The last word of the defendant Timofey Zhukov in Surgut

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Timofey Zhukov in Surgut

November 13, 2023

Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug

In his last speech, Timofey Zhukov spoke about the courage shown by the servants of God in the past. He said, "I want to show courage and faith myself, no matter what. And whatever the verdict, I will remain a Jehovah's Witness wherever I am."

Transcript of the court session in the Surgut City Court of Surgut dated 11/13/2023 in the case № 1-27/2023 (1-130/2022; 1-1348/2021) on the charges of Zhukov Timofey Viktorovich and others. of committing a crime under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Zhukov Timofey Viktorovich:

So it's time for my last word. First of all, I want to thank you, Your Honor. Thank you, Dmitry Anatolyevich, for the fact that this trial took place in an open—minded atmosphere, and we all always felt your respectful attitude towards us - the defendants. You have always given us the opportunity to speak freely, even when the state prosecution tried to prevent it.

[…]

Dear court, I would like to thank you separately for your concern for our health. You have always patiently postponed court sessions if one of us was ill. Although we felt that it was not easy for you. But it is important to take into account that our process went through the years of the COVID-19 pandemic, and we remained not only alive, but also healthy. Thank you! At the same time, unfortunately, some of us have lost our loved ones and we all very much sympathize with Severinchik, Petrov, Volosnikov, Kobotov and Fedin.

Your Honor, I must admit that you were really able to create a trusting and relaxed atmosphere during our court sessions, and we all felt your respectful attitude towards us and our religious feelings. I want to say that I am glad that our case came to you. And regardless of what the verdict will be, I am grateful for the way you conducted this process. It was professional and dignified. Believe me, dear court, in my twenty years of practice, I have seen a large number of judges and I have someone to compare them with.

[…]

Thanks to the prosecutors for their friendly attitude and for always trying to pronounce the name of God Jehovah correctly.

Dear lawyers, I would like to thank you separately for the fact that, with your workload in other cases, you were able to delve into the essence of this case and understand that we are innocent. We are sincerely grateful to you for your literacy, patience and courage.

[…]

Dear bailiffs, the first people I met at the entrance to the building, and the last ones I saw when I left, you were always friendly. Please convey your deep gratitude to all your colleagues who have been here these many days and months.

To my wife, Natasha, thank you for being always there, for your help and support. [...] Every day I thank my God for this precious gift — my beloved, caring and patient wife, she is my most faithful friend. The Bible says, "There are many worthy women, but you surpass them all!" (Proverbs 31:29) I can confidently refer these words to my precious wife Natasha. The biggest challenge in custody will be breaking up with her. This year is our 20th wedding anniversary, and our love has grown even stronger over the years.

I also thank my family, first of all, my mother. This trial is very stressful for her, but she courageously came and defended me.

[…]

Thanks to my employer, my immediate supervisor and all my colleagues for their support.

[…]

I am very grateful to my co-religionists for the love and support they gave our family, for always coming to this building to support me, for their kind words. They were constantly interested in how I was doing, worried, and sympathized. Thank you very much! We are really one big spiritual family.

And since I am a believer, I am especially grateful to my God Jehovah for his love and the power he gives. Without him, I would not have been able to adequately defend the truth in this trial.

Dear Court, During this trial, the defense has repeatedly stated that innocent people are being tried here. This is confirmed by all the evidence collected in this criminal case. Therefore, in my last word, I want to draw attention to the courage that the servants of God have shown in the past and that they are showing today, including in our trial. I titled my last word as follows: "The courage of Jehovah's Witnesses in times of persecution."

What is courage? Courage is a firmness of mind, a sense of confidence that supports and gives strength. Being courageous means standing up in times of adversity, defending what is right, and enduring trials with dignity and faith.

Jesus Christ gave us an example of how to manifest this quality. The life of this great man is described in detail on the pages of the Bible. I want to briefly tell you a story. Imagine this situation: a lot of people are looking for Jesus to grab him. They are armed with swords and clubs, and there are warriors and guards among them. Jesus knows that he is being hunted, and he knows that these events will lead to his death. However, he is not trying to hide, he is calmly waiting.

The crowd is approaching. Judas is ahead, once a close friend of Jesus. He shamelessly betrays his teacher. Jesus remains calm. He steps forward and asks: "Who are you looking for?" They answer, "Jesus of Nazareth." Most people would have flinched in front of an armed crowd. Maybe that's what those people wanted. But Jesus does not tremble with fear, does not try to escape or protect himself. He calmly says, "It's me." People are amazed by his composure and courage. Jesus is arrested and brought to the Jewish court in the Sanhedrin. The judges find false witnesses who accuse Jesus of blasphemy and convict him. Jesus is tied up and led to the Roman ruler Pontius Pilate.

Pilate goes out to them and asks: "What accusation do you bring against this man?" The Jews reply: "If he were not a criminal, we would not have given him to you." Pilate, perhaps feeling that pressure is being exerted on him, says: "Take him yourself and judge according to your law." Further, the Jews, revealing their intention to put Jesus to death, respond: "According to the law, we have no right to kill anyone."

Why do Jews say that? Because if they kill Jesus during the celebration of Easter, it may cause outrage among the people. And if they succeed in having Jesus executed by the Romans on political charges, it will give the impression that the Jews had nothing to do with it.

Interestingly, religious leaders do not tell Pilate that they condemned Jesus for blasphemy. They come up with new accusations: "We have established that this man is leading our people astray, forbids paying taxes to Caesar and even declares himself king." The mention of Jesus calling himself king causes Pilate, a representative of the Roman government, concern. Pilate asks Jesus: "Are you the king of the Jews?" In other words, he wants to know if Jesus violated the law of the empire by proclaiming himself king and thereby rebelling against Caesar, or against the state system of that time. Jesus explains that he was not talking about the earthly kingdom, but about the heavenly one.

Pilate sees that his appeals are not helping and that the indignation is only growing. Then he takes the water and washes his hands in front of everyone. He says, "I am innocent of this man's blood. See for yourself."  Pilate then makes several more attempts to free Jesus, but all in vain. Religious leaders come up with new accusations every time, even to the point that they tell Pilate: "If you release him," they threaten, "you are not Caesar's friend. Anyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar." Succumbing to fear, Pilate eventually gives in to the insistent demands of the Jews and gives Jesus up for execution. What was the difference between Jesus and Pilate? Pilate did not have the courage to justify and release Jesus, but Jesus was calm and unperturbed. That's real courage!

Why did I tell this story? With its help, it is easy to draw an analogy with what modern Jehovah's Witnesses face. During the Soviet Union, the brothers were sentenced without a court hearing. They were simply informed of the sentence: from 5 to 12 years in prison or correctional labor camps. Most received 10 years. For what crime? According to official data, for "anti-state propaganda and subversive activities," that is, they allegedly caused harm to the Soviet people.

But soon the law changed, and Jehovah's Witnesses were sentenced to 25 years in prison. After such a verdict, the 63-year-old believer exclaimed ironically: "Thank you, dear court, for passing such a long sentence. I thought I would live for another 10 years, but you measured out a quarter of a century for me!" Here it is, real courage!

Interestingly, our indictment says that we "harmed the interests of society and the state." Does this remind you of anything?

In 1948, prisoners in a Vorkuta camp rebelled. The rebels told the prisoners that everything would work out if they split into groups, for example, by nationality or religious affiliation. At that time, there were 15 Jehovah's Witnesses in the camp. They courageously told the rebels that they were Christians and did not participate in such matters. They explained that the early Christians did not participate in the rebellions against the Romans. Of course, this was unexpected for many prisoners. This uprising had sad consequences: it was suppressed by armed soldiers. But they didn't touch the brothers. And why is that? Because they courageously stuck to their beliefs.

Six years later, Jehovah's Witnesses faced a similar test of faith again. On May 16, 1954, an uprising took place in a Steppe camp in the village of Kengir in Kazakhstan. It was suppressed on June 26 of the same year. According to Wikipedia, 5,200 people participated in it. At that time, there were 80 Jehovah's Witnesses in the camp: 46 men and 34 women. All of them, according to the memoirs of the prisoners, showed courage and refused to take part in the Kengir uprising.

According to Solzhenitsyn, Jehovah's Witnesses washed dishes in the dining room. The rebels were perplexed: "Believers of all faiths — Pentecostals, Adventists, Baptists and all others — are participating in the uprising. Only Jehovah's Witnesses refused. What are we going to do with them?" Someone suggested throwing one Witness into the oven to intimidate the others. But the former military man, who enjoyed authority in the camp, stood up and said: "This is unwise. We need to gather them in the last barracks next to the checkpoint. If the authorities launch tanks, the Witnesses will be the first to be crushed, and we will not be responsible for their deaths." The offer was accepted.

Soon, the prisoners began to walk around the barracks and shout: "Jehovah's Witnesses, get out!" All 80 people were herded into the last barrack. In order for them to fit there, the bunks were pulled out. This barrack became a "prison" inside the camp. In this cramped room, my co-religionists prayed a lot and asked Jehovah to give them wisdom and "strength beyond ordinary" (2 Corinthians 4:7). I admire their courage, because they didn't know what was ahead of them. According to the memoirs of Nikolai Gutsulyak, none of the Jehovah's Witnesses died, since at the beginning of the storming of the camp they were taken out by soldiers behind the fence.

Here's what eyewitnesses told us: "Suddenly soldiers burst into our barracks. They were screaming: "Saints, get out of the barracks quickly and run out the fence!" The soldiers were ordered not to shoot at us, but to accompany and guard us. Until the battle was over, we were in the steppe outside the camp."

Ferenc Varconi, a prisoner of Kengir originally from Hungary, recalls the conflict with Jehovah's Witnesses in this way: "I and others especially saw their faith and courage during the Kengir uprising in 1954. Jehovah's Witnesses did not participate in the uprising itself, or even in the preparations for it. They remained remarkably calm and tried to explain their position to other prisoners. I was so impressed by the behavior of the Witnesses that I decided to ask them about their faith."

Why did I tell you about this? I experienced something similar myself while in jail. The arrested decided to rebel, this was expressed in the fact that they made a lot of noise, shouted, kicked at doors and the like. Since I adhere to the position of neutrality, I did not participate in this riot. I needed to explain my position clearly to my cellmates. Then I explained that I was trying to be neutral and not take anyone's position, because I did not want to incur God's judgment on myself, as indicated in the Bible, in Romans chapter 13, verse 2. They understood me and agreed with my position. Later, when similar situations arose, there were no questions for me.

Today in Russia, Jehovah's Witnesses are being watched very closely — so closely that wiretaps and video cameras are being installed, and surveillance is being conducted. In our case, wiretapping and videotaping were conducted for almost a year. How does our courage manifest itself? In order to answer this question, I would like to draw your attention to one statement of the investigator in the indictment, which was repeated by the prosecutor during the court debate. This statement reflected their attitude to our arguments, which we, the defendants, cited in our testimony in court: we did not organize the activities of an organization banned by the court, were not members of the Jehovah's Witnesses in Surgut, but simply attended worship meetings in a religious group. In addition, we did not involve A. E. Mironov in the activities of the organization, and he himself showed a desire to learn about the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses. We were just talking about the Bible.

According to the investigators and the prosecutor's office, our words should be treated critically: "The testimony of the defendants at the court session in the previously mentioned part should be assessed as an attempt to avoid criminal liability for committing a crime, as the chosen way to defend against the charges." It's necessary to invent such a thing!

Dear state prosecutors, such a statement offends my religious feelings, because we, as Jehovah's Witnesses, strive to show the courage that Jesus Christ showed and our co-religionists continue to show in the face of persecution. And these are not just words, this is a fact that is confirmed by the rich historical heritage of the people called Jehovah's Witnesses.

But first I want to draw your attention to the note to Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. It states the following: "A person who has committed a crime under this article for the first time and voluntarily ceased participation in the activities of a religious association or other organization, in respect of which a court has taken a legally binding decision to liquidate or ban activities in connection with the implementation of extremist activities, is exempt from criminal liability if his actions do not contain other elements of the crime."

Paragraph 22 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated 06/28/2011 No. 11 (ed. dated 10/28/2021) "On judicial practice in criminal cases of extremist crimes" clarifies that the note to Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation provides for conditions of exemption from criminal liability, which apply to the organizers and other participants of an extremist organization who committed the corresponding crime for the first time a crime and those who voluntarily stopped participating in the activities of such associations, unless their actions contain other elements of a crime. Voluntary termination of participation in the activities of an extremist organization is understood as the termination of criminal activity by a person when he realizes the possibility of its continuation. It can be expressed, for example, in withdrawal from an extremist organization, non-compliance with the orders of their leaders, refusal to commit other actions that support the existence of the organization, refusal to commit crimes.

Thus, if I or one of us wanted to, as the state prosecution says, "avoid criminal liability," we would have to stop attending worship meetings, preach and study the Bible, that is, stop being a Jehovah's Witness, and that's it. Then there would not have been countless investigative actions, including two humiliating searches in my apartment, my personal belongings would not have been seized, my car would not have been arrested, I would not have been included in the Rosfinmonitoring list, and I would not have been among those involved in terrorism and extremism. I would not have had all my bank accounts blocked, I would not have been forcibly sent to a psychiatric hospital, I would not have been placed in a pre-trial detention center and there would not have been this criminal case at all.

Dear participants in the process, in order to understand how offended my religious feelings are when the state prosecution claims this, I will give some historical facts and examples. During World War II, Jehovah's Witnesses in Nazi Germany were severely persecuted. Historian Detlef Garbe wrote: "Most prisoners of conscience convicted by military courts... in the Third Reich were Jehovah's Witnesses." One of them was 19-year-old Austrian Gerhard Steinaker. Just a few days after the outbreak of World War II, the Nazis arrested him for refusing to serve in the German army. In November 1939, Gerhard was sentenced to death. That month, while in prison, he wrote: "All I want is to glorify God, keep his commandments, and ask him to accept us into his kingdom, where eternal life and peace await us." On March 29, 1940, in a farewell letter to his parents, Gerhard wrote: "I'm just a kid. I will be able to stand up only if the Lord gives me strength, and I ask him for that." The next day, at about six o'clock in the morning, Gerhard was executed. The inscription on his grave reads: "He died glorifying God."

"My friend, Rupert, I was sentenced to death today. Don't grieve for me. I love you and your whole family. See you in the Kingdom of God." On June 8, 1942, Franz Drozg wrote these words a few minutes before he was shot by the Nazis. Why was he executed? According to information from the Museum of National Liberation in Maribor (Slovenia), this 38-year-old man, a blacksmith by profession, refused to join the Wehrmannschaft, a German paramilitary unit operating in Nazi—occupied Slovenia. He was a Jehovah's Witness. Acting in accordance with the words of Isaiah 2:4, he did not want to support the military actions of the fascists, declaring that he was a subject of the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33).

The attitude of Jehovah's Witnesses to wars is eloquently expressed in the last words of Wolfgang Kusserov. In 1942, this 20-year-old German youth was beheaded by the Nazis for refusing to go to war (Isaiah 2:4). He told the military tribunal: "I was raised as a Jehovah's Witness, in accordance with God's word written in the Holy Scriptures. The greatest, holiest commandment that God has given to mankind is to love God first of all and love your neighbor as yourself. There is another commandment: "Do not kill." For whom was it written by the Creator — for the trees?" (Mark 12:29-31; Exodus 20:13). Wolfgang Kusserov was one of those who suffered death for remaining faithful to God and refusing to support Nazism. Before he was beheaded on March 28, 1942, Wolfgang wrote to his parents and relatives: "I am your third son and brother, and tomorrow morning I will be gone. Don't worry, the time will come when we will be together again. [...] What a joy it will be to meet again! [...] Now we are separated, and each of us must pass the test, but there is a reward ahead of us."

Before his execution on January 8, 1941, Johannes Harms wrote in his last letter to his father: "My death sentence has already been announced, and the handcuffs are not removed even at night, the marks [on paper] are from them. [...] My dear father, in my thoughts I ask you: stay faithful, as I have tried to stay faithful, and then we will see each other again. I won't stop thinking about you until the very end."

Rudolf Auschner was beheaded on September 22, 1944. He was only 17 years old. In a farewell letter, he wrote to his mother: "Many brothers have been through this, and so can I." About 400 Jehovah's Witnesses were executed in Germany and in Nazi-occupied territories. Most of them were sentenced to death by a court decision and executed by guillotine. Others were shot and hanged without trial. More than 1,000 Jehovah's Witnesses died in Nazi concentration camps and prisons. They died from hard labor, torture, starvation, cold, disease and lack of medical care. Robert Herwart, a professor of modern history, in one of his books called Jehovah's Witnesses "the only group in the Third Reich that was persecuted solely because of their religious beliefs," and other concentration camp prisoners admired the firm position of Jehovah's Witnesses.

One of the prisoners, an Austrian national, said: "They are not fighting and would rather go to death themselves than kill another." In the book entitled "Jehovah's Witnesses — Proclaimers of the Kingdom of God" on pages 663-664, which we examined during the court sessions and which is found as material evidence in the case, it is written: "Jehovah's Witnesses were imprisoned for their faith. They were repeatedly promised that they would be released from the concentration camp if they only signed a renunciation of their beliefs. The SS did everything they could to persuade or force the Witnesses to sign this statement. That was their main goal. Almost all the Witnesses remained steadfast in their loyalty to God and did not sign a renunciation of their beliefs."

This is an example of how Jehovah's Witnesses showed courage by remaining faithful in the harshest conditions in only one country. But I don't have enough time to tell you about how Jehovah's Witnesses showed similar courage in Korea, China, Eritrea, Singapore, the United States, Rwanda, Greece, Poland, Zimbabwe, India and other 22 countries around the world where they were brutally persecuted for their faith.

To refuse to be a Jehovah's Witness is to betray these brothers, betray the faith, betray Jesus Christ and Jehovah. I am sure that neither I nor my brothers in the faith, even in the face of the most severe punishment, will allow conscience to do this. For this reason, numerous international legal organizations have recognized Jehovah's Witnesses as prisoners of conscience. And you, dear state prosecutors, claim that I am trying to avoid criminal liability.

Jehovah's Witnesses in the USSR received sentences of 25 years, and in Germany, Jehovah's Witnesses were executed. In volume 15 of l. d. 49 (p. 35), in the appendix to the expert's conclusion No. 348 dated 06/15/2020, there is a song called "Forward, Witnesses!", which we performed at the liturgical meeting. I will quote her words.

Firmly, resolutely in these days of the end

The good news is brought to people by the people of the Creator.

Although the Devil is fighting with us,

We stood boldly on the side of God.

Come on, Witnesses, you are brave in your heart!

Rejoice, because you are strong in the cause of Jehovah.

Tell all people that a new world is near,

God will give them a wonderful life.

The warrior of God does not go the easy way

And in the world, he will not make concessions to the authorities,

Keeps everything clean,

He wants to lead a blameless life.

Come on, Witnesses, you are brave in your heart!

Rejoice, because you are strong in the cause of Jehovah.

Tell all people that a new world is near,

God will give them a wonderful life.

The name of Jehovah is blackened by scoffers,

They don't even want to hear about his Kingdom.

But we will sanctify the name of God,

Proclaiming the good news to the nations.

Come on, Witnesses, you are brave in your heart!

Rejoice, because you are strong in the cause of Jehovah.

Tell all people that a new world is near,

God will give them a wonderful life.

This song was composed by Brother Erich Frost in 1942, while in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Thanks to this song, the brothers and sisters remained joyful and courageous, despite the terrible conditions they were in. And this song still gives courage to our brothers and sisters when they sing it at worship meetings.

In the book "Stronghold among the Mud", the English historian Christian King interviewed a Catholic woman who was in a concentration camp with Jehovah's Witnesses. Here's what she said: "Jehovah's Witnesses were the only prisoners who did not spit when the guards passed by, they were the only people who treated what was happening around them not with hatred, but with love, hope and awareness of the existing meaning."

From these words, it is clear that no matter what circumstances Jehovah's Witnesses find themselves in, they will always strive to act the same way — with love, because Jehovah himself highly appreciated the life of each person. After all, Jehovah God gave his precious Son Jesus Christ for every human being, including you. We are ready to convey this message to every person, no matter what it costs us, because God loves you and we love you, and not for reasons of religious hatred and discord.

I do not want to speak in my last word about the evidence, about the mistakes and shortcomings of the investigation, a lot has already been said about this. I wanted to tell you about the courage that the servants of God have shown in the past and that they are showing today. I have given only a few examples, but there are countless of them. I myself want to show courage and faith no matter what. And whatever the verdict, I will remain a Jehovah's Witness wherever I am. I ask, dear court, to find me and my friends innocent.

Your Honor, before you retire to the deliberation room for sentencing, I want to wish you courage. After all, this is a worthy quality that was manifested by Jesus Christ himself and many people who, thanks to this quality, became truly worthy people. Courage is the adornment of any person. Before his execution, Christ told his followers: "Troubles await you in the world, but be brave! I have conquered the world" (John 16:33).

Napoleon Bonaparte once said: "I know a man whose dominating spirit conquered the whole world without fighting, and this man is Jesus Christ." And indeed, thanks to his outstanding courage and love, Jesus conquered the world. It must be admitted that in modern Russia it takes a lot of courage to pass an acquittal, especially when the defendants are not criminals, but only religious people who have suffered from political repression. And moreover, when the prosecution is supported not by the Prosecutor's office of the city of Surgut, but by the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation.

Right now, no one in this room knows which verdict you will pass: whether it will be acquittal or indictment. But what I do know is that a guilty verdict will be an ordinary verdict, and it will have absolutely no effect on anything, no matter what the punishment. And do you know why? I will cite another ridiculous and ridiculous statement in the indictment: "On 02/15/2019, the criminal actions of [the defendants] were suppressed by law enforcement officers during searches and bringing these persons to criminal responsibility" (paragraph 1, page 5112 of the indictment). During the debate, the prosecutor's office repeated this idea, saying: "The continuation of illegal activities of a banned organization, which was suppressed by law enforcement officers at the time of their detention." So it turns out that we were detained on February 15, 2019, and the prosecutor's office confirmed this in the debate, but there are no documents about the detention in the case file.

But this is not what I wanted to draw attention to, but to the absurdity of the statement “the activities of Jehovah’s Witnesses were stopped.”  To briefly and clearly show this, I will give one comparison that one of the defendants made in his last word: “The effort to stop the work of preaching is equivalent to the efforts of a janitor with a broom to stop the ocean tide.”  I would really not like the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation and, finally, the FSB to be such figuratively speaking “janitors.”  I am sure that you, dear court, do not want this either.  However, a guilty verdict in our case will only contribute to this.  But an acquittal will make a serious contribution to improving the quality of the judicial system and will make the protection of the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of our citizens more accessible and effective.

 And such a decision can become the key to the development of Russia as a legal democratic state, a country with high social standards and an attractive national jurisdiction.  Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin spoke about this on February 14, 2023, when he opened the annual meeting of judges of arbitration and military courts and courts of general jurisdiction.  During the debate, I quoted his statement verbatim.  Moreover, in the near future, this particular acquittal may become the subject of study by the luminaries of jurisprudence not only in our country, but also in the entire democratic world, not only as an example of courage, but also of the legal skill shown by you in rendering the acquittal.  Thank you for your increased attention to my last word!

 Case Summary

 Region:

 Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug

 Locality:

 Surgut

 What is suspected:

 “Gave speeches, participated in field service with local Jehovah’s Witnesses, held meetings with “pioneers”, “elders” and “ministerial servants”, including for the purpose of organizing the activities of the “elders” in the “congregation” “Vzletnoe”  "

 Criminal case number:

 42002007709000023

 Case initiated:

 February 11, 2019

 Current stage of the case:

 Trial before the court of first instance

 Investigates:

 Investigative Department for the city of Surgut Investigative Directorate of the Russian Federation for the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug

 Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russianюь Federation:

 282.2 (1), 282.3 (1), 282.2 (2)

 Court case number:

 No. 1-27/2023 (1-130/2022; 1-1348/2021)

 Court:

 Surgut City Court

 Judge:

 Dmitry Lupin