From Moshood Karim
The Jehovah’s Witnesses has lost the court case that they brought against the Norwegian Government. The recent judgment in the Oslo district court ruled against Jehovah’s Witnesses in the country.
The religious community has been denied State subsidies and registration as a religious community. The court has found the state’s decisions to be valid, and the religious community has been ordered to pay court costs of over NOK 1.1 million.
Uptown Press gathered that, Jehovah’s Witnesses had filed a lawsuit against the state of Norway after losing the right to state subsidies and registration as a religious community. The court’s decision means that the religious community will not receive the state subsidy for 2021, 2022, and 2023. The judgment also rejected the demand for subsequent payment of a total grant of NOK 35 million.
The reason for the revocation of the state subsidy is that the Ministry of Children and Families and the State Administrator believe that the exclusion practice of Jehovah’s Witnesses involves negative social control and prevents free expression from the religious community.
The court’s ruling found that the exclusion practice of Jehovah’s Witnesses involves serious violations of the rights and freedoms of others.
Through the guidelines and practice for exclusion, Jehovah’s Witnesses encourage members who are ostracized or withdraw, so that with few exceptions, they are exposed to social isolation from those remaining in the religious community.
According to judge Ole Kristen Øverberg, this practice of exclusion is a serious violation of the rights and freedoms of others, which led to the denial of state subsidies and registration as a religious community.
We are of course disappointed by the result, says Jehovah’s Witnesses’ lawyer Anders Stray Ryssdal to Vårt Land. He said that they have not decided whether they want to appeal or not.
“We will now look carefully at the judgment and decide on the question of appeal before the end of the deadline.”
