court for re-examination. Another two sentences were reduced on appeal (although the convictions themselves remained). Of the seven cases which have gone to re-trial, four have led to acquittal and two to conviction (the outcome of the seventh is unknown).
Even if they are ultimately exonerated, defendants are forced to spend time, energy and money to counter the charges against them, Forum 18 notes.
Article 20.29 prosecutions in general are now overwhelmingly based on internet distribution of text, image, video or audio files (754 out of 849 total cases, both religious and non-religious), usually by means of social media and most often on the Russian VKontakte network (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
Prosecutions for religious material, however, are still dominated by hard copies of books and other literature and comprise the majority of "offline" cases found by Forum 18 (66 out of 95). Eighteen of the 23 cases involving online religious material were based on the sharing of the video "The Wonders of the Koran", which was banned by Nefteyugansk City Court in Tyumen Region on 7 April 2011 and does not appear to incite the violation of human rights, violence or hatred.
Effect of Orenburg ruling
Unusually, 2015 saw the removal from the Federal List of 50 Islamic texts originally banned in a 20-minute hearing at Orenburg's Lenin District Court in March 2012. Although the appeal against the "extremism" ruling on these items took place in February 2015, it was not until May that the ban was finally lifted and the titles did not disappear from the Federal List until mid-July (see F18News 27 July 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2084).
While there were 35 prosecutions for distribution of the Orenburg texts in 2014, this number fell to 18 in 2015 (mainly for offences allegedly committed before the 50 reprieved texts were removed from the Federal List or involving one of the other 18 books which remain banned). Forum 18 nevertheless found three prosecutions in the last four months of 2015 involving texts deleted from the List.
The 50 unbanned texts included popular prayer books often sold in bookshops, markets, and mosques. Their removal from the Federal List has led to a decline in the number of booksellers and shopkeepers charged under Article 20.29, from fourteen in 2014 to only two in 2015.
Organisations
Five registered religious organisations faced charges under Article 20.29 in 2015 (down from nine in 2014). Three of these were Jehovah's Witness communities and two were mosques.
Examples of Article 20.29 cases during 2015 include:
- on 2 October, R. Kuchukova was fined 1,000 Roubles at Kuibyshev District Court in Omsk for uploading the text of "Gardens of the Righteous" (unbanned in Orenburg) onto her VKontakte profile page. Neither the local FSB security service, which found the text while "monitoring the Omsk segment of the internet", nor Judge Galina Parkhomenko, acknowledged that the case should not legally have been initiated. When contacted by Forum 18, Judge Parkhomenko's office refused to explain by phone or by email why Kuchukova had been fined for material no longer considered "extremist" (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
- on 11 September, Elista's Jehovah's Witness community became the first known Jehovah's Witness organisation to be convicted under the new sentencing regulations introduced in May 2015, receiving a fine of 100,000 Roubles at Elista City Court. The community argued that the banned "extremist" material found by police in their building's grounds had been planted by unknown persons. On 15 February 2016, Jehovah's Witnesses stated that state agencies "have increasingly resorted to fabricating evidence to justify charges of extremism against Jehovah's Witnesses" (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
- 58-year-old Jehovah's Witness elder Vladimir Yeltavsky was jailed for 12 days at Bryukhovetsk District Court in Krasnodar Region on 2 July, for allegedly giving copies of banned Jehovah's Witness brochures to a local resident at her home. Yeltavsky learned of the hearing only when bailiffs arrived to take him to court, less than an hour in advance, and was therefore unable to engage a lawyer or familiarise himself with the case materials. At an appeal hearing on 3 July, Yeltavsky was acquitted and released after 32 hours in custody, as the statute of limitations had expired before the case came to court (see F18News 14 October 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2111).
- in March, two residents of Kungur in Perm Region were convicted in separate cases of distributing the banned video "The Wonders of the Koran". Although they were sentenced just 24 hours apart by the same judge for the same offence, Ye. Belyayeva received a fine while Yevgeny Menshenin was jailed for five days. Neither the judge nor the prosecutor involved in these cases would explain to Forum 18 why Menshenin had been imprisoned (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
How prosecutions start
The majority of known Article 20.29 cases in 2015 arose from raids or inspections carried out by officials, usually with the aim of "checking compliance with anti-extremism legislation", according to court verdicts. In a few cases against Jehovah's Witnesses, prosecutors brought charges after an individual handed in a text to the police or security services after receiving it in the street or at a meeting.
Known Article 20.29 "extremist" religious material cases from 2015
1. 24 December
Name: Z.E. Khalifayev
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Railway District Court, Voronezh
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" (banned Nefteyugansk City Court, Khanty-Mansiisk, Tyumen Region, 7 April 2011) uploaded onto social network, found during monitoring by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
2. 18 December
Name: M.Sh. Gumerov
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Dimitrovgrad City Court, Ulyanovsk Region
Material: One copy of Islamic text "Fortress of a Muslim" (banned Kurgan City Court, 16 February 2015; Ussuriysk District Court, Primorye, 31 July 2014) – shared with acquaintances and relatives and kept at defendant's home; admitted possession but denied distribution; copy apparently published by "Pik Dom Pechati" of Kazan – but no such edition appears on List
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Partially successful, returned for re-examination – 28 January, Ulyanovsk Regional Court; premature judgement with substantial procedural violations – points out discrepancy in bibliographical details; conviction overturned on re-examination – 16 February 2016, Dimitrovgrad City Court
3. 17 December
Name: Yekaterina Kuznetsova
Fine: 2,500 Roubles
Court: Tikhoretsk City Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness text "Was Life Created?" (banned October District Court, Belgorod, 4 March 2015) distributed with other literature from trolley in the street with Leontyeva (see below); gave book to unknown man at his request, who then called police to report literature "aimed at undermining the foundations of Orthodoxy"
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Partially successful – returned for re-examination, 4 February, Krasnodar Regional Court, Judge Kharet Bors; conviction overturned on re-examination – 4 March 2016, Tikhoretsk City Court
4. 17 December
Name: Zinaida Leontyeva
Fine: 2,500 Roubles
Court: Tikhoretsk City Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: as above – Jehovah's Witness book – with Kuznetsova
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Partially successful – returned for re-examination, 4 February, Krasnodar Regional Court; conviction overturned on re-examination – 4 March 2016, Tikhoretsk City Court
5. 17 December
Name: Gennady Rakhmanin
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Gulkevichi District Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness texts – "The Watchtower" magazine, "What does the Bible really teach?" and "Does God really care about us?" distributed at bus stop in Kavkazskaya village
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Partially successful – returned for re-examination, 9 February, Krasnodar Regional Court; re-trial on 24 March 2016, Gulkevichi District Court – outcome unknown
6. 16 December
Name: M.R. Miftakhutdinov
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Dimitrovgrad City Court, Ulyanovsk Region
Material: One copy of Islamic text "Fortress of a Muslim" (banned Kurgan City Court, 16 February 2015; Ussuriysk District Court, Primorye, 31 July 2014) kept at defendant's home "with the aim of mass distribution" and shared with acquaintances and relatives
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Partially successful, returned for re-examination – 4 February, Ulyanovsk Regional Court; conviction overturned on re-examination – 1 March 2016, Dimitrovgrad City Court
7. 7 December
Name: E.A. Sukhoyvanenkov
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: October District Court, Stavropol, Judge Aleksei Eminov
Material: Jehovah's Witness book "What does the Bible really teach?", found at defendant's home during search by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Unknown
Appeal: None
8. 4 December
Name: A.E. Bokov
Fine: None – 10 days' detention
Court: Komintern District Court, Voronezh
Material: Large quantity of Jehovah's Witness texts found in defendant's garage, including "What does the Bible really teach?" and "Drawing near to Jehovah", during search operation by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Partially successful – detention reduced to six days, ie. freed after appeal hearing – 9 December, Voronezh Regional Court (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
9. 3 December
Name: A.Ya. Tulyakov, imam of Makhalla No. 1814
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Pachelma District Court, Penza Region
Material: Islamic texts "Values of Ramadan" (banned Norilsk City Court, Krasnoyarsk Region, 29 December 2014) and "Values of Zikra" (banned by Pervouralsk City Court, Sverdlovsk Regional, 9 February 2015), Muhammad Zakariya Kandahlawi; "Tasavvuf", Osman Nuri Topbas (banned Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012 and 25 May 2015, ie. not one of those removed); found during inspection on open bookshelves in prayer room
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
10. 2 December
Name: Rasmina Ibragimova
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Industrial District Court, Smolensk
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded to VKontakte social network profile page
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
11. 26 November
Name: A.B.Koltakov
Fine: Unknown
Court: Komintern District Court, Voronezh
Material: unspecified Jehovah's Witness texts
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: None
12. 24 November
Name: Mikhail Ivantsov, pastor of "Banner of Love" Pentecostal Church
Fine: None - acquitted
Court: Igra District Court, Udmurt Republic
Material: Jehovah's Witness text "My book of Bible stories" (banned Rostov Regional Court, 11 September 2009) found among other books available for borrowing by parishioners, during inspection by prosecutor's office; pastor does not dispute that book was present but does not know how it came to be there; now destroyed by pastor's wife
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable – already destroyed
Appeal: None
13. 23 November
Name: Z.Z. Safiyullina
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Volzhsk City Court, Mari-El Republic
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" found on VKontakte profile page by FSB monitoring
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
14. 22 November
Name: A.N. Chebodayev
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Beya District Court, Khakasiya
Material: electronic copies of Islamic texts, uploaded onto VKontakte social network, found by FSB monitoring; "Purification and education and the need of Muslims for this", by Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani (banned Abakan City Court, Khakasiya, 8 June 2010)
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
15. 19 November
Name: D.A. Aliyeva
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Gorodishche District Court, Penza Region
Material: Islamic brochure "Islam Today" by Abu Al-Mawdidi (banned Buguruslan City Court, Orenburg, 19 October 2007) found at house used as prayer hall, belonging to Aliyeva, during prosecutor's office "inspection of compliance with anti-extremism legislation"
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
16. 18 November
Name: Mansur Akhmadov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Lenin District Court, Perm
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" found on VKontakte profile page by Anti-Extremism Police monitoring
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None – accepts guilt
17. 17 November
Name: Ismail Kachayev
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kamenka City Court, Penza Region
Material: Islamic texts "Stories from the Koran" and "Understanding Islam" found in cupboard and on open bookshelf in Kobylkino Mosque No.2
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
18. 17 November
Name: A.R. Nurayev – shopkeeper
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Neftekamsk City Court, Bashkortostan
Material: Four copies of Islamic text "Values of Namaz"; one copy of "Values of Ramadan" (banned Norilsk City Court, Krasnoyarsk Region, 29 December 2014); one copy of "Values of Zikra" (banned by Pervouralsk City Court, Sverdlovsk Regional, 9 February 2015), all by Muhammad Zakariya Kandahlawi; four copies of "Fortress of a Muslim" (Nalchik 2004 edition – banned Kurgan City Court, 6 April 2015); found during "inspection of compliance with anti-extremism legislation" at "Muslim" shop
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
19. 16 November
Name: A.M. Magomedov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Soviet District Court, Bryansk
Material: Islamic text "Fortress of a Muslim", apparently single copy, no details of edition or situation
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: None
20. 16 November
Name: M.K. Egamov – prisoner
Fine: Unknown
Court: Kirovo-Chepetsk District Court, Kirov Region
Material: Islamic text "Thirty-three Windows" from Nursi's "Risale-e Nur" collection (banned Koptev District Court, Moscow, 21 May 2007), found in locker during inspection; defendant accused of giving book to other inmates "with the aim of mass distribution"
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
21. 11 November
Name: S.A. Petrova
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Industrial District Court, Smolensk
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" found on VKontakte profile page during FSB monitoring
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
22. 6 November
Name: N.V. Mironenko
Fine: Unknown
Court and judge: Prokhladnyy District Court, Kabardino-Balkariya, Judge Andrei Blikanov
Material: Jehovah's Witness texts "What do you need to know about God and his purpose?", "How can we develop a close relationship with God?", "The secret of family happiness" distributed at bus stop
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
23. 6 November
Name: Lyudmila Ponomarenko
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: Prokhladnyy District Court, Kabardino-Balkariya
Material: Jehovah's Witness texts "What do you need to know about God and his purpose?", "How can we develop a close relationship with God?", "The secret of family happiness" distributed at bus stop
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
24. 29 October
Name: Valentina Kuznetsova, a founder of Serov Jehovah's Witness community
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Serov District Court, Sverdlovsk Region
Material: 51 copies of Jehovah's Witness texts, incl. "What does the Bible really teach?", "Knowledge that leads to everlasting life", "Come and follow me", "My book of Bible stories", "Jehovah's Witnesses – who are they? What do they believe?"; Serov prosecutor inspected community for "compliance with the requirements of anti-extremism legislation" and searched Kuznetsova's flat
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 22 December, Sverdlovsk Regional Court
25. 29 October
Name: Vera Osadchaya
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Chernigovka District Court, Primorye
Material: Falun Gong texts (banned Pervomaisk District Court, Krasnodar, 27 October 2011); defendant tried to distribute material describing Chinese persecution of Falun Gong practitioners; five copies seized, two copies presented as evidence in court, supposedly given to the prosecutor's office by witnesses who said they had received the books from Osadchaya
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: Unsuccessful – Primorye Regional Court, 25 December
26. 23 October
Name: B.A. Avezov – prisoner
Fine: Unknown
Court: Kirovo-Chepetsk District Court, Kirov Region
Material: Islamic text "Fortress of a Muslim" (414-page Ezhayev edition – banned Kurgan City Court, 16 February 2015) found during unscheduled personal search
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
27. 20 October
Name: Galimzyan Bikmullin, chair of Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Tyumen Region, charged as official person
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Central District Court, Tyumen
Material: three Islamic texts from Said Nursi's "Risale-i Nur" collection ("Tract on nature", banned by Central District Court, Kaliningrad, 27 September 2012; "The truths of faith" and "Faith and man", both banned by Koptev District Court, Moscow, 21 May 2007) found when prosecutor's office and Anti-Extremism Police carried out search of Spiritual Administration's premises; material freely accessible to parishioners in the prayer hall
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 14 December 2015, Tyumen Regional Court
28. 13 October
Name: V.A. Yakushina
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Gelendzhik City Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness text "Good news from God" (banned Lenin District Court, Vladimir, 23 October 2013) freely distributed to passers-by outside "Smotochka" shop with V.V. Biyul (see below), one of whom reported this to the police
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 5 November, Krasnodar Regional Court
29. 8 October
Name: R.A. Kan
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Lenin District Court, Vladivostok
Material: FSB search of flat found 3000 copies of "agitational material of an anti-Chinese nature", including 20 copies of a Falun Gong text (banned 27 October 2011) – could be "Chzhuan Falun"; "Report on Allegations of Organ Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China"; "Falun Dafa in the world"; "Global Torch Relay for Human Rights" (banned by Pervomaisk District Court, Krasnodar
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
30. 2 October
Name: R.M. Kuchukova
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court and judge: Kuibyshev District Court, Omsk, Judge Galina Parkhomenko
Material: Islamic text "Gardens of the Righteous" (banned Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012 but removed from list, and not banned by any other court); text uploaded into VKontakte social network profile page; found during FSB monitoring "of the Omsk segment of the internet"
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
31. 2 October
Name: I.P. Antufyev
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: October District Court, Arkhangelsk
Material: two copies of Jehovah's Witness text "What does the Bible really teach?"; handed to FSB by witness brought in for questioning, who testified that Antufyev had given them to him
Confiscation/destruction: neither
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 5 November, Arkhangelsk Regional Court
32. 18 September
Name: V.V. Sirvetnik
Fine: None – acquitted
Court: Nadym City Court, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness brochures "Should you believe in the Trinity?" (banned Rostov Regional Court, 11 September 2009) and "What does God require from us?" (banned Gorno-Altaisk City Court, Altai Republic, 1 October 2009) found on another Jehovah's Witness, "A", who apparently signed statement saying she had received them from Sirvetnik
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
33. 16 September
Name: Yan Chernobay, charity president
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: Kirov District Court, Samara
Material: Jehovah's Witness text "Worship the only God" (banned Rostov Regional Court 11 September 2009) found on open bookshelf during prosecutor's office inspection of premises of the "Independence" (Nezavisimost) charity (drug and alcohol rehab); president does not know how book could have got into the building
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
34. 11 September
Name: Jehovah's Witnesses of Elista
Fine: 100,000 Roubles
Court: Elista City Court, Republic of Kalymykiya
Material: Jehovah's Witness texts among those banned by Rostov Regional Court, 11 September 2009; prosecutor's office tipped off by two people who had allegedly attended services and received extremist books – search operation carried out by police – two packets containing brochures found in undergrowth in grounds of Kingdom Hall
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 9 November, Supreme Court of Kalmykiya; supervisory appeal unsuccessful – 25 December, Supreme Court of Kalmykiya (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
35. 11 September
Name: V.V. Biyul
Fine: Unknown
Court: Gelendzhik City Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness text "Come and follow me" (banned Rostov Regional Court, 11 September 2009) freely distributed to passers-by outside hypermarket – with Yakushina (see above)
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 27 October, Krasnodar Regional Court
36. 3 September
Name: Kotlas Jehovah's Witness community
Fine: None – acquitted
Court: Kotlas City Court, Arkhangelsk Region
Material: One copy of Jehovah's Witness text (either "How do you know the true Christian?" or "Armageddon. What is it? When is it coming?", both banned Aktubinsk District Court, Astrakhan Region, 24 November 2014) and other brochures displaying jw.org address found on community's premises; judge concluded that website ban published on 7 August, after discovery of brochures on 3 June, and that "storage of a single copy of a publication does not indicate distribution of a mass nature or storage for the purpose of mass distribution"
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: By prosecution, unsuccessful – 29 September, Arkhangelsk Regional Court (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
37. 3 September
Name: Nikolai Suslonov, chair of Kotlas Jehovah's Witness community
Fine: None - acquitted
Court: Kotlas City Court, Arkhangelsk Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness texts – same as above in case against community
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
38. 2 September
Name: "NUR" local Muslim religious organisation, DUMAChR
Fine: 100,000 Roubles
Court: Central District Court, Komsomolsk-on-Amur
Material: two Islamic books – Abdurrahman Raafat al-Bashi's "Pictures from the Life of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah", banned by Gorodishche District Court, Penza Region, 21 February 2008, and Ibn Hisham's "The Life of the Prophet Mohammed", banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012 – found on community's premises
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction – but order lifted with respect to Orenburg text
Appeal: Unsuccessful, but changed to remove Orenburg text because of lifting of ban – 22 October, Khabarovsk Regional Court; supervisory appeal unsuccessful – 16 March 2016, Khabarovsk Regional Court (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
39. 2 September
Name: Magomedrasul Gimbatov, leader of "NUR" local Muslim religious organisation, DUMAChR
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court and judge: Central District Court, Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Judge Nadezhda Tatun
Material: two Islamic books – Abdurrahman Raafat al-Bashi's "Pictures from the Life of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah", banned by Gorodishche District Court, Penza Region, 21 February 2008 and Ibn Hisham's "The Life of the Prophet Mohammed", banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012 – found on community's premises
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction – but order lifted with respect to Orenburg text
Appeal: Unsuccessful, but changed to remove Orenburg text because of lifting of ban – 22 October, Khabarovsk Regional Court; supervisory appeal also unsuccessful – 14 March 2016, Khabarovsk Regional Court (see F18News 2 March 2016 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2154).
40. 1 September
Name: A. Khalimov, imam
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Tomponsk District Court, Sakha Republic
Material: Islamic texts "The Life of the Prophet" and "A word on unity" (both banned by Buguruslan City Court, Orenburg, 6 August 2007) found during police search of mosque
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
41. 13 August
Name: Asylbek Ryskaliyev, former imam
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Pallasovsky District Court, Volgograd Region
Material: 3 copies of Islamic text "Muhammad: may Allah bless and welcome him" by Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakfuri (banned by Gorodishchensky District Court, Penza Region, 22 February 2008); 4 discs containing "Book of the Mujahid" by Amir Abdullag Shamil Abu Idris (banned by Shakhunsk District Court, Nizhny Novgorod Region, 9 September 2011), "The Life of the Prophet" by Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakfuri, translated from Arabic by Abdullah Nirsha (Primorsk District Court, St Petersburg, 19 April 2011), and "Understanding Islam" by Sheikh Ali al-Tantawi (Maykop City Court, Adygea, 24 November 2010) – found in Muslim shop under auspices of local Muslim religious organisation, during FSB inspection of shopping centre
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
42. 6 August
Name: A.V. Ignatov
Fine: None – acquitted
Court: Vinogradovsky District Court, Arkhangelsk Region
Material: 838 copies of Jehovah's Witness literature found at Ignatov's home during search, including "Drawing near to Jehovah" (banned by First of May District Court, Krasnodar, 22 April 2011) and "Questions of Youth: Practical Advice" (banned by Rostov Regional Court, 11 September 2009) – judge concludes Ignatov is guilty but time for prosecution has run out
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: by defendant against judge's conclusion of guilt, unsuccessful – 15 September 2015, Arkhangelsk Regional Court
43. 30 July
Name: Ramil Gazizov
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: Sernur District Court, Mari El Republic
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto social network personal page, found by FSB monitoring
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
44. 28 July
Name: E.R. Zholdoshev
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Yakutsk City Court, Sakha Republic
Material: Single copy of "Islamic religious book" banned by Sol-Iletsky District Court, Orenburg Region, 28 May 2012 (appears to be an-Nawawi's "40 Hadiths"), seized during police raid on flat accommodating 8 Kyrgyz migrant workers
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
45. 24 July
Name: Makhalla No. 1371, Strezhevoy
Fine: 150,000 Roubles
Court and judge: Strezhevoy City Court, Tomsk Region, V.N. Miserev
Material: 9 Islamic books (redacted, but appears to include "Risale-i Nur" texts) found on open shelf in men's prayer hall of mosque, during inspection by FSB and prosecutor's office staff
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 1 October, Tomsk Regional Court (see F18News 14 October 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2111).
46. 22 July
Name: R.A. Khatipov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Chernushka District Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic texts - Volume 2 of "The best example of calling and upbringing. The most splendid person – may Allah bless and welcome him" by Omer Celik, Mustafa Ozturk and Murat Kay (Lenin District Court, Orenburg 21 March 2012); volumes 1 and 3 later unbanned
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: None
47. 16 July
Name: N.F. Safarov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Barda District Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto social network personal page, found by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
48. 16 July
Name: S.V. Bakilin
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Motovilikha District Court, Perm
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto social network personal page, found by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 10 August, Perm Regional Court
49. 2 July
Name: Vladimir Yeltavsky
Fine: None – 12 days' detention
Court: Bryukhovetsk District Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: "What does the Bible really teach?", "Is it true that God takes care of us?", and other Jehovah's Witness literature, given by defendant to unnamed witness at her home in March 2015
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: successful – 3 July, Krasnodar Regional Court (see F18News 14 October 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2111).
50. 26 June
Name: A.A. Zhukov (head of local JW organisation)
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Yugorsk District Court, Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Region, Tyumen Region
Material: total of 31 copies of various Jehovah's Witness books and brochures, including "What does the Bible really teach?", handed out at religious meetings at defendant's home; found during police search
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 27 August, Khanty-Mansiisk Regional Court
51. 19 June
Name: A.L. Beklayev
Fine: "minimum" fine, ie. 1,000 Roubles
Court: Chusovoy City Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto VKontakte social network, found by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
52. 19 June
Name: A.B. Abasov – prisoner
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Verkhnekamsk District Court, Kirov Region
Material: Islamic text "Book of Monotheism" by Muhammad at-Tamimi (banned by Savyolovo District Court, Moscow, 2 April 2004) given by defendant to fellow inmates, found in cell during inspection
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 20 August, Kirov Regional Court
53. 18 June
Name: R.R. Gilyazova
Fine: unknown
Court: Volzhsk City Court, Mari El Republic
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto VKontakte social network
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
54. 17 June
Name: V.V. Spivak
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Teykovo District Court, Ivanovo Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness literature distributed outside Teykovo railway station, including "What does the Bible really teach?", "How to achieve happiness in life?", "What can people expect?", "What do you need to know about God and his purpose?", "How to develop a close relationship with God"; more kept at defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: Partially successful (fine reduced to 1000 because statute of limitations for station offence had expired, though not that for keeping literature in home), 13 August, Ivanovo Regional Court
55. 10 June
Name: I.S. Kozlov
Fine: Unknown
Court: Lenin District Court, Vladimir
Material: 6 text files uploaded to VKontakte personal page, containing Islamic books banned by Buguruslan City Court, Orenburg Region, 19 October 2007 – otherwise unspecified, but appears to include Muhammad Alia al-Hashimi's "Personality of a Muslim", which promotes peace and human rights
Confiscation/destruction: Deletion of files from VKontakte page
Appeal: None
56. 9 June
Name: G.R. Miftakhutdinova
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Volzhsk City Court, Mari El Republic
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto VKontakte social network
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
57. 3 June
Name: G.I. Abdulova
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: Barda District Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto VKontakte social network in 2011, found by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
58. 27 May
Name: Metin Karakoch, director of Centre for the Turkish Language at Astrakhan State University
Fine: None – two days' detention
Court: Soviet District Court, Astrakhan
Material: text from Islamic books by Fethullah Gulen posted on local internet forum, with links to works and recommendations to read them; unknown which titles, though ban on several lifted in Orenburg
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation of computer equipment used
Appeal: None – subsequently left Russia (see F18News 14 October 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2111).
59. 22 May
Name: V.G. Lepyoshkina
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Golyshmanovo District Court, Tyumen Region
Material: distributed "What does the Bible really teach?" at Jehovah's Witness gathering in her home in March 2015
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: None
60. 8 May
Name: Musina
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Ordzhonikidze District Court, Perm
Material: Islamic text "The way to the Koran" by Elmir Kuliyev (Kuybyshev District Court, Omsk, 12 July and 10 August 2012 – but ban lifted in Orenburg) reposted on VKontakte page, fully accessible for viewing and download; found by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None (see F18News 14 October 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2111).
61. 30 April
Name: Zulfiya Malikova
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Bolshaya Sosnova District Court, Perm Region
Material: uploaded Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" onto VKontakte profile page; found during internet monitoring by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
62. 28 April
Name: I. Sh. Nigmatully
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kunashak District Court, Chelyabinsk Region
Material: Islamic texts – Osman Nuri Topbas's "History of the Prophets", Parts 2 (3rd ed.) and 3 (4th ed.) kept in defendant's home (both banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012) and found during search by FSB
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
63. 28 April
Name: Guzaliya Galina
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Chaikovskiy City Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto VKontakte profile page
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
64. 10 April
Name: A.A. Aliyev
Fine: Unknown
Court and judge: Birobidzhan District Court, Jewish Autonomous Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness texts including "Come and follow me", "Knowledge that leads to everlasting life", "What does the Bible really teach?"; "Questions of Youth" added by appeal judge
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction – ordered later by Birobidzhan District Court on 24 July 2015; overturned by Court of the Jewish Autonomous Region on 9 September as additions cannot be made to verdicts already in force; destruction ordered on re-examination by Birobidzhan District Court on 22 September; unsuccessful appeal by Aliyev on 19 October
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 16 June, Court of the Jewish Autonomous Region; supervisory appeal unsuccessful – 14 August, Court of the Jewish Autonomous Region
65. 8 April
Name: Maksim Tokayev
Fine: Unknown
Court: Novy Urengoy City Court, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region
Material: Islamic text – Muhammad at-Tamimi's "Book of Monotheism" – scanned copy uploaded to VKontakte; found during internet monitoring by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: unknown
Appeal: None
66. 8 April
Name: M.A. Kuvvatov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Lenin District Court, Voronezh
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded to social media
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
67. 31 March
Name: A.D. Ilchuk
Fine: Unknown
Court: Usolye City Court, Irkutsk Region
Material: unknown Jehovah's Witness brochure, found by police and Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
68. 31 March
Name: F.A. Ilchuk
Fine: Unknown
Court: Usolye City Court, Irkutsk Region
Material: same case as above – unknown Jehovah's Witness brochure, found by police and Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
69. 30 March
Name: Shamil Neverov, imam
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Spassk District Court, Penza Region
Material: Islamic text "Constellation of the Righteous Caliphs" (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); one copy found by officials in Nizhny Lomov mosque library
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
70. 27 March
Name: Ye.A. Belyayeva
Fine: Unknown
Court: Kungur City Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto Vkontake social network
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
71. 26 March
Name: Yevgeny Menshenin
Fine: None – five days' administrative detention
Court: Kungur City Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto VKontakte profile page
Confiscation/destruction: Deletion from page
Appeal: None (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
72. 25 March
Name: S.K Sainova
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kirov District Court, Omsk
Material: Islamic text, Abu Zakariya's "Gardens of the Righteous" (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012) uploaded onto defendant's VKontakte profile page; found during FSB internet monitoring
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
73. 19 March
Name: F.M. Isayev
Fine: Unknown
Court: Kuvandyk District Court, Orenburg Region
Material: Islamic text – "Muhtasar Ilmihal [Concise Catechism], Introduction to Islam" (banned by Arsenyev City Court, Primorye, 24 December 2012) found on bookshelf in prayer room at defendant's home during police search
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
74. 19 March
Name: M.D. Shevchenko
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Leningrad District Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness book "Revelation, Its Grand Climax At hand!"; circumstances unspecified
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 19 May 2015, Krasnodar Regional Court
75. 17 March
Name: Jehovah's Witness community of Cherkessk
Fine: 50,000 Roubles
Court: Cherkessk City Court, Republic of Karachay-Cherkessiya
Material: Large quantity of Jehovah's Witness literature, including single copies of "Questions of Youth. Practical advice" and "What do you need to know about God and his purpose?"; some seized from prayer hall by prosecutor's officials and Anti-Extremism Police; some from community members' homes; tip-off from Cherkessk resident
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Unsuccessful – 27 April 2015, Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessiya (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
76. 17 March
Name: A.V. Volovikov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Cherkessk City Court, Republic of Karachay-Cherkessiya
Material: Jehovah's Witness literature, same as above – seized from defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Partially successful, sent for re-examination – Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessiya (date unknown); re-trial on 13 May – convicted again, Cherkessk City Court; appeal submitted to Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessiya – outcome as yet unknown (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
77. 17 March
Name: D.V. Metelin
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Cherkessk City Court, Republic of Karachay-Cherkessiya
Material: Jehovah's Witness literature, same as above – seized from defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: Partially successful, sent for re-examination – Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessiya (date unknown); re-trial on 13 May – convicted again, Cherkessk City Court; appeal submitted to Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessiya – outcome unknown (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
78. 5 March
Name: Anna Vilchinskaya, library director – charged as official person
Fine: Unknown
Court: Rybno-Slobodsky District Court, Tatarstan
Material: Single copy of Islamic text "Pillars of Islam and Faith", by Muhammad bin Jamil Zeno (banned by Pervomaysky District Court, Vladivostok), and 2 copies of "Stories from the Life of the Prophet of Allah", Book 2 of the "Religious Narrative" series compiled by Abdel Hamid Dzhuda Al-Sahhar (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); found by prosecutors and Anti-Extremism Police during search of library
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
79. 2 March
Name: G.Sh. Aldarova
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: Barda District Court, Perm Region
Material: Islamic video "The Wonders of the Koran" uploaded onto social network profile and found by Anti-Extremism Police
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
80. 27 February
Name: A.N. Nigamatullin
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kunashak District Court, Chelyabinsk Region
Material: Single copies of Islamic texts "Fortress of a Muslim" (3rd ed.) and "Constellation of the Righteous Caliphs" (both banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); found by FSB in search of defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
81. 27 February
Name: R.R. Kaziyev
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kunashak District Court, Chelyabinsk Region
Material: Islamic literature, including "Constellation of the Righteous Prophets" (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); found by FSB in search of defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
82. 26 February
Name: S.S. Khusutdinov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kunashak District Court, Chelyabinsk Region
Material: Islamic literature including "Constellation of the Righteous Caliphs", "Gardens of the Righteous", and "The Way to the Koran" by Elmir Kuliyev (all banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); found by FSB in search of defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
83. 26 February
Name: I.D. Sultanov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kunashak District Court, Chelyabinsk Region, Judge N.G. Nuretdinova
Material: Islamic text "Fortress of a Muslim" (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); found by FSB in search of defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
84. 25 February
Name: I.A. Norvatov
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Kunashak District Court, Chelyabinsk Region
Material: Islamic texts "Muhtasar Ilmihal [Concise Catechism], Introduction to Islam" (banned by Arsenyev City Court, Primorye, 24 December 2012) and "Proper behaviour and purification of the soul" by Abdul-Aziz al-Abdul Latif (banned by Sol-Iletsky District Court, Orenburg Region, 28 May 2012); found by FSB in search of defendant's home
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None
85. 24 February
Name: Vasiliy Platon
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: Tikhoretsk City Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: Jehovah's Witness literature including "How To Achieve Happiness" (banned by Central District Court, Barnaul, 10 July 2014) distributed in the street
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
86. 24 February
Name: Vasiliy Platon
Fine: 1,000 Roubles
Court: Tikhoretsk City Court, Krasnodar Region
Material: concurrent prosecution for second, similar incident; Jehovah's Witness literature including "How To Achieve Happiness" (banned 10 July 2014 by Central District Court, Barnaul)
Confiscation/destruction: Destruction
Appeal: None (see F18News 15 May 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2062).
87. 3 February
Name: Yu.T. Tursunkhuzhayev, imam
Fine: 3,000 Roubles
Court: Mirninsky District Court, Yakutia
Material: Single copies of two editions of Islamic text "In the Light of the Holy Koran" (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); found on shelves in Aikhal village mosque's prayer hall
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
88. 28 January
Name: Mehdi Nabulsi, Moroccan student
Fine: 1,500 Roubles
Court: Novgorod District Court, Novgorod Region
Material: PDF copy of Islamic text "The Way to the Koran" by Elmir Kuliyev (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); uploaded onto VKontakte profile page, found by FSB
Confiscation/destruction: Not applicable
Appeal: None
89. 26 January
Name: Pavel Zavitayev, head of education at Labour Camp No. 2, Sverdlovsk Region
Fine: 2,000 Roubles
Court: Verkh-Isetsky District Court, Yekaterinburg
Material: Single copy of Islamic text "The Life of the Prophet Mohammed" by Ibn Hisham (banned by Lenin District Court, Orenburg, 21 March 2012); found in prison mosque during prosecutors' inspection
Confiscation/destruction: Confiscation
Appeal: None
(END)
For more background, see Forum 18's surveys of the general state of freedom
of religion or belief in Russia at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1722, and of the dramatic decline in religious freedom related to Russia's Extremism Law at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1724.
A personal commentary by Alexander Verkhovsky, Director of the SOVA Center for Information and Analysis http://www.sova-center.ru, about the systemic problems of Russian anti-extremism legislation, is at F18News 19 July 2010 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1468.
A personal commentary by Irina Budkina, Editor of the http://www.samstar.ucoz.ru Old Believer website, about continuing denial of equality to Russia's religious minorities, is at F18News 26 May 2005 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=570.
More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Russia can be found at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?query=&religion=all&country=10.
A compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments can be found at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1351.
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