The Constitutional Right to Alternative Service Is Taken Away From Young People After the Supreme Court's Decision to Liquidate Jehovah's Witnesses Organizations

On April 6, 2017, a meeting of the draft commission was held at the military commissariat of Zelenodolsk (Tatarstan) in the case of an 18-year-old follower of the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses, Damir Galeev, whose beliefs contradict military service. A member of the draft commission, A. Tygin (the mayor of the city), began to convince other members of the commission of the need to deny the believer his constitutional right to replace military service with alternative civilian service (ACS) on the grounds that the young man was an "extremist." In response to the believer's remark that the Supreme Court had not yet ruled on the liquidation of Jehovah's Witnesses organizations, the mayor asked him to come back in 3 weeks and find out if he would be sent "to the troops or to prison." The believer intends to appeal the decision of the draft board to the court, but he is unable to obtain a copy of this decision.

On April 28, 2017, in the village of Kugesi (Chuvashia), the draft commission for the Cheboksary and Marposad districts, chaired by V. Nikolaev, denied 18-year-old Jehovah's Witness Yevgeny Vladimirov the constitutional right to ACS. Military service is contrary to his beliefs. In his file there was a certificate from a religious organization stating that he was baptized in the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses at a conscious age. Members of the commission said that this certificate "confirms that the recruit is an extremist." The young man was promised that his case would be transferred to the FSB for verification. The believer intends to appeal the decision of the draft commission to the court.