Ten years ago today, on June 10, 2010, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Russian authorities had perpetrated a grave violation of human rights with a years-long campaign to suppress our brothers’ freedom of worship. The ECHR’s judgment directed Russia to pay a sizable fine and to reinstate the registration of the Local Religious Organization of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Moscow—which the authorities revoked in 2004.

Immediately after the verdict was announced, Brother Ivan Chaykovskiy, then chairman of the Moscow Community of Jehovah’s Witnesses, said: “This judgment is a victory of common sense over religious intolerance. I hope that as a result of this judgment, the authorities will quickly restore our legal rights and end the nationwide state-sponsored campaign of harassment against Jehovah’s Witnesses.”

That optimism quickly vanished, however, as Russian authorities not only failed to abide by the terms of the ECHR ruling but also escalated their campaign of persecuting our brothers across the federation. This persecution was dramatically expressed when Russia’s Supreme Court effectively banned our peaceful worship in 2017, an injustice that has been followed by numerous arrests, trials, and imprisonments.

Although ten years old, much of the Court’s stinging judgment against Russia remains relevant. In 2010, the ECHR categorically refuted many of the baseless charges that Russia continues to level against our peaceful fellow believers today.

In summary, the ECHR concluded that the Moscow Justice Department, along with the Moscow courts, had “no legal basis” for refusing the reregistration of Jehovah’s Witnesses. The Court decried the Moscow authorities, asserting that they “did not act in good faith and neglected their duty of neutrality and impartiality.” Additionally, Moscow authorities were guilty of violating the European Convention on Human Rights, to which Russia is a State Party.

In 2020, as in 2010, Russia’s systemic campaign against our brothers is not going unnoticed. “For Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia, practicing their faith means risking their freedom,” said Rachel Denber, deputy Europe and Central Asia director for Human Rights Watch. In a statement dated January 9, 2020, she added: “There is nothing remotely justifiable about this.”

In the face of injustice, we pray in full confidence that Jehovah will continue to strengthen our brothers and sisters in Russia to “endure fully with patience and joy.”—Colossians 1:11.