Here is an excerpt that I keep on hand, culminated from some historical encyclopedias NOT affiliated with JWs:

Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses

Throughout Jehovah's Witnesses' history, their beliefs, doctrines, and practices have engendered controversy and opposition from local governments, communities, and religious groups.

According to law professor Archibald Cox, in the United States, Jehovah's Witnesses were "the principal victims of religious persecution … they began to attract attention and provoke repression in the 1930s, when their proselytizing and numbers rapidly increased."

Political and religious animosity against Jehovah's Witnesses has at times led to mob action and government oppression in various countries, including Cuba, the United States, Canada, Singapore, and Nazi Germany. The religion's doctrine of political neutrality has led to imprisonment of members who refused conscription (for example in Britain during World War II and afterwards during the period of compulsory national service).

During the World Wars, Jehovah's Witnesses were targeted in the United States, Canada, and many other countries for their refusal to serve in the military or help with war efforts. In Canada, Jehovah's Witnesses were interned in camps along with political dissidents and people of Japanese and Chinese descent. Activities of Jehovah's Witnesses have previously (and currently) been banned in the Soviet Union and in Spain, partly due to their refusal to perform military service. Their religious activities are currently banned or restricted in some countries, for example in Singapore, China, Vietnam and many Islamic states.

According to the journal, Social Compass, "Viewed globally, this persecution has been so persistent and of such an intensity that it would not be inaccurate to regard Jehovah's witnesses as the most persecuted religion of the twentieth century". Here are some examples from various nations:

Benin: During the first presidency of Mathieu Kérékou, activities of Jehovah's Witnesses were banned and members were forced to undergo "demystification training."

Bulgaria: In Bulgaria, Jehovah's Witnesses have been targets of violence by right wing nationalist groups such as the Bulgarian National Movement. On April 17, 2011, a group of about sixty hooded men carrying BMPO flags besieged a Kingdom Hall in Burgas, during the annual memorial of Christ's death. Attackers threw stones, damaged furniture, and injured at least five of the people gathered inside. The incident was recorded by a local television station. Jehovah's Witnesses in Bulgaria have been fined for proselytizing without proper government permits, and some municipalities have legislation prohibiting or restricting their rights to preach.

Cuba: Under Fidel Castro's communist regime, Jehovah's Witnesses were considered "social deviants", along with homosexuals, vagrants, and other groups, and were sent to forced labor concentration camps to be "reeducated". On July 1, 1974 the group was officially banned and their "churches" closed. Following the ban members who refused military service were imprisoned for sentences of three years and it was reported that members were also imprisoned because of their children's refusal to salute the flag.

Canada: Main article: Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Canada During both world wars, Jehovah's Witnesses were persecuted for abhorrence of patriotic exercises and conscientious objection to military service. In 1984, Canada released a number of previously classified documents which revealed that in the 1940s, "able bodied young Jehovah's Witnesses" were sent to "camps", and "entire families who practiced the religion were imprisoned." The 1984 report stated, "Recently declassified wartime documents suggest [World War II] was also a time of officially sanctioned religious bigotry, political intolerance and the suppression of ideas. The federal government described Jehovah's Witnesses as subversive and offensive 'religious zealots' … in secret reports given to special parliamentarian committees in 1942." It concluded that, "probably no other organization is so offensive in its methods, working as it does under the guise of Christianity. The documents prepared by the justice department were presented to a special House of Commons committee by the government of William Lyon Mackenzie King in an attempt to justify the outlawing of the organizations during the second world war."

Eritrea: In Eritrea, the government stripped Jehovah's Witnesses of their civil and political rights in 1994 after their refusal to engage in voting and military service. Members of all ages have been arrested for participating in religious meetings. On 24 September 1994, Paulos Eyassu, Negede Teklemariam, and Isaac Mogos were arrested, and remain imprisoned. More than 50 other Witnesses are also currently imprisoned, one since 2001. International rights groups are aware of the situation of Jehovah's Witnesses in Eritrea and have repeatedly called for Eritrean authorities to end the persecution.

France: See also: Jehovah's Witnesses and governments (France) Prior to World War II, the French government banned the Association of Jehovah's Witnesses in France, and ordered that the French offices of the Watch Tower Society be vacated. After the war, Jehovah's Witnesses in France renewed their operations. In December 1952, France's Minister of the Interior banned The Watchtower magazine, citing its position on military service. The ban was lifted on November 26, 1974. In the 1990s and 2000s, the French government included Jehovah's Witnesses on its list of "cults", and governmental ministers made derogatory public statements about Jehovah's Witnesses. Despite its century of activity in the country, France's Ministry of Finance opposed official recognition of the religion; it was not until June 23, 2000 that France's highest administrative court, the Council of State, ruled that Jehovah's Witnesses qualify as a religion under French law. France's Ministry of the Interior sought to collect 60% of donations made to the religion's entities; Witnesses called the taxation "confiscatory" and appealed to the European Court of Human Rights.bOn June 30, 2011, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that France’s actions violated the religious freedom of Jehovah’s Witnesses by demanding 58 million euros in taxes. Jehovah's Witnesses in France have reported hundreds of criminal attacks against their adherents and places of worship.

French dependencies: During the ban of the The Watchtower in France, publication of the magazine continued in various French territories. In French Polynesia, the magazine was covertly published under the name, La Sentinelle, though it was later learned that The Watchtower had not been banned locally. In Réunion, the magazine was published under the name, Bulletin intérieur.