Mari priest sentenced

On December 25, the Yoshkar-Ola city court sentenced pagan priest Vitaly Tanakov to 120 hours of compulsory labor for writing and distributing the pamphlet The Priest Speaks. The court did not see in the actions of V. Tanakov calls for inciting ethnic hatred. The defendant pleaded not guilty.

The defense intends to appeal the verdict to the Supreme Court of the Republic of Mari El, and in case of rejection of the cassation appeal, apply to the European Court of Human Rights. According to Sergei Poduzov, co-chairman of the human rights organization Man and Law, "representatives of state authorities have interfered excessively in the exercise of freedom of religion."

At the end of January, the defense filed a cassation complaint with the court of second instance.

On March 21, Sergei Poduzov, co-chairman of the Regional Public Organization "Man and the Law", told the SOVA Center that the Supreme Court of Mari El upheld the verdict of the Yoshkar-Ola City Court against V.D. Tanakova is strong.

Sources

• Court sentences pagan priest to 120 hours of compulsory labor // All-Russian Civil Congress. 2006. December 26.