The last word of the defendant Tatiana Svoboda in Komsomolsk-on-Amur

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Tatiana Svoboda in Komsomolsk-on-Amur

March 23, 2023

Khabarovsk Territory

From the courtroom

In her address to the court, the believer told how her life changed when she began to read the Bible and tell others about what she had learned. She said: "I don't understand how this can be extremism!"

Transcript of the court session in the Central District Court of Komsomolsk-on-Amur dated 03/23/2023 in the case 1-159/2023 (1-1129/2022) on charges of Freedom of Tatyana Valentinovna and others. of committing a crime under Articles 1.1 and 2 of Articles 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Svoboda Tatyana Valentinovna:

Dear court, dear participants in the process, today it is time for me to speak to you with the last word. This is very exciting and responsible for me, because today God Jehovah himself is watching and listening to how his name will be sanctified.

Thank you very much to everyone for the friendly atmosphere in the hall! Everyone was patient, tactful and respectful to me and my friends. Thank you very much, Your Honor, Natalia Vladimirovna, for listening to us patiently and respectfully.

Thank you very much to my lawyer Evgeny Pavlovich, who was present at all investigative and judicial events, gave legal advice, and often drove me home from the Investigative Committee. Many thanks also to the lawyers Potapova Valentina Mikhailovna and Gridaev Vitaly Sergeevich. Despite the fact that I was not your client, you were always available to me, willingly answered my questions, gave valuable advice.

I want to thank the state prosecutor that you showed respect and correctly read the name of God, Jehovah, in the case file. I would also like to thank V. N. Demina for being very hospitable to us and generously treated us when we came to visit her. I don't hold a grudge against her, I think she was misled into thinking that we are extremists. I still worry about her health and pray for her.

I would like to express my deep gratitude to our friends, co-religionists for their support, prayers and presence at court sessions.

Many thanks to our God Jehovah for giving us the strength to withstand this difficult ordeal — the persecution for his name. He said he would never leave me or leave me. And I feel his support.

I want to tell you how I learned about the God Jehovah. Since childhood, I began to think about the transience of life. I was worried about why people live so little, and even suffer all their lives from diseases, violence, disasters and injustice.

I was faced with the death of relatives early on — my father died young in severe agony from esophageal cancer. My beloved grandmother died of diabetes soon after. When I was in school, my classmate tragically died.

I asked myself: if God exists, why does he condemn people to suffering? Why, if the human age is so short, did God not make sure that a person lived his life happily, did not age, did not get sick, and when his hour came, he would just go to bed and not wake up? And the meaning of human life was incomprehensible to me, and no one could explain it.

When the opportunity to purchase a Bible appeared in our country in the 1990s, I was glad, hoping that I would find answers to my questions in it, because I had heard that it was the Word of God. Indeed, from the very first chapters of this holy book it becomes clear that God did not want people to suffer. By creating them, he provided them with ideal conditions for a happy life. Even death should not have interrupted their lives, provided they respected his laws. According to the Creator's plan, people, his earthly children, were supposed to live forever.

As it is written in Genesis 3:1-6, Adam and Eve supported Satan's rebellion against the Creator's authority, rejected his dominion and chose independence from him. So they themselves lost the prospect of living forever and deprived their descendants of it, including you and me, and doomed the whole of humanity to a deplorable existence, as evidenced by history.

But through his Word, the Bible, our just Creator gives hope to people that he will not forever tolerate such a situation on earth, that he has not abandoned his original plan, and at the appointed time, as the Ruler of the universe, he will restore order on earth. Then people will live happily, forever, in heavenly conditions, free from wars, crime, and injustice. It was amazing to find out that living people have a chance not to know what death is at all. And God will give those who died a chance to enjoy life again. In the Gospel of John 5:28, 29, the words of Jesus Christ are recorded: "Do not be amazed at this: for the time is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who did good in the resurrection of life, and those who did evil in the resurrection of condemnation, will come out."

When I found out about the intentions and intentions of Jehovah God in relation to the earth and people, it radically changed my whole life. The meaning of life appeared, I wanted to learn about God and please him, began to bring my behavior in line with his norms, get rid of bad habits.

And when three bandits took the life of my only son just to ride in his car, the hope of a future resurrection of the dead helped me to bear this heavy loss. This hope motivates me, as a compassionate person and as a Christian, to comfort those who are grieving. I can't keep quiet about this, because if I don't talk about my beliefs, then how do I show my faith? "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead" (James 2:26).

Dear Court, now for trying to help people by sharing the biblical hope with them, I stand before you and I am being judged as a criminal and an extremist. But I don't understand how this can be extremism!

Also, I have not committed any crime against the state, I have not harmed anyone, I have not caused damage.

Having learned from the Bible that God loves people, regardless of their nation, that his son Jesus Christ gave his life as a ransom for everyone, that every person is dear to him, this prompted me to develop respect for all people.

I consider it an honor to tell everyone about the wonderful future, about our amazing Creator and thus sanctify his name.

Why am I doing this? Over the centuries since the Bible was written and to this day, for various reasons, the personal name of God Jehovah, which appeared more than 7,000 times in the original Bible, has been removed from many Bible translations. Once, for this reason, I did not even know that God has the name Jehovah, and that it has a deep meaning and is a guarantee that all his promises will certainly be fulfilled. His name means "He gives to become." Nothing will stop him. Many people, representatives of other religions and even scientists, recognize that Jehovah's Witnesses treat God's name Jehovah with due respect and do a lot to make people know God's personal name. The name "Jehovah's Witnesses" is based on the book of the prophet Isaiah 43:10-12, which says: "But my witnesses, saith the Lord, are you and My servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe Me, and understand that it is I: there was no God before Me, and there will be no God after Me. I am the Lord, and there is no Savior but Me. I predicted and saved and announced; but you have no other, and you are My witnesses, says the Lord, that I am God."

I am grateful that more than 25 years ago, Jehovah's Witnesses helped me to know God, which, as I said, changed the quality of my life, now I try to help people myself. My intentions and motives are based on love for God and my neighbors. Love for God and love for one's neighbor are the two most important commandments that Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-39: "Jesus said to him, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind': This is the first and greatest commandment; The second is similar to it"Love your neighbor as yourself."

These commandments in no way imply inciting racial or religious hatred or undermining State foundations. Jehovah's Witnesses are mistakenly branded as extremists. The words of Jesus Christ, "Go and proclaim the good news to the people," would be impossible to fulfill if we showed hostility to people.

Jehovah's Witnesses are useful members of society who do not pose a threat to the security of the country in which they live. They are law-abiding, they pay taxes and contribute to the efforts of the state to take care of the welfare of society.

Your Honor, in passing sentence, if you find me guilty, I will be punished for my correction. But I don't understand what I will have to fix in this case. Stop believing in Jehovah God and worshipping him in the way he accepts? I will never give up on him. Stop living by God's standards and return to the things he condemns? Is it possible to force me to sacrifice my conscience by threatening criminal punishment? So that I would renounce my friend, the God of Jehovah? I have love for him and faith in him in my heart. There is no law that could prohibit this. Therefore, I ask, Your Honor, to acquit me.

Summary of the case

Region:

Khabarovsk Territory

Locality:

Komsomolsk-on-Amur

What is suspected:

"Persuaded to participate in the activities of a religious organization ... by persuasion and otherwise involving it in the activities of this extremist organization through false belief in the correctness of its teachings"

Criminal case number:

12102080009000169

Initiated:

September 21, 2021

Current stage of the case:

The verdict has entered into force

Investigates:

SU IC of the Russian Federation for the Khabarovsk Territory and the EAO

Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

282.2 (2), 282.2 (1.1)

The number of the case in court:

1-159/2023 (1-1129/2022)

Court of First Instance:

The Central District Court of Komsomolsk-on-Amur

Judge of the Court of First instance:

Natalia Kazymova