Dmitriy Dolzhikov with his wife Marina on the day of the verdict
A Court in Novosibirsk Sentenced Dmitriy Dolzhikov to a Penal Colony For Reading the Bible, But Replaced the Punishment with Forced Labor
Novosibirsk RegionOn June 30, 2023, Olga Kovalenko, a judge of the Leninskiy District Court of Novosibirsk, found 45-year-old Dmitriy Dolzhikov guilty of extremism, sentenced him to 3 years in a penal colony and a year of restriction of freedom, but his imprisonment was replaced with forced labor. Taking into account the period of detention of Dmitriy under arrest, he will be required to serve about 2 years of forced labor.
Dmitry Dolzhikov does not plead guilty: “I carefully read the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated April 20, 2017 [on the liquidation of legal entities of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia], but I have not seen anywhere that the court imposed a ban on practicing the religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses and that believers would be banned from worshiping God, performing religious services, praying and singing religious songs. There has never been such a ban." The verdict has not entered into force and can be appealed. The believer signed a recognizance agreement.
The criminal case against Dmitriy Dolzhikov was initiated in May 2020. According to law enforcement officers, the believer “intentionally, out of extremist motives, took part in the activity of a religious association... in the form of participation in religious meetings and meetings of an extremist organization, holding conversations with residents of Chelyabinsk, showing and watching educational videos.” This is how the law enforcement officers regarded the peaceful services, at which believers read and discussed the Bible. Two years after the initiation of the case, a search was carried out in Dolzhikov's home; the FSB officers took Dmitriy from Chelyabinsk to Novosibirsk, where he was imprisoned in a detention center for 2.5 months. The law enforcement officers tried to persuade him to cooperate, threatening to "ruin his life". Further, the believer spent more than 6 months under house arrest.
In November 2022, the case went to court. The defense had repeatedly drawn attention to the fact that the documents from the case materials are dated mainly from 2007-2016, which does not apply to the period imputed to Dolzhikov. The whole accusation was based on the testimony of a secret witness and two Orthodox activists who openly expressed hostility towards the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses and, according to Dmitriy, told lies, misleading the court.
The believer emphasized that he was being persecuted solely for his faith, although it is what helps him to be a good member of society. “The Bible corrected my quick temper and taught me how to solve problems peacefully,” says Dmitriy. “The Bible has helped me to have a happy and strong family, and in 15 years of marriage, my wife and I have not had such quarrels that would prompt us to regret our marriage or consider divorce”.
The criminal prosecution has aggravated the serious illness of Dmitriy's wife and due to restrictions, they cannot fully take care of their elderly parents. According to the believer, he coped with difficulties thanks to letters from fellow believers, prayer and support from relatives and friends in court.
In Novosibirsk, eight Jehovah's Witnesses are prosecuted for their faith, two of them, pensioners Yuriy Savelyev and Aleksandr Seredkin, were sentenced to 6 years in a penal colony.
Human rights activists unanimously condemn the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia. Emily Baran, an expert on Russia and church-state relations, says: “Russia continues to view this religious community as dangerous extremists, despite a complete lack of evidence to support this claim. Jehovah's Witnesses continue to face criminal prosecution and lengthy prison terms for actions that amount to simply talking about their faith with each other and with local residents.”
