A Russian-controlled ‘court’ in occupied Crimea has sentenced 49-year-old Igor Schmidt to six years’ imprisonment for practising his faith as a Jehovah’s Witness. This was labelled ‘organizing the activities of an extremist organization’ under Article 282.2 § 1 of Russia’s criminal code. The verdict on Oct. 22 is the fourth such ‘conviction’ for reading the Bible and worshipping together in occupied Crimea, with all of them having resulted in 6 or 6.5-year real prison terms. This is a level of repression far worse than in Russia, where convictions are predetermined, but suspended sentences common. It is especially disturbing since there are currently twelve other believers facing virtually identical charges, and this figure is increasing all the time.
Crimean Platform
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Halya Coynash: 6-year sentence for reading the Bible in Crimea
A painted door like a prison cell corridor is seen during the presentation of the art project "Underground Despair", dedicated to 98 Crimean residents who were arrested after the annexation of the peninsula by Russia by Georgian artist David Kukhalashvili in downtown Kyiv on Feb. 8, 2021.
