The last word of the defendant Dmitry Semenov in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Dmitry Semenov in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky

October 31, 2022

Kamchatka Territory

From the courtroom

"I love people and I don't wish them any harm," the defendant said in his last statement. — I do not hate people on social, racial or religious grounds. I do not hate the secular authorities, but, on the contrary, I show them respect."

Transcript of the court session in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky City Court dated 10/31/2022 in the case 1-585/2022 on charges of Dmitry Ivanovich Semenov and others. of committing a crime under Part 1.1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Dmitry Ivanovich Semenov: First of all, I want to thank you, Your Honor, for your attitude towards us. We were glad that you do not feel any hostility towards us on religious grounds, try to soberly, unbiasedly approach the consideration of this complex case and listen to our point of view. We were very pleased to see such a good attitude.

I also want to thank Tatyana Mikhailovna Khachaturian, the state prosecutor. She showed attention to us, there was no hostility.

I also want to express my gratitude to our lawyers for coming to the rescue when we were confused about procedural issues, because we are participating in court as defendants for the first time. I want to thank them for the words of support they expressed in court.

At the beginning of my speech, I want to cite one short case. One day, a traffic police inspector stopped a driver and fined him for driving through a traffic light. The driver was amazed. He informed the inspector that he had driven through a green traffic light and that everything was recorded on his DVR. To which the traffic police inspector replied as follows: "You had the intention to run through a red light. See, it's already red. And in general, you look very much like one malicious traffic violator, even hold on to the steering wheel like him."

You may ask, where and when did such a strange case happen? It's happening here and now, Your Honor. In this example, my wife and I act as the fined driver. In the role of a traffic police inspector, there is a public prosecutor. The role of the traffic light is the Constitution and other laws of the Russian Federation that allow or prohibit certain actions. And in this situation, we ask you, Your Honor, to protect us. To protect us from unjustified and illegal criminal prosecution. We ask you to restore justice. It is to restore, because the injustice has already happened. What is it? This criminal prosecution has caused great harm to our emotional state, our reputation, and our work.

What emotional harm has been done? Examining the case materials, we saw that the investigation had collected evidence, which is not exactly enough to transfer the case to court, but also not enough at all to initiate it. But despite this, the investigative department opened a case on September 3, 2021. At seven in the morning on September 6, an FSB officer arrived at our dacha with two masked security forces. We were shocked by what was happening, as if we had been stunned by something. We were taken to our apartment for a search. Your Honor, we didn't have time to wash up and have breakfast properly. Although the investigator tried to behave correctly, we were given a lot of unpleasant emotions by the fact that people completely unfamiliar to us were examining the contents of our drawers, personal belongings. Phones, personal diaries, a Bible, a computer and peripherals, a hard drive with a single copy of the video of our wedding were seized from us. After the search, we were taken to the investigation department. There, the investigator told us that our article was serious, so it was better for us to cooperate with the investigation, and then the punishment would be less severe. But what is the punishment, Your Honor? For what? At two o'clock in the afternoon, after the interrogation, we were released. We were far from home, hungry, shocked, without phones. Fortunately, they did not forget to take money with them and were able to use public transport. In general, the whole day passed in a blur.

Later, during the investigation, I woke up to every sound of a car approaching the house. I was alarmed by any sound of a voice in our entrance. I was under constant emotional stress. Naturally, it affected my sleep. And my wife has been sleeping very poorly all this year.

And now, without providing any evidence of the presence of extremism in our actions, just because we are Jehovah's Witnesses, the prosecutor demands that we be punished with 4 years of real imprisonment. For what, Your Honor? For talking about the Bible, which has nothing to do with extremism, the prosecution wants to put us in jail with real criminals. To cause emotional harm to our relatives, who are very worried about us. What will happen to our parents? What will happen to our pets? How will I be able to fulfill my financial obligations to the bank? For the prosecution, these issues are irrelevant. But they keep turning over and over in my head. The fact of the criminal prosecution itself and everything connected with it caused us great emotional harm.

I would like to say separately about D. Y. Mikheev's expertise No. 07/03-2022. After reading it, I was very offended, because there were terrible accusations that he directed against me and my wife. These accusations have no basis, they are slander, Your Honor. The expert, without proving anything, claims that I hate the government. Your Honor, I am a person who pays taxes and tries to comply with the laws of the Russian Federation, do I hate the state? That's a lie! The expert claims that I hate representatives of other religions. It turns out that atheists too. But where is the evidence? During the judicial investigation, it was found out that I do not feel hatred on religious grounds. I have voiced concrete evidence.

I can cite an incident from my life that confirms this. One day I went to a neighbor's cottage. He had two Uzbeks working for him. I needed their help with the construction. They were alone there. When I knocked on the door, they didn't answer. It turns out that there was a time to recite the prayer. One Uzbek stopped and asked what I wanted. I then told him to finish the prayer, and I would wait as long as necessary. They finished, and then we talked. Why did I do that? Because they have their own beliefs and they should not be prevented from performing their religious rites in any way. It is necessary to respect the feelings of the believer. I have said before that I do not dislike on religious or racial grounds. And this unfounded accusation by an expert is insulting.

What damage has been done to our reputation? Already on the day of the search, it was announced on the radio in Petropavlovsk that the FSB had detained the spouses, Jehovah's Witnesses accused of extremism. That is, this fact has already become generally known immediately, on the same day that the search took place. And this is in our small town. And there are people who know that this announcement was about us. How can we continue to live in this city when the information that we are allegedly extremists will spread further?

What harm has been done to my work? Most importantly, my computer was seized. I am a programmer by profession. I fed my family, including with the help of this computer. Because of this, I had to find some alternative options for work. My reaction to the tasks has decreased due to the lack of a home computer. I've been working on a tiny netbook for a long time. How could I do my job quickly and efficiently in such conditions? I really hoped that after the examination, the computer would be returned to me, but the investigation decided to leave it as evidence for the court. Imagine my surprise when the prosecution did not even try to examine this computer in court. The package with it remained sealed.

I couldn't work much because of the frequent calls to the investigative department and the court, and the need to prepare a lot for hearings. All this affects the quality of my work and is very upsetting. My clients recommend me as a good programmer, but because of everything that is happening, my emotional state and frequent lack of sleep, I have become much worse at work. And this affects my reputation as a professional.

My employer also suffers losses due to the fact that I devote less time to work, since my work schedule corresponds to the work schedule of the investigative department and the court. And now I attend court instead of work.

Your Honor, with these words I want to show what shocks and trials this unjustified criminal prosecution has brought us. And of course, I want justice to be restored.

I think the court still needs to hear some thoughts about my faith in order to complete the picture. I'm not going to tell you any religious dogmas. I want to explain to the court why I adhere to this religious trend — why am I a Jehovah's Witness?

First of all, I found out who Jehovah is. My faith in him was formed during my university days. There I was surrounded by people of a mostly atheistic mindset. For example, teachers, competent specialists whom I respect, and students. My specialty is scientific. All the years of our studies, we were taught the theory of evolution. But I've always been amazed by everything that surrounds us. I am a mathematical scientist by profession. The essence of the work that I was taught was the analysis of data obtained by various sciences, the compilation of computer models of various processes. At first, I was engaged in the analysis of data obtained in the field of physics. I was fascinated by the physical laws, how everything works, how everything works together. Then my supervisor suggested that I focus on biology. What I saw, studying the development of populations, how everything is interconnected, convinced me even more that God exists and that he created everything around us.

Reading the Bible, I learned that the name of God is Jehovah. He has the most wonderful qualities, such as: love, wisdom, justice, long-suffering. I am glad that Jehovah loves people very much. This is evident not only from the Bible, but also from everything that exists around us, from how we are created. We can enjoy music, feel the taste of pleasant food, and admire landscapes thanks to color-discriminating vision. We live on a beautiful planet created for life. We can do interesting things. We can observe animals, beautiful, graceful, sometimes funny. Man is created in such a way that he does not just exist, but can enjoy life. And all this was given to us by Jehovah. All this could not have happened by evolution.

As I said in my testimony, Satan, Adam and Eve spoiled his plan. But Jehovah did not give up on humanity, but found a way out how to fix everything. This is exactly what we talked about with E. Turova. Thus, getting to know Jehovah, I wanted to live in accordance with his principles, to get closer to him so that he could call me his friend. As a result, I devoted my life to him.

The Bible says a lot about Jehovah. It describes his qualities and principles. The way he reacted to various events shows what he approves of and what he doesn't. At university, some of my classmates tried to prove to me that the Bible is just a collection of myths and legends and that it should not be taken seriously. But I don't think so. And I came to this conclusion after reading and researching it. I believe that the Bible is the Word of God. This is his letter to the people. Although there are many Bible translations in the world, I appreciate them all. I believe that this book has come down to us unchanged. I am sure that Jehovah will not allow changes in it that would mislead people.

There is a lot of evidence in the Bible itself confirming its inspiration. For example, it is scientifically accurate. Imagine, the Bible says that the earth has the shape of a ball. At that time, people believed that it was flat and the thought of a spherical earth terrified them, because everyone who was below had to fall. The Bible describes a physical force called gravity. Job 26:7 says: "He spread the north over the void, hung the earth on nothing." As everything is clearly and simply described: "hung on nothing." These words were recorded in the Bible 3,500 years ago. At that time, society was confident that the earth had a support in the form of elephants or whales. The Bible describes the water cycle in nature long before it was discovered by science. All this proves that God is the author of the Bible.

There are many different prophecies written in the Bible concerning specific peoples, people, and cities. Most of them have already been fulfilled to the last detail. Interestingly, all the prophecies concerning the life of Jesus Christ were exactly fulfilled. One of them was even read out during the judicial investigation. It indicates that the Messiah will appear in 29 A.D. This fact also convinces me that the Bible is inspired by God.

I can talk about this wonderful book for a long time, but I won't get carried away. I said all these words in order to draw your attention, Your Honor, to the following fact: my faith in Jehovah is not a figment of fantasy, some kind of philosophy, etc.; I believe in Jehovah not because someone whom I respect or love believes in him. My faith in Jehovah is based on knowledge, on facts obtained from the Bible and the world around us. I know Jehovah and I love him as my Father. I want to please him with my life and remain faithful and devoted to him as a Christian who has dedicated his life to him.

I am being judged, Your Honor, for having learned from the Bible that in the future the Kingdom of God will rule on earth, and I shared this thought with E. Turova. The prosecution considers this extremism. I would like to draw the court's attention to the fact that if we follow the logic of the prosecution, then billions of Christians, regardless of their direction, are also extremists. Why do I say that? Many have heard of the existence of a prayer called "Our Father." It is found in Matthew 6:9-13. There are such words in this prayer: "Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Everyone who uses this prayer in their worship asks God that his Kingdom come to earth and his will be fulfilled.

Your Honor, I believe that the Kingdom of God will rule the earth in the future. This is explicitly stated in the Bible, a book that I trust. I do not know exactly when this will happen. But I know for sure that Jehovah will then completely wipe out all evil from the face of the earth. Then hunger, disease, suffering, and even death will not even be mentioned on earth. Yes, Your Honor, I am sure that there will be no death. I also believe that billions of dead people will be resurrected. I don't know how, in what order. Jehovah knows, he has thought everything out, he is a wise God. This way, people will be able to reunite with their deceased relatives, whose loss they mourn and miss. I am sure that Jehovah will fulfill his plan and perfect people will inhabit the earth, and the fulfillment of the prophecies expressed by Jehovah will bring only good to people. To all people. For whom, then, is this extremism?

Your Honor, as I said earlier, I love people and I don't wish them any harm. I don't hate people on social, racial or religious grounds. I do not hate the secular authorities, but, on the contrary, I show them respect. My God Jehovah taught me all this.

I am not an extremist, Your Honor, and I sincerely ask you to acquit me and my wife.

Summary of the case

Region:

Kamchatka Territory

Locality:

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky

Criminal case number:

12102300002000148

Case initiated:

September 3, 2021

Current stage of the case:

The verdict has entered into force

Investigating:

SU IC of the Russian Federation in the Kamchatka Territory

Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

282.2 (1.1)

Case number in court:

1-585/2022

Court of First Instance:

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky City Court of the Kamchatka Territory

Judge of the Court of First instance:

Vladimir Bykov