This archive report was first published on 5 November 2019.
On November 5, 2019, Russian authorities sentenced Sergei Klimov, a Jehovah's Witness, to six years in prison, marking the harshest penalty meted out by a Russian court against a Russian member of the religious movement.
As part of a growing crackdown on the US-based movement, Russia outlawed Jehovah's Witnesses in 2017, labeling them an extremist organisation.
"The sentence was handed down today," said Olga Shevtsova, a spokeswoman for the Oktyabrsky district court in the western Siberian city of Tomsk.
Since the ban, several Jehovah's Witnesses have been sentenced to prison terms, including a Danish member, Dennis Christensen, who was sentenced to six years in February for "extremism."
Earlier this year, a court in Saratov sentenced six Jehovah's Witnesses to between two and three-and-a-half years in prison.
Founded in the United States in the late 19th century, the non-violent movement has faced challenges due to its proselytisation and refusal to salute state symbols.
