The last word of the defendant Valentin Osadchuk in Vladivostok

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Valentin Osadchuk in Vladivostok

May 27, 2022

Primorsky Krai

From the courtroom

In the last word, the defendant tried to answer the question of why peaceful Jehovah's Witnesses are persecuted for their faith. "They are persecuted because of their religious beliefs, and the goal is to eradicate these beliefs and prevent their spread."

Transcript of the court session in the Leninsky District Court of Vladivostok dated 05/27/2022 in the case 1-14/2022 (1-136/2021; 1-414/2019) on the charges of Osadchuk Valentin Pavlovich and others. of committing a crime under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Osadchuk Valentin Pavlovich: Dear court, during the entire trial there have already been many arguments "for" our acquittal. I want to use my last word to answer the question you asked earlier.

Before proceeding to it, I want to thank you, Your Honor, for the permission to travel outside the city of Vladivostok. I thank Ilya Alexandrovich for his help in solving many issues in the process, as well as Ekaterina Vladimirovna for the ethical attitude towards elderly women who are old enough to be our mothers. Many thanks to the lawyers. They have done everything in their power, and in my opinion, even more.

During these four long years, as long as the criminal prosecution lasts, my family and friends have always supported me. I couldn't have stood it without them. Despite the fact that I spent almost a year in jail, they did not turn away from me, as is often the case with prisoners. Unfortunately, I was unable to leave the country to say goodbye to my beloved mother, who supported me with all her heart. She died with a heavy heart, never understanding what her son was actually accused of. My wife provided special care and assistance, which became timely support for me during this period of trials. It was as if she took on half of this heavy burden and helped me through the painful days and sleepless nights. Special thanks to her for this!

Your Honor, during the interrogation, you asked me: "If you are such peaceful people, then why are you being persecuted everywhere?" At a meeting of the Human Rights Council, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin also said with bewilderment about Jehovah's Witnesses: "I don't really understand why they should be persecuted either."

Please note that since the 1930s in the Soviet Union, in principle, the persecution of all religions began, both the main ones, including Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Islam and Buddhism, as well as smaller denominations. Jehovah's Witnesses were not spared either. Various accusations have been made against our religion at various times, but no specific facts of crimes against society have been cited. Subsequently, the authorities allowed us to meet freely and even registered legal entities of Jehovah's Witnesses in the early 90s.

As for the persecution, for many years it has been reduced only to verbal insults and ridicule from TV screens. But after the Supreme Court's decision in 2017, they began to include searches, arrests and economic pressure. So, being accused, but not yet convicted, I could not use bank cards, which prevented me from doing business normally: it is impossible to officially work, it is difficult to make legal transactions. Even CTP insurance cannot be done. And I got off easy, because some of my friends lost their jobs and livelihoods due to constant litigation. Unfortunately, there were also those who were subjected to brutal physical force during interrogations. And such cruelty is not an isolated case.

But, fortunately, over the past six months, some judges, having delved into the essence of the case, have issued acquittals. This was the case in Kamchatka, Sverdlovsk and Vladivostok. For example, in Vladivostok, such a decision was made several times by the court of appeal and once by the court of cassation. In other cities, judges have repeatedly ruled on the return of cases to the prosecutor's office due to the lack of corpus delicti, since professing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses is not a crime. For example, in April of this year, the judge of the Norilsk City Court did so.

Dear court, I got carried away with stories about how we are being persecuted. It's just my pain. Now I want to return to the question of why we are being subjected to unjustified attacks. One of the reasons is that we preach by telling people what the Bible teaches. Many people don't like it. The Bible says that "all followers of Jesus Christ who want to faithfully serve God will be persecuted" (2 Timothy 3:12). This means that the biblical prophecy is being fulfilled. Persecution and the fact that some would be honored to testify about their beliefs in front of high-ranking people in the courts was predicted in the Bible. This helps me to have the right attitude towards them and not feel negative feelings and resentment towards anyone.

Based on the above, the question may arise, do I want to go to prison for my religious beliefs? No, I don't want to! I'm not a fanatic! But am I ready to suffer for my beliefs if I have to? Yes, I am ready, but I consider myself innocent! Although I feel unfair to myself, I don't feel like a victim. After all, Christianity has a purpose, and I participate in its fulfillment. The Bible predicted: "The glad tidings of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole earth, so that all nations will hear it" (Matthew 24:14). People need to receive a testimony of the good news, that is, to find out what is being preached, and I am calm for all participants in the process. I think we've seen and heard enough to understand and accept what was said.

In my defense, I want to add: for me, as a Christian, it is very important to be sure that I am being persecuted precisely for righteousness. Therefore, I try to be honest in everything, be neutral in politics, stay away from conspiracies or any criminal activity, and thus not give rise to persecution. Although the state prosecutor attributes the role of an extremist to me in every possible way, I am sure that Your Honor has drawn your conclusions about me. I try to live the way the Bible teaches, and it advises: "Behave with dignity among other people, so that those who accuse you of evil deeds will see your good deeds and glorify God on the day when he will make a test" (1 Peter 2:12). I am doing my best to live in full compliance with the laws of the Russian Federation.

Please note that all the quotes I have given are not from any "special literature" of Jehovah's Witnesses. All of them are taken from the Bible, the basic book for all Christians, including Jehovah's Witnesses.

Your Honor, if we return to our trial, we will see that the public prosecutor has not given an answer to the question, how should I and my co-religionists have professed their religion so that we would not face criminal prosecution? Does the prosecution believe that we should have renounced our religion or practiced it alone, shutting ourselves at home and not communicating with each other?

Your Honor, this may be the first time you have had to deal with a criminal case against people who profess the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses. It is difficult to imagine that these people would have violated the law, especially a criminal one, because on their part this is an out—of-the-ordinary case. After all, none of the accused has ever been tried before. In general, as you can see, I am also a very ordinary person with my own joys and problems, like all people. I got married recently. Not today, children will appear tomorrow. I work, take care of my family, regularly pay taxes, which are intended to meet socially useful needs, and help relatives.

Since I became a Christian, the meaning of my life has been to please God. What they accuse me of, attributing bad motives, is completely at odds with both the religion I profess and my inner self.

Dear court, I am not guilty before my God Jehovah, nor before the state, nor before people! It is in your power to put an end to these groundless persecutions!

Your Honor, I don't have a law degree, but I have three volumes of the indictment, and each one says, "no victims."

Your Honor, I ask you to restore me to my rights, make a fair decision and fully acquit me.

Summary of the case

Region:

Primorsky Krai

Locality:

Vladivostok

What is suspected:

According to the investigation, he participated in divine services, which is interpreted as participation in the activities of an extremist organization (with reference to the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on the liquidation of all 396 registered organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses)

Criminal case number:

11807050001000038

Case initiated:

April 9, 2018

Current stage of the case:

The verdict has entered into force

Investigating:

The Federal Security Service of Russia in Primorsky Krai

Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

282.2 (2), 282.2 (1)

The number of the case in court:

1-14/2022 (1-136/2021; 1-414/2019)

Court:

Leninsky District Court of Vladivostok

Judge:

Maxim Anufriev