Articles

by Steno Sari — The media have an inescapable responsibility: to ensure an accurate, comprehensive and profoundly respectful flow of information on human dignity. This mission is often betrayed by dynamics that turn journalism into a dangerous instrument of media lynching. Public pillorying, amplified by media resonance, is an ethically abominable practice, as it tramples on cardinal principles of legal and moral civilisation: the presumption of innocence, the inviolable right to privacy and the inherent respect due to every individual.

The Constitutional Court of Ukraine found admissible a complaint of conscientious objector to military service, Vitalii Alekseienko, and will check alleged unconstitutionality of jailing for three to five years for draft evasion during mobilization those citizens whose religion or beliefs are incompatible with the performance of military duty (conscientious objectors), and will check also alleged unconstitutionality of requirements for believers to prove in court their innocence in evading the draft, the absence of an alternative non-military service during the war and its inaccessibility to persons who do not belong to privileged religious organizations.

by Willy Fautré, director of Human Rights Without Frontiers (HRWF) — Following the public denunciation of several sentences of anti-cult groups by French courts, one of them claims to be a victim of undue judicial harassment by cults or ‘their friends’ and also claims that its mission to warn against cults is supported by the European Parliament. This is false. A quick glance at the provided references of its sources shows that the European Parliament is silent on this subject.

By Peter Zoehrer, Executive Director, FOREF Europe — On World Press Freedom Day, we celebrate journalism’s role in holding power to account and amplifying the voices of the vulnerable. Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) enshrines freedom of expression as a pillar of democracy. But this freedom is not without consequence. When media outlets stigmatize religious minorities, they don’t just shape narratives—they shape realities.

By Shahrezad Ghayrat for RFA Uyghur — Rushan Abbas is one of the most prominent international advocates for the rights of ethnic Uyghurs. Her memoir, “Unbroken: One Uyghur’s Fight for Freedom,” will be published on June 10. The book explores her personal journey from her pro-democracy activism as a student in China in the 1980s, to her move to the United States in 1989, and her efforts to draw attention to the plight of Uyghurs in the face of mass internments and other grave abuses that the U.S. government says constitute genocide.

Following the three-year prison sentence imposed on Dmytro Zelinsky – a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church that prohibits the use of weapons – we have been wondering if “Is there a right not to participate in war.” In March 2025 the Venice Commission, questioned on Zelinsky's issue by the Ukraine’s Constitutional Court, concluded that "under the ECHR as well as under the ICCPR, States have the positive obligation ...

Taken by China 30 years ago, the Panchen Lama’s abduction underscores Beijing’s bid to interfere in the succession of the Dalai Lama, who turns 90 this year. The young boy who was abducted as a 6-year-old turned 36 on Friday. What he does, where he lives or even if he’s still alive isn’t known, thanks to the reticence of the Chinese government, which kidnapped him along with his family and his teacher 30 years ago. Beijing leaders, ever wary of potential rivals for the Communist Party’s authority, viewed the boy, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, as a possible threat.

As European Federation for Freedom of Belief (FOB), being dedicated to advocating for freedom of religion and belief (FORB) and fostering mutual respect among humanity, express our heartfelt condolences to the Roman Catholic community and people of goodwill worldwide on the passing of Pope Francis. His Holiness leaves behind a profound legacy of compassion, inclusivity, and tireless efforts to promote interfaith dialogue, harmony, and peace beyond all traditional boundaries.

We are approaching the 8^th anniversary of the banning of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia 7 years ago, on 20 April 2017, actively advocated by the then FECRIS vice-president Aleksandr Dvorkin, an Orthodox ex-priest, lecturer in sect history and ‘sect expert’ for the Russian Ministry of Justice, thus accustomed to preaching and sermons both in church and university classrooms and in courtrooms. This year, with the approach of Easter, which in Hebrew means ‘passage’ (pesah), we witness Dvorkin's transition from friend of the FECRIS to enemy of it, as documented in the following article by Bitter Winter.

The saga of the MIVILUDES (Mission Interministerielle de Vigilance et de lutte contre les dérives sectarie) continues. Despite being ‘slapped down’ by the Paris Administrative Court, which ordered MIVILUDES in a ruling on 21 February 2025 to correct its publications due to ‘inaccurate or unverified information’, on 8 April 2025 – only a month and a half later – it published its new annual report in line with its modus operandi of stuffing the reported news with inaccurate or unverified information.

By now, that of the MIVILUDES (Mission Interministerielle de Vigilance et de lutte contre les dérives sectarie) can be considered a modus operandi that has been repeatedly proven even in court. To the age-old (and tedious) defamatory narrative of the MIVILUDES and its anti-cult acolytes against the Christian congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, recently revived in Italy by the TV programme Zona Bianca, and which - coincidence? - has seen precisely the Kingdom Hall in Via delle Camelie in Rome (the one shown during the Zona Bianca broadcast) the object of an attack, now the defamation of the ‘Malrevers Kibbutz’ and the ‘Interstyl Society’ is added.

Washington, DC — The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today released its 2025 Annual Report. The report documents religious freedom conditions in 2024 and recommends policy to the White House, Congress, and State Department to advance freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) abroad. Congress mandated USCIRF’s Annual Report in the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) of 1998.

We welcome the news that the Thai Ministry of National Defence has promoted a study to allow exemption from reserve military service for conscientious objectors. Once again, the initiative takes its cue from the firm position of a Jehovah's Witness who is faithful to his beliefs.

We receive and publish this appeal by the British Asian Christians Association in support of five Christian pastors arrested on charges of forcibly converting Hindus. They are also accused of distributing copies of the Bible and other Christian literature. It is always sad to report such news of intolerance, which often inflames the animosity of crowds and results in acts of violence.

By Willy Fautré (HRWF) — On Friday 14 March, the Borgarting Court of Appeal issued a landmark judgment declaring the loss of registration and denial of state grants for the years 2021-2024 invalid.

It unanimously concluded that the practice of social distancing does not expose children to psychological violence or negative social control. Furthermore, the Court found that their practice is in harmony with the Faith Communities Act and in compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights.

Can someone be imprisoned because he does not want to participate in a war? Can someone be imprisoned because he refuses to participate in the murder of other human beings? Yes, one can. According to the Ternopil Court of Appeals (Ukraine), refusing to take part in a war is neither a praiseworthy stance nor an inalienable right, but a criminal offence, which resulted in Ukrainian citizen Dmytro Zelinsky – a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church being sentenced to three years imprisonment.

Our partner CAP Liberté de Conscience, which has always been at the forefront in denouncing violations of freedom of belief that affect religious minorities, published an article, which we republish below, in which it stigmatises the connivance between the Pakistani police and the extremist zelot group Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) in the use of violence against Ahmadiyya Muslim communities, their places of worship and even the graves in their cemeteries. The role of social media in spreading hate speech against Ahmadiyya Muslims is also denounced.

The International Human Rights Desk (IHRD) of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in the UK reports that at around 1.30pm on 28 February members of the Tehreek-e-Labaik (TLP) extremist group stormed an Ahmadiyya place of worship in Daska, Sialkot District, chanting anti-Ahmadi slogans at a group of Ahmadis who had gathered for Friday prayers. Police were called to the mosque, however they proceeded to arrest 23 of the Ahmadis who were present, including three minors aged 11, 14 and 17.

Deported move comes as petition is lodged aimed at halting 'cruel treatment' and blocking deportation to China. A leading human rights group sought to petition the Criminal Court in Bangkok Feb. 27 seeking a halt to the deportation of 48 Uyghurs to China fromThailand, where they have been detained for more than 10 years, amid reports they were secretly repatriated overnight.

We publish the following study by Professor Emeritus in Sociology at Oxford University, Bryan Ronald Wilson (1926-2004), on the subject of apostates and the New Religious Movements. “As instances have indicated,” Wilson writes, “he [the apostate, ed.] is likely to be suggestible and ready to enlarge or embellish his grievances to satisfy the species of journalist whose interest is more in sensational copy than in a objective statement of truth.”