Another Elderly Prisoner of Conscience Convicted in Novocheboksarsk. Aleksandr Protasov, 68, Received Suspended Term for Believing in Jehovah God

6-year suspended sentence for reading the Bible, discussing it with other people and praying to God — on May 30, 2025, the court announced the verdict to Aleksandr Protasov. "My life is based on love, not hatred," he said at one of the hearings, denying his guilt for extremism.

Protasov is a pensioner from Novocheboksarsk, holder of the Order of Honor. In May 2023, his family's home was searched. "I remember how after that, when everyone left, we sat on the sofa, and it was as if we didn't know what to do next," Aleksandr recalls. In the fall of the next year, a criminal case was opened against him.

The persecution brought new difficulties to the life of the Protasovs. "Recognizance agreement, blocking accounts ... And I have relatives who live outside the republic, and now I could not visit them," Aleksandr said. "It was difficult to come to terms with such a situation." But, according to Protasov, the deepest worries were about his wife and son (both have disabilities): "They have clinical depression, and this situation only aggravates the situation. I tried to be with them when it was very difficult for them. We talked about a wonderful future and prayed a lot."

The trial of Protasov lasted two months, and the court hearings were closed-door. Although Jehovah's Witnesses did not have a registered legal entity in Novocheboksarsk, judge Dmitriy Efimov found Protasov guilty of resuming the activities of the liquidated organization.

The criminal prosecution of Aleksandr Protasov in Novocheboksarsk was preceded by the case of 86-year-old Yuriy Yuskov. At the moment, 9 of Jehovah's Witnesses have been convicted in Chuvashia.