RUSSIA RELIGION NEWS


Jehovah's Witness on trial in southern Russia

EMPLOYEE OF PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE IN KABARDINO-BALKARIA GIVES TESTIMONY IN JEHOVAH'S WITNESS' FAVOR

by Liudmila Maratova

Kavkazskii Uzel, 27 August 2018

 

The Jehovah's Witnesses in the city of Maiskii did not distribute extremist materials, an assistant prosecutor reported in the trial of the case of the head of a local religious organization, Yury Zalipaev.

 

As Kavkazskii Uzel has reported, a Jehovah's Witness from the city of Maiskii, Yury Zalipaev, was accused of inflaming religious strife and of calls for extremist activity (part 1 of article 282 and part 1 of article 280 of the Criminal Code of the RF) and he face up to five year incarceration. According to the version of the prosecution, during his preaching, Zalipaev spoke unflatteringly about Muslims and Orthodox and urged other Jehovah's Witnesses* to beat them, and he also distributed forbidden religious literature. Zalipaev denied the charge. The trial of his case began on 17 July.

 

In today's court session in Zalipaev's case, an assistant prosecutor of the city of Maiskii was questioned, a lawyer for the defendant, Anton Omelchenko, told a Kavkazskii Uzel correspondent.

 

The assistant prosecutor told the court that he does not know of incidents of the distribution of extremist materials by the Jehovah's Witnesses*. "The Jehovah's Witnesses are acquainted with the federal list of prohibited materials and they take it into account in their work," the assistant prosecutor noted.

 

The employee of the prosecutor's office also confirmed information of the defense about the ownership of a mobile telephone number with which witnesses who gave testimony against Zalipaev are connected. He said that this mobile telephone number belongs to an operative of one of the security structures.

 

Earlier, attorney Omelchenko told Kavkazskii Uzel that the charge against Zalipaev is based on testimonies of two witnesses who began attending worship services of Jehovah's Witnesses* in Maiskii in the summer of 2016. Before them they often received calls on the telephone that the operative used. According to the version of the defense, the operative gave the witnesses orders by telephone. Zalipaev himself and about 30 believers who were questioned in the course of the investigation refuted their testimony.

 

Also today, three employees of investigative agencies were questioned in court, who confiscated in August 2016 forbidden religious literature in a house of worship in Maiskii. "[Two of them] said that the literature had been discovered before them and therefore they could not say whether it was planted or had been there," the attorney explained.

 

A third member of the investigative group, an expert criminalist, who was questioned at today's session, concluded that the investigative group and personnel of security structure who found the literature, had arrived together, Omelchenko noted.

 

A fifth witness who was questioned in court today was a local resident, Vodogretsky. He told the court that some woman gave him an "Awake"** magazine, which he threw into a trash can. The witness was not able to specify the number of the magazine and the date of its publication.

 

According to attorney Omelchenko, the court session was attended by several persons who are believers. "The public of Maiskii is interested in this trial," the attorney noted.

 

The next session in the Zalipaev case is scheduled for 7 September.

 

 

WITNESS FOR PROSECUTION REPORTS CALLS FOR VIOLENCE ON PART OF JEHOVAH'S WITNESS IN KABARDINO-BALKARIA

by Rustam Dzhalilov

Kavkazskii Uzel, 19 July 2018

 

A Jehovah's Witness from the city of Maiskii, Yury Zalipaev, is charged with inflaming religious strife and calls to extremist activity, attorney Anton Omelchenko reports. He said Zalipaev does not acknowledge his guilt and the case is fabricated on the basis of ridiculous testimony. The attorney called statements of witnesses who described Zalipaev's calls for violence against representatives of other religious confessions "the first instance in history."

 

The first court session in the case of an adherent of the confession of Jehovah's Witnesses*, Yury Zalipaev, who is charged with "inflaming religious strife" and "calls to extremist activity," was held on 17 July in open court. Zalipaev does not acknowledge his guilt, the attorney representing Zapaev's interests, Anton Omelchenko, told a Kavkazskii Uzel correspondent; he stated that the case was fabricated.

 

"At the session, the prosecutor's office announced the indictment and one witness was questioned, a local precinct policeman. The defense also was able to state its position," he reported.

 

He said that the indictment was brought on the basis of two articles, part 1 of article 282 and part 1 of article 280 of the Criminal Code of the RF.

 

The maximum penalty on part 2 [sic] of article 282 (inciting hatred or hostility and also demeaning human dignity with use of force or threat of its use by a person using his official position or an organized group) is incarceration for a term up to six years. The maximum penalty on part 1 of article 280 (public calls to conduct extremist activity) is incarceration for a term up to four years.

 

"The charges against Zalipaev are built on testimonies of two witnesses for the prosecution . .  . who in the summer of 2016 began attending worship services of Jehovah's Witnesses* in the city of Maiskii. Materials of the case show that they began attending meetings of Jehovah's Witnesses* after numerous telephone calls which were made by an agent of the FSB directorate. . . . A woman (one of the witnesses—KU note) lived in the city of Prokhladnoe, but she began suddenly attending meetings many dozens of kilometers from her place of residence," the attorney explained.

 

Omelchenko thinks that one of the witnesses on 17 August 2016, at the dictation of personnel of law enforcement agencies, wrote a statement for the police to the effect that the chairman of the local religious organization of Jehovah's Witnesses* of the city of Maiskii, who at the time was Zalipaev, distributed literature (which already was included at the time in the list of extremist literature) to everybody and suggested distributing it to everybody.

 

At the same time, the attorney noted that both witnesses for the prosecution were not Jehovah's Witnesses.

 

"It is known that Jehovah's Witnesses do not instruct anybody to distribute their literature. Nevertheless, on the basis of a statement from (a witness for the prosecution) on 20 August 2016 there was a raid . . . at the house of worship in Maiskii. During which literature, which had been entered into the Federal List of Extremist Materials, was planted in the room. Law enforcement personnel maintained that adherents of Jehovah's Witnesses themselves keep and distribute forbidden literature. This circumstance, among others, was one of the bases for liquidating both local and centralized religious organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses," Omelchenko said.

 

He pointed out that only a year later after the raid in August 2016, witnesses for the prosecution gave testimony about how they recalled that Zalipaev "spoke badly about Muslims and Orthodox and urged beating them."

 

"While the texts of the testimonies of both witnesses agreed almost word for word between them. Evidently this was the first instance in the history of Jehovah's Witnesses when one of their adherents urged other Jehovah's Witnesses to use force on people of other religions. At the same time it is known that in those countries where there is no alternative to active military service, Jehovah's Witnesses even go to jail for refusing to serve in the army, to say nothing of engaging in violence. In contemporary Russia, Jehovah's Witnesses constitute a significant portion of those who choose alternative civilian service instead of military," the attorney emphasized.

 

"A precinct officer of the police for Maiskii district, Alexander Savinov, was questioned. He indicated that he arrived during the raid by FSB on 20 August 2016 on the basis of a call from Jehovah's Witnesses. But he said he did nothing and only observed what was happening," Omelchenko explained.

 

Thus, in his opinion, it gradually emerged that the case was fabricated.

 

Omelchenko completely denied that Zalepaev had extremist literature.

 

"This part of the indictment was built on the fabrications of witnesses for the prosecution. On 20 August, during the raid, forbidden literature was planted in the house of worship," Omelchenko said.

 

The next session of the trial in the Zalipaev case will be held on 27 August. The long recess in the trial is because of the judge's vacation.

 

As Omelchenko reported, a judicial trial in Prokhladnoe district court in the case of Jehovah's Witness adherent Arkady Akopian is already close to completion. He also is defending him in court.

 

A former chairman of the Prokhladnoe local organization of Jehovah's Witnesses, Arkady Akopian, is charged with committing the crime specified in part 1 of article 282 of the CC of RF, "Inciting hatred or hostility." Akopian himself insists on his innocence. Attorney Anton Omelchinko stated that the prosecution of Akopian is political and without foundation.

 

"An expert analysis has now been ordered. The charge is similar to the charges against Zalipaev. The case also involves an agent of FSB . . . who had phone contact with witnesses for the prosecution. There are more of them in Akopian's case—six. They also say that Akopian gave them forbidden literature for distribution. But instead Akopian is not charged with such harsh statements as Zalipaev. He did not urge beating anybody," the attorney notes.

 

The next session in the Akopian case will be held on 23 August.

 

Kavkazskii Uzel still does not have access to any comments of the other parties of the trials regarding attorney Anton Omelchenko's words. (tr. by PDS, posted 28 August 2018)

* The organization has been ruled to be extremist and its activity is prohibited in Russia by a court decision.

**Individual issues of the magazine have been placed in the Federal List of Extremist Materials.

(tr. by PDS, posted 28 August 2018)


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