Jehovah’s Witnesses

For Immediate Release
March 4, 1999

Key witnesses to testify Friday at Moscow
human rights trial; press conference scheduled

A notorious critic of minority faiths and a well-known professor of religion will testify tomorrow in what is expected to be the final day of testimony in the Moscow human rights trial of Jehovah’s Witnesses. The defense expects Friday to end with another long adjournment.

A. L. Dvorkin, director of the anti-cult Center of Iraneus of Lyon, will appear for the prosecution, and N. S. Gordienko, Professor of the Religious Studies and Doctor of Philosophy, will testify for the defense. These are the final two witnesses scheduled to appear. At the close of the session, Jehovah’s Witnesses will hold a brief press conference at the courthouse. Court is scheduled to end at 2 p.m.

“We understand that the judge is in a difficult position,” said Vasilii Kalin, director of the Witnesses’ Administrative Center in St. Petersburg. “She has seen no evidence to support the charges, but the political climate makes it difficult for her to render judgment in our favor. We expect another delay.”

Human rights groups are concerned about the implications of the trial on others. Human rights leader Lyudmila Alekseyeva, president of the International Helsinki Federation, said that she will testify on Thursday because she is concerned about the precedent the trial may set. “This trial is not just about the rights of a minority religion, but of all Russians,” said Alekseyeva. “First it is Jehovah’s Witnesses, next will be the human rights groups, then will come the trade unions and opposing political groups. We’ve seen it all before.”

The trial of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Moscow was instigated by a complaint from the Committee for the Rescue of Youth, first filed in 1996. The prosecution is using the 1997 religion law as the basis for this trial.

A summary of each day’s court proceedings can be found at www.jw-media.org , along with detailed background information on the trial and on Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia. For more information on Jehovah’s Witnesses, visit www.watchtower.org.

Contact: J.R. Brown (718) 560-5600