Court of Appeal in Nizhny Novgorod Upheld the Sentence Against Four Believers. For Their Faith, They Were Fined a Total of More Than 2,000,000 Rubles

On August 3, 2023, the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Court upheld the conviction of Sergey Malyanov, his daughter Svetlana, as well as Roman Zhivolupov and Oleg Konshin for attending a get-together with fellow believers. The court additionally prohibited believers from holding any positions in religious and public organizations for 2 years and 11 months.

As the main punishment, Sergey was fined 700,000 rubles, Svetlana – 545,000 rubles, Roman – 500,000 rubles, and Oleg – 450,000 rubles.

Speaking before the court of appeal, Roman Zhivolupov noted: "For the entire time that the case was being considered, the prosecution did not give a clear answer, what law did I break and where is the actual evidence." Sergey Malyanov drew attention to the fact that, at the gathering, they danced, sang children's songs and played games. The believer was perplexed: “Is purchasing sausage, cheese, fruit and water for the entertaining evening, financing an extremist activity? [...] The question arises: what if we again want to rent a room for a party? What then, from the point of view of the prosecution, should I do in order not to fall under criminal prosecution? Obtain a certificate that this event has nothing to do with the Administrative Center of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia or liquidated local religious organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses? If yes, where can I get it? Or did the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of April 20, 2017, prohibit Jehovah's Witnesses from spending time with friends? Neither from the prosecution, nor from the court of first instance, have I heard an answer”.

Despite the fact that the European Court of Human Rights has exonerated Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia, local law enforcement officers and courts continue to repress believers solely for their religious views.