In Azerbaijan, four Jehovah's Witnesses face fines of up to 2500 US dollars for religious meetin

In the city of Ganja (Gandzha), 22 Jehovah's Witnesses were detained. Of them, 4 were charged of violation of the order to conduct religious meetings. They can be fined 2000-2500 US dollars. This was told to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent by a representative of the religious organization "Jehovah's Witnesses" in Azerbaijan.

On June 4, 22 Jehovah's Witnesses were detained in the city of Ganja during the religious meeting. On the same day, they were released after the court has pronounced warnings to them. This was reported by the police department of the Kapaz District.

The Jehovah's Witness community has no state registration. Thus, its activities are treated as illegal. This was stated by officials from the Ganja Regional Department of the Azerbaijani State Committee for Work with Religious Associations.

The representative of the organization "Jehovah's Witnesses" has noted that, in accordance with Article 1 of the law, "being an integral part of a democratic society, freedom of religion may be limited only in cases provided by the law, namely, in cases of the need to ensure public security to guarantee the order in society and to protect health, morals or the rights of other citizens."

According to the Jehovah's Witness, the Azerbaijan's Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights guarantee the right to assemble for worship in private houses without preliminary state registration.

See earlier reports: "In Taganrog, trial of Jehovah's Witnesses fails to get adequate public attention, rights defenders assert", "Three criminal cases against 21 Jehovah's Witnesses investigated in Taganrog", "Charges against 16 Jehovah's Witnesses in Taganrog are absurd and fuzzy, experts say".