After his release from the penal colony, Seidkuliev was kept in a deportation center and expelled from the country
After his release from the penal colony, Seidkuliev was kept in a deportation center and expelled from the country
Rustam Seidkuliev, One of Jehovah's Witnesses, was Deported to Turkmenistan, Although the Court Allowed Him to Stay in Russia for Further 6 Months
Saratov RegionOn September 17, 2023, officers of the Federal Migration Service, contrary to a court decision, deported Rustam Seidkuliev to Turkmenistan. Earlier, at the initiative of the FSB, his Russian citizenship was revoked due to criminal prosecution for his faith.
Seidkuliev was sentenced to 2 years and 4 months in a penal colony for participating in meetings for worship and talking about Bible topics. In total, Rustam spent a little more than 1 year and 10 months behind bars. After Seidkuliev's release from the penal colony, additional punishment entered into force. It was not related to imprisonment and allowed him to live with his wife, move freely around Saratov, see friends and work.
Two months later, a decision was issued to deport him, and on June 19, he was detained and placed in the Temporary Detention Center for Foreign Citizens. The believer's defense appealed this decision. The Kirov District Court of Saratov had ruled that Rustam Seidkuliev be deported only after serving his additional punishment. This gave him the opportunity to stay in Russia with his family for more than 6 months after his release from the penal colony. Contrary to the court's decision, the believer was deported ahead of time.
According to Seidkuliev, officers from the Federal Migration Service tried to expel him from the country twice. The first attempt was on September 15, but the flight was delayed, and he was returned to the detention center. "The next day, the staff came and said, 'You have 15 minutes to get ready,'" he recalls. "After that, he was taken to Moscow by car, and it was explained that they needed to rush because of the bosses' order."
Seidkuliev arrived in Ashgabat at 3 a.m. There he was kept at border control for about 12 hours and released after the paperwork was completed.
More than 20 years ago, Rustam's stepfather was deported from Turkmenistan because he was one of Jehovah's Witnesses. This is how the Seidkuliev family ended up in Saratov.
Rustam Seidkuliev became the fourth Jehovah's Witness since 2017 to be deported from the country by the Russian authorities because of his religion. Before him, this had happened to Dennis Christensen, Feliks Makhammadiev and Konstantin Bazhenov.
