The last word of the defendant Nadezhda Korobochko in Nikolaevsk-on-Amur

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Nadezhda Korobochko in Nikolaevsk-on-Amur

July 30, 2024

Khabarovsk Territory

The elderly believer noted that the accusation is not supported by any evidence: there are no victims, no harm or damage caused. "So there is no crime,— concluded 81-year-old Nadezhda Korobochko. "I am not being judged for my actions, but for my religious beliefs."

Transcript of the court session in the Nikolaevsky-on-Amur city Court of the Khabarovsk Territory dated 30.07.2024 on the case № 1-3/2024 (1-54/2023; 1-413/2022) according to the accusation of Nadezhda Ivanovna Korobochko and others. of committing a crime under Part 1.1 and Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Nadezhda Ivanovna Korobochko: Your Honor! The first thing I would like to start with, addressing the last word, is to express my gratitude. This is my first time in court and I realized that tact and calmness at meetings are created by you. Thank you for being patient and kind to my legal ignorance, explaining what I didn't quite understand, as well as for your hard work and respect for my religious views. Thank you very much for being able to maintain a calm and respectful atmosphere in this room until the end of the hearing. This indicates that you really observe a high culture of behavior in the process, behave with dignity, patiently and politely towards all participants.

I also want to express my gratitude to the prosecution, as I did not see a disparaging attitude towards myself. You understand perfectly well that I am not an extremist — neither by law, nor by lifestyle, nor by conscience. I know you're just doing your job, it was obvious. I also want to thank the Clerk of the court for his courtesy, patience and kindness. There was always a sense of concern and human attitude on his part, not only towards me, but also towards all the other defendants.

Thank you very much to my lawyer Vyacheslav Gennadievich Bocharov. You have been understanding of my position, respecting my Bible-educated conscience. Cooperation with you has greatly facilitated and brightened up my lot. Thank you for the human attitude, for your responsiveness, for the efforts you have made to protect me in this process. Your work deserves the most sincere praise and appreciation. You have done a huge amount of work to understand the essence of the accusation and correctly build a line of defense.

Thank you to my dear friends for the courage they have shown and are still showing — they strengthen and support me with their presence in court — as well as to friends from other cities and even countries who worry about me, write words of encouragement, pray for me and support me in these difficult circumstances. Through them, Jehovah strengthens me, gives me the strength not to give up, and assures me of his love. It's worth a lot today! Thanks to my dear children, who are not in the hall, but who are worried about me, since I am at an advanced age. They support me, they believe that my lifestyle does not correspond to the charges against me.

The greatest love and unceasing gratitude to my best friend, our Father, the God Jehovah, whom I worship. He is the main support for me. I thank him for the love he showed me, which he himself expressed in the Bible: "You are precious in my eyes, you are worthy of respect, and I love you. Do not be afraid, because I am with you" (Isaiah 43:4-5). Also, through the prophet Jeremiah, my dear friend and Father, Jehovah, comforts me with the words: "With eternal love I have loved you and therefore attracted you to me with devoted love" (Jeremiah 31:3b). Such words simply inspire me, help me to be patient and worthily follow the true path. I am always grateful for the strength that my Father, Jehovah, gives me, for peace in my heart, for perseverance, patience, self-control and a positive attitude. This is entirely the merit of my Father, Jehovah, so I boldly express my feelings and gratitude to my dear Father in words from the Bible: "To you, Jehovah, our mighty God, glory and honor rightfully belong, because you created everything, by your will everything came into existence and was created!" (Revelation 4:11).

Dear Court, I am grateful for the opportunity to speak with the last word. This is the last opportunity for me to reach the minds and hearts of the participants in the process. This may sound strange to some, but I am proud to stand here in court and speak before you, because during this time I have remained faithful to my God Jehovah. Moreover, I am sure that the biblical prophecy of our Lord Jesus Christ is being fulfilled: "You will be brought to judgment before rulers and kings, because you are my disciples, so that you can testify about me before them" (Matthew 10:18, Modern translation of the Bible).

Today I have the honor to participate in the fulfillment of the prophecy expressed by Jesus Christ himself: "Remember the word that I told you: a slave is no greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my word, they will keep yours" (John 15:20).

Similar trials have already taken place. One of them was almost 2,000 years ago, among the Jews, when Jesus Christ was presented to the Roman ruler Pontius Pilate. The senior priests falsely and on far-fetched pretexts accused Jesus that his teachings were corrupting the people, that he was sowing confusion among the people, forbidding them to pay taxes to Caesar "calling himself Christ the King" (Luke 23:2). After researching everything about Jesus, Pontius Pilate came to the conclusion that he was innocent of what he was accused of, and in every possible way wanted to save Jesus from this punishment, but the people insisted on their own. And in the end, Pontius Pilate made a deal with his conscience (Luke 23:23, 24).

The same thing is happening in our court today: baseless accusations were made against Jehovah's Witnesses, including me, containing obvious lies and a distorted interpretation of the teachings. All the invited and interviewed witnesses from the prosecution could not give clear and precise explanations of my involvement in the commission of the crime provided for in Part 1.1 and Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, got confused in their testimony and said that "it wasn't me" that "a lot of time had passed" and they "no longer remember".

Nor has my criminal intent and motive to undermine the constitutional order through hatred, enmity, and humiliation of the dignity of people on the basis of belonging to a religion or other social group been proven. The prosecution did not provide a single fact proving that I had criminal intent: where, when and how, in what words, whom I recruited, who was not allowed to join the army, in what words I expressed a criminal desire to undermine the foundations of the constitutional order and the security of the state, etc. The prosecution did not provide a description of the places and time of the alleged crimes, nor the methods and consequences of these crimes, as well as other things necessary for sentencing.

The prosecution, consciously or not, over and over again ignores all the collected facts and evidence of my innocence, bringing the usual confession of faith under the continuation of the activities of an extremist organization. It turns out that the events that happened to Jesus in the first century are identical to the events that are happening now in our court.

Why was Jesus Christ persecuted? For teaching ordinary people the truth about Jehovah. Jesus addresses the Father: "I have revealed your name to them and I will reveal it, so that the love that you have loved me may be in them, and I in them" (John 17:26).

I still don't understand what is the criminality of my actions? How can I intentionally commit a crime, especially such a crime, and even conspire with someone about it? I would like to ask: what am I being judged for? For the fact that, just like Jesus, I share with people the good news about the truth about God, help people get to know Jehovah God, who gave us all life, help them learn about his wonderful qualities, about his love for people and about future wonderful intentions towards the earth and people.

When I learned the name of God and his qualities, I began to trust the Bible even more, and saw how its instructions contributed to my physical and spiritual well-being. The more I got to know her, the more convinced I became of her uniqueness. It was in it that I found answers to questions that many people are interested in, for example: why is there so much evil? what awaits us in the future? What is the meaning of life anyway? I learned that death is not the end, but, as Jesus said, a dream. Of course, it was joyful to learn that this dream does not last forever, that God intends to wake (resurrect) billions of people.

The Bible describes 9 cases of resurrection of the dead. By doing this, Jesus proved that his Father, Jehovah, had given him the power to raise the dead. The Bible says, "Do not be surprised at this, because the time is approaching when all who are in the graves will hear His voice and rise again. Those who have done good will receive eternal life, and those who have done evil will be held accountable" (John 5:28, 29). Jehovah wants and will be able to resurrect people, so he encourages us to tell others about this wonderful hope of seeing our deceased relatives.

I also became convinced that all the prophecies from the Bible are fulfilled in great detail, and there is a huge amount of evidence for this. God helped me to understand this wise book and get on the right path, I saw great kindness on his part. It was the Bible that helped me to change my way of life and thinking, to learn to truly love others, to be kind, patient and calmly endure all the injustice towards me. Now I can call myself a happy person. Moreover, my joy and happiness in no way depend on external circumstances.

Even at an advanced age, the Bible won me over by the fact that it contains high moral standards. These days, they are really very difficult to follow. Everyone understands that when he wants to be honest among not very honest people, when he wants to have a clean language among those who cannot communicate without obscene words, or to preserve morality where permissiveness reigns, it is very difficult and difficult to access. For me, as a believer, the Bible is the main charter according to which I want to build my life. I have always been convinced that faith in God should reflect on people's lives and improve it.

Let me quote a 19th-century Russian critic and writer about the Bible. V. I. Belinsky wrote: "There is a book in which everything is said, everything is decided, after which there is no doubt about anything, an immortal book, the holy book of eternal truth, eternal life — a book in which everything is said. The Gospel. All the progress of mankind, all the successes in the sciences... They consist only in a great insight into the secret depths of this divine book." He also said, "The foundations of the gospel are the revelation of truth through love and grace."

The question arises: why did such outstanding statesmen, writers and poets treat the leadership of God, the Bible, with such respect? Because they knew very well that only the Bible can help people become morally and spiritually pure, because God is love. He really wants us to live happily, get acquainted with his guidance, the Bible, study his principles, laws, bring our lives in line with God's norms and be worthy citizens of the country in which we live.

Even then, I learned that Jesus Christ had warned that just as he was being persecuted, his disciples would also be persecuted (John 15:20). But then I could not even imagine that these persecutions of faith would be called "extremism". By 2017, I had been a believer for 21 years. According to the investigation, what should I have done? To abandon your dearest friend, God? Or quickly change religion to another one, so as not to be known as a Jehovah's Witness?

By coming together for worship and fellowship, we fulfill the law of Jehovah God and the guidance of the head of the Christian community of Jesus Christ. In the Bible, in the epistle of the Apostle Paul, the main reason for Christian meetings is recorded: "Let's pay attention to each other in order to encourage love and good deeds, let's not neglect our meetings, as has become a habit for some, but let's encourage each other." (Hebrews 10:24, 25). So, in our liturgical meetings, we learn to love God, to love people, to do good deeds, to develop Christian qualities and to be useful to the society in which we live.

As you can see, we have a good reason to come together and learn the good in worship meetings. Moreover, we have nothing to hide from God, and even, on the contrary, we want to please him with our words and right actions. Jesus left his followers the commandments: to love God, to love our neighbor, and to love even those who hate us. Never repay evil for evil. Therefore, this is exactly what the followers of Jesus are trying to do. We have no criminal intentions, hatred and prejudice towards different people, regardless of their faith, nationality and social status. And state laws allow us to hold divine services, this is spelled out in articles 28 and 31 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

But why are we called Jehovah's Witnesses? Here we had prosecution witnesses in court, there was even a secret witness. We are Jehovah's witnesses. God himself said this: "You are my Witnesses," says Jehovah, "My servant whom I have chosen so that you may know me, believe in me and understand that I am the same. There was no God before me, and there is no God who would appear after me. I, I am Jehovah, and there is no savior but me" (Isaiah 43:10, 11).

In the Bible, Jesus Christ clearly explained the prayer "Our Father." It is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 6, verses 9 to 13. In it, Jesus said: "Hallowed be thy name. May your kingdom come." It is about this heavenly government, headed by Jesus Christ, that I tell people. I tell them what this Kingdom will do.: it will sanctify the name of Jehovah; wars will disappear; there will be no injustice and lies; there will be an abundance of food; there will be no diseases and infirmities; everyone will have their own home, pleasant work, personal security; justice will reign in everything; people will be protected from natural disasters; the dead will rise; death will be over forever; all people will love each other; The Earth will turn into Paradise, and everything will be as it was before Adam and Eve sinned.

Many people believe that the name of God, Jehovah, is mentioned in the Bible only by Jehovah's Witnesses. But Russian writers of the XVIII century used the name of God in their works. Let me give you examples of how at that time they already knew the name of God and wrote it down in their writings.

Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin is a Russian poet, playwright, novelist and historian. He was saying: "I think we will never give people anything better than the Bible... we find all human life in it.… My children will read the original Bible with me....This is the only book in the world that has everything." Pushkin uses the name of God, for example, in his poem "From a letter to Vigel".

In addition to Pushkin, the name of God was used by such famous poets, writers and composers of the XVIII—XIX centuries as Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev, Alexey Fedorovich Merzlyakov, Alexey Konstantinovich Tolstoy, Fyodor Nikolaevich Glinka, Nikolai Alekseevich Ostrovsky, Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky, Lev Alexandrovich Mey, Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin, Mikhail Yevgrafovich Saltykov-Shchedrin, Semyon Sergeevich Bobrov, Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin, Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, Sergei Alexandrovich Yesenin, Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky and others.

These facts indicate that the written name of God, Jehovah, was well known in Russian society at the end of the 19th century. And this is not surprising, because Jehovah himself told Moses: "This is what you should tell people: "Jehovah, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. My name will always be Jehovah, and by this name I will be known for many generations!" (Exodus 3:15).

For 27 years now, I have been studying the Bible and applying the advice it contains. It helps me develop meekness, self-control, long-suffering, mercy, empathy. These qualities help me even now not to feel bitterness because of injustice. My faith literally saves my life. How can you stop believing?

Times are changing, the laws of the state are being reformed, but the laws of God remain unchanged. At the moment, the legal entities of Jehovah's Witnesses have been deprived of registration and declared extremist. Tomorrow they can be rehabilitated again and will be registered back. History has proven more than once that this is possible. But people remain believers and continue to be respected members of society, regardless of who they work for and what status they have in society.

Times are changing, the laws of the state are being reformed, but the laws of God remain unchanged. At the moment, the legal entities of Jehovah's Witnesses have been deprived of registration and declared extremist. Tomorrow they can be rehabilitated again and will be registered back. History has proven more than once that this is possible. But people remain believers and continue to be respected members of society, regardless of who they work for and what status they have in society.

Religion, in principle, cannot exist without followers who profess a certain creed. The Bible commands Christians "not to leave their congregation" in order to be "attentive to one another and encourage love and good deeds" (Hebrews 10:24, 25).

No court in Russia has ever recognized the religion or beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses as criminal. The investigator wrote that we had joined together specifically in advance into a "criminal" group. It's like a "gang" of some 4 people. But at the same time, the investigator did not write in the indictment what specific crimes each member of this "gang" committed. No calls for violence, hate speech, insults, ridicule, or calls for discrimination or propaganda of exclusivity were mentioned in any witness statements. But only words, words, words that are not supported by any evidence and "there are no victims, no harm or damage caused." So there is no crime. Freedom of religion and worldview is an important human right. Every State should respect it. Freedom of religion is indivisible and valid for all religious communities.

The fact that I am now standing before the court proves that I am ready to make sacrifices for the well-being and interests of all people, regardless of their nationality or status, whether they are poor or rich. I can't help but tell them what I know and what might benefit them. I really like people, and I am ready, if necessary, to help them learn about the loving God Jehovah, about his wonderful qualities and intentions.

In conclusion, as a believer who has been studying the Bible for 27 years, I can and want to tell everyone present that God loves you all very much. We live in an interesting time. According to 2 Timothy, chapter 3, verse 1, we live in times that are called difficult, very difficult, and difficult. But there is a guide. In the 1st Epistle to Timothy, chapter 2, verses 3 and 4, it is written what everyone needs to do today: "This is good and right in the eyes of our Savior, God, who wants all kinds of people to know the truth and be saved." But how can people find out what is needed for salvation if no one tells them. The Epistle to the Romans, chapter 10, verses 13-15, says: "After all, "everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved." But how do you summon someone you don't believe in? How can you believe in someone you haven't heard of? How can I hear without a preacher? And how to preach if they are not sent? After all, it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bear the glad tidings of good!""

For me, being a Christian means following in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. When he lived on earth, he generously shared with other people the knowledge about his Father, the God Jehovah. He told them about God's ways, his laws, and his promises. Jesus gave His disciples a task: "All power in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore go and prepare disciples in all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:18-20).

This commandment of Jesus applies to all Christians, including me. Early Christians in the 1st century A.D. did just that. For example, the apostle Peter said, "He [Christ] commanded us to preach and to bear witness thoroughly" (Acts 10:42). And here is what the Apostle Paul writes: "A necessity has been imposed on me. And woe to me if I do not proclaim the good news!" (1 Corinthians 9:16). This call of Christ was followed not only by Peter and Paul, but also by all Christians of the first century. They were known primarily for their preaching activities. And in 1 Timothy, chapter 4, verse 16, Jesus says: "Constantly watch yourself and how you teach. Stay in this, because by doing so you will save yourself and those who listen to you."

Attempts to force people to abandon their faith are pointless. Why? There is one important feature: the stronger the persecution of a sincere believer, the stronger his faith becomes. And today we can see the obvious fulfillment of these prophetic words. I can say with confidence that my faith has been strengthened even more recently. I see and feel every day how my God Jehovah helps me. He tells me through the prophet Isaiah, "Don't be afraid, because I'm with you. Don't worry, because I am your God. I will strengthen you, help you, and hold you firmly with my right hand" (Isaiah 41:10).

Jehovah's Witnesses practice a religion that benefits both ourselves and society as a whole. I sincerely believe in Jehovah God, I love his laws and principles, I enjoy reading the Bible with my friends and praying. The Apostle Paul urged Christians in 1 Thessalonians, chapter 5, verses 17 and 18: "Pray unceasingly. Thank God in all circumstances, as God wants from all who are in Jesus Christ." As you can see, the Bible calls for giving thanks to God, and one of the ways, as we have read here, is prayer. I also learned from the Bible that prayer is not just a certain ritual. This is a respectful appeal to God, and in this appeal every person can pour out his heart, ask for help and support and, of course, thank the Creator.

But the question arises: how can we thank the one who gave us life, this amazing world around us? How can we thank you for a beautiful sunny day, for the long-awaited rain, or for the starry sky, a beautiful sunset? How can we thank the one who gave us our unique organism, thanks to which we can see, hear, communicate with each other? We can feel, we can laugh and cry, we can love and worry, we can think and reflect. We have freedom of choice: what to eat, what to wear, who to study for, where to work, what to believe in, etc. Agree, we are created uniquely!

I also learned from the Bible that only Jehovah God is the only one who should pray, but through Jesus Christ. The Bible says: "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me'" (John 14:6). The Psalmist expressed gratitude and gratitude to our Creator as follows: "You have done much, O Lord, my God: about Your miracles and thoughts about us — who will be like You! "I wish I could preach and speak, but they exceed the number" (Psalm 39:6). As you can see, if we reflect on the wonderful creations of God and want to express gratitude to the Creator, Jehovah, and his son Jesus Christ, there is a great opportunity to tell, share, and preach, as the Psalmist says. And in this, Jesus himself was an example for all followers of Christ, including us. For example, in Luke, chapter 8, verse 1, it says: "After that, Jesus went through towns and villages, preaching and bringing the good news of the Kingdom of God to people. And there were 12 apostles with him." Jesus was constantly telling people about God, bringing them the good news. Why? Because he was obedient to his heavenly Father, he loved people and shared with them the life-saving message.

The charge says that I "preached in order to involve, recruit into the ranks of the Jehovah's Witnesses organization." I believe that the prosecution specifically uses this humiliating wording to make my legitimate activities look criminal. If the investigation believes that I "recruited" someone for some criminal purposes, then I should have been charged - when it was, time, place; who I "recruited" first name, last name; in what way and for what criminal purposes. But I was not presented with such an accusation. And who did I involve? No one. We didn't hear anyone here. Then the question is: why? Why is there an accusation, but there are no involved, recruited? Yes, because there were no such actions. And this is proved by two important factors.

The first factor is found in the name "Jehovah's Witnesses". And what do the witnesses do? They talk about what they know, what they have seen and heard. For what purpose? To give evidence in court to the defense or the prosecution. Preaching the good, joyful news is something similar: to tell people about the wonderful qualities of God. Talking about my faith, I share what I have learned from the Bible about God, about his son Jesus, as well as about God's plans and intentions regarding the earth and people. In the Gospel of Matthew, some of Jesus' instructions are recorded: **"**If the house is worthy, let the peace that you wish for it come to it, and if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. If you are not accepted anywhere and will not listen, then, leaving that house or city, shake the dust off your feet" (Matthew 10:13, 14).

The second factor follows again from the words of Jesus recorded in John 6:44: "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me attracts him." Obviously, neither Jesus nor Jehovah authorized me to involve or involve anyone. Yes, who am I to do it myself. If God Jehovah has given every person the freedom of choice, then all the more I respect the choice of other people. I only suggest that people learn the point of view of the Bible so that they can make their own informed choice. If a person wants to listen to me, then I talk to him, and if a person refuses to talk to me, then I politely say goodbye to him.

But the Supreme Court of Russia did not prohibit the faith of Jehovah's Witnesses, it did not forbid preaching, gathering with friends, discussing the Bible, singing songs praising God. Is it illegal to help people change for the better, get rid of bad habits such as smoking, drunkenness, drugs, theft and others?

Then how do I express faith? I don't understand, because if I just say that I am a Jehovah's Witness, I may be arrested and then they will find out whether it had to do with a local religious organization or not. But I think if the investigation wanted to, it could easily clearly separate where the action of the MRO is, and where the action associated with the expression of faith and worship of the only true God, Jehovah.

I have dedicated my life to serving God, so I am primarily responsible to him for how I lead my life. In his word, the Bible, he wrote: "A little more, and those who do evil will not be" (Psalm 37:10). Extremism is evil, and it will be over soon. Knowing this, I try to maintain my reputation as a kind and peaceful person.

I would like to draw attention to the last moment, which we have already faced and will face again. Those Jehovah's Witnesses against whom criminal cases have been opened are included in the list of extremists and terrorists of Rosfinmonitoring. They have already imposed certain restrictions on us and equated us with obvious criminals, murderers or terrorists. It turns out that today, in order to register peaceful believers as extremists, they are "included" in the membership of non-existent (closed) legal entities of Jehovah's Witnesses, allegedly continuing their activities. All this causes serious emotional and spiritual harm.

For more than 21 years, the state has regarded my actions in Nikolaevsk-on-Amur as legitimate. And suddenly, for the same actions in 2017, I was called "accused" and now they are trying to bring me to criminal responsibility. I have a question: has the Constitution changed in Russia in this 21 years? No. Or maybe the law "On Freedom of Conscience and religious associations" has changed? Not either. Then why are they trying to declare me a criminal and who needs it?

I want to give you an example. One day, our meeting of Jehovah's Witnesses itself invited the city authorities to participate in the cleaning of Nikolaevsk-on-Amur. We were given a plot on Sovetskaya Street, opposite the shipyard. The plot was large, very overgrown and neglected. In general, it was a real dump. But we weren't scared. We worked together, had fun, sang songs and laughed. We coped with the assigned task perfectly. The administration was pleased with our work and expressed great gratitude to us. Now the Chaika sports complex has been built on this site.

Another example. Our colleague worked at the Center for Children's Creativity (the former House of Pioneers). But for family reasons, he had to move to another city. Then the management of the Center informed through the newspaper that only Jehovah's Witnesses would be hired, as a result of which another of our co-believers was hired, who worked there until retirement and went on a well-deserved rest. And now this man is being tried as an "extremist." Think about it, if extremists are in an institution where there are a large number of children, it would be dangerous for such a defenseless group of the population. I think that the city authorities, as well as the management of children's institutions, would never invite people who profess extremist views. This suggests that Jehovah's Witnesses are not any kind of extremists and do not profess extremist views, but they are a peaceful, calm and peace-loving people. Jehovah's Witnesses are believers who are united with God. They value this, so they don't need bosses, bailiffs, or money to serve God. Each of us has our own personal relationship with God.

I am a Christian and I am not going to violate state laws, but on the contrary I try to act within the framework of the Constitution and other laws of the Russian Federation. It was guided by Article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation that I acted — I confessed my beliefs both individually and jointly with others, that is, with my co-religionists. In addition, Article 31 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation allows peaceful assembly.

It can be seen from the case materials that the meetings were held peacefully, no calls were made to undermine the foundations of the constitutional order, conversations and discussions were held only with regard to strengthening faith in God, family relations, decent behavior in society, and raising children in the spirit of God's instruction. Songs, prayers, discussion of biblical thoughts, and participation in the preaching service of Jehovah's Witnesses are combined into a common concept — worship of God. In addition, the investigative materials, audio recordings, contain only prayers, conversations about God and the Bible, songs praising God; not a single participant has ever uttered a single rude or abusive word.

But the question arises: so I am not violating ethical norms, I am not violating Constitutional laws? For example, Part 2 of Article 19 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation states: "The State guarantees equality of human rights and freedoms, regardless of gender, race, nationality, language, origin, property and official place, residence, attitude to religion, beliefs, membership in public associations, as well as other circumstances. Any form of restriction of citizens' rights on grounds of social, racial, national, linguistic or religious affiliation is prohibited."

Also, article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation states: "Everyone is guaranteed freedom of conscience, freedom of religion, including the right to profess individually or jointly with others any religion or not to profess any, to freely choose, have and disseminate religious and other beliefs and act in accordance with them." If, as a citizen of the Russian Federation, I have these rights and do not violate the laws, then why am I called a criminal?

Your Honor, as you can see, the investigation, the examinations and the prosecution are aimed only at proving that I am a Jehovah's Witness. But I've never hidden it. On the contrary, I am proud of it. I am proud that today I can stand up for my beliefs and talk about the Almighty God Jehovah and his son Jesus Christ here in court. I am proud that I am a believer and a full-fledged citizen of my state, I can believe and share this.

Some people use such a jarring, frightening word "sect" to refer to Jehovah's Witnesses. They are used simply out of ignorance. Therefore, many experts in the field of religious studies do not use it. For example, Doctor of Philosophy, religious scholar Sergey Ivanenko, who has written several books about Jehovah's Witnesses, said in one of them: "The epithet "sectarian" is usually applied to gloomy, aggressive, embittered people. Jehovah's Witnesses, in my opinion, are the exact opposite of this image. They behave openly, give the impression of being free people, open to the modern world and striving to make people better through their preaching of the Bible."

There is also still a myth that Jehovah's Witnesses refuse any treatment [...] Jehovah's Witnesses visit polyclinics, go to doctors, also go to hospitals and undergo surgery. Jehovah's Witnesses advocate for advanced treatment methods and collaboration with doctors. The choice of treatment is the legitimate right of the patient, and Witnesses exercise this right and do not impose any treatment methods on anyone. I can add that. The Bible says that human life is a sacred gift from God. And as a Jehovah's Witness, I really appreciate this gift and for me to neglect the sanctity of life is a grave sin. […]

As for the distribution of extremist literature, this does not apply to me in any way. I don't even read such literature either in print or in electronic form. As you know, Jehovah's Witnesses are a multinational denomination. Jehovah's Witness parents do not allow their children to play computer games where they shoot and kill and do not even buy toy weapons for their children. Doesn't this indicate that these people have high moral standards?

In the text of my indictment, investigator V. Y. Golovchenko distorts the meaning of what I said during the interrogation on 11.10.2021, leaving out what is beneficial for the prosecution. The distortion of reliable facts about my role in the group of co-religionists can be traced throughout the trial. My personality has been overgrown with more and more fictional "official duties" in a group of co-religionists. Although only one group meeting was investigated, where I answered the question in a few phrases, and that's it.

[…]

During the trial, I tried to analyze the testimony of prosecution witnesses, as well as the documents presented by the prosecution, in order to understand what specific actions of mine the public prosecutor considers illegal? And I came to the conclusion that there are no such actions. I am not being judged for my actions, but for my religious beliefs.

It turns out that it is not enough for law enforcement agencies that the Local religious Organization of Jehovah's Witnesses in Nikolaevsk-on-Amur has been liquidated and ceased to exist. Their goal is that there should be no believers in Nikolaevsk—on-Amur who profess the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses. Therefore, this criminal case was initiated.

I want to assure the court of my innocence before the law, before people and before Jehovah God. All the actions that I am accused of, in accordance with the explanation of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of October 28, 2021, consisted solely "in exercising my right to freedom of conscience and freedom of religion without signs of extremism" and thus, as the Supreme Court explained, "do not constitute a crime."

Dear court, this is my last word in court, but I am sure these are not the last words with which I will praise my God Jehovah. I will express my love for Jehovah and Jesus in the words of Paul, a disciple of Jesus: "What can deprive me of the love of Jehovah and Christ? Difficulties, or suffering, or persecution, or hunger, or poverty, or danger, or imprisonment, the threat of death? But we are winning over all this thanks to the one who loved me. I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor governments, nor the present, nor the future, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creation can deprive me of the love of God, which he shows to me through Christ Jesus, our Lord (Romans 8:35-39).

As long as I'm alive, I'm going to study the Bible. As long as I am alive, I will share knowledge about God with other people, and nothing can make me give up my faith in God.

Your Honor, I ask you to acquit me, Nadezhda Ivanovna Korobochko, on charges of committing a crime under Parts 1.1 and Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, due to the absence of corpus delicti in my actions.

Summary of the case

Region:

Khabarovsk Territory

Locality:

Nikolaevsk-on-Amur

Criminal case number:

12102080010000053

Case initiated:

October 11, 2021

Current stage of the case:

The verdict has not entered into force

Investigates:

Nikolaevsky-on-Amur interdistrict investigative department of the SU IC 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:

1-3/2024 (1-54/2023; 1-413/2022)

The Court of First Instance:

Nikolaevsky-on-Amur City Court of the Khabarovsk Territory

Judge of the Court of first instance:

Roman Zhukov