Pavlova Zoya

Updated: May 2, 2024
Name: Pavlova Zoya Vasiliyevna
Date of Birth: July 27, 1965
Current status: who has served the main sentence
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (1.1), 282.2 (2)
Sentence: penalty in the form of a fine in the amount of 80,000 rubles

Biography

Zoya Pavlova, a civilian resident of the city of Alatyr, was accused of extremism only because she professes the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses.

Zoya was born in 1965 in the village of Ibresi, Chuvash ASSR. When she was 2 years old, and her older sister was 7 years old, the girls were left orphans - their parents died.

Zoya graduated from the courses of a secretary-typist, and also mastered cooking. At the age of 19, she went to Kamchatka and got a job at a fish cannery. Zoya lived for some time in Cheboksary and Kanash. In 1989, she moved to Alatyr (Chuvashia), closer to her sister. Here she worked at the Alatyr Mechanical Plant, and then in the housing and communal services sector. Zoya has an adult daughter and a granddaughter, they live in Tatarstan.

In 2016, Zoe became interested in the Bible and its teachings. From this book she began to learn about God. She was particularly moved by the description of the Creator's love and compassion for people. As she continued her Bible study, Zoe also learned about Bible prophecies being fulfilled in our time. All this prompted her to embark on the Christian path in 2018.

The unfair criminal prosecution brought emotional distress to the peaceful believer. She will have to defend her right to freedom of religion in court.

Case History

In June 2021, the FSB of Russia initiated a criminal case against unidentified persons, and a week later, a series of searches were carried out in Alatyr at the homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses. The family of Andrey Martynov was subjected to investigative actions twice (the first search took place in 2012). The law enforcement officers seized electronic devices, photographs, personal notes, drawings and other items, with inscriptions mentioning the name of God - Jehovah. In April 2022, Andrey and Nina Martynov, Mikhail Yermakov and Zoya Pavlova were charged: the men with organizing the activitiy of an extremist organization, and the women with involvement and participation in it. In July 2022, the case against the believers went to court, and in December of the same year, the court gave the women a fine of 350,000 rubles, and the men a 6-year suspended sentence. After 2 months, the verdict entered into force by the decision of the appellate instance.
Timeline