Appeal to the President of the Russian Federation

TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN

October 25, 2000

Dear Mr. President,

In 1977 Mr. Scharansky was prosecuted on charges framed-up by the KGB and in 1978 convicted for espionage. An obedient Soviet court sentenced him to 13 years of imprisonment - while it could have sentenced him to death. Before he was expelled from the country in 1986, he had to spend nine years in Soviet camps. Naturally, Mr. Scharansky is now rehabilitated.

But no lessons have been drawn from the dirty Soviet espionage stories. Moreover, Russian courts are following the "glorious" Soviet traditions and accept any declarations and falsifications from security services as proof of guilt. Dependent courts and security services are "family friends". The past is being re-enacted.

It is quite possible that your precipitate comment in an interview for Komsomolskaya Pravda (July 8, 1999): "Unfortunately, foreign intelligence services, in addition to diplomatic disguises, are very actively utilizing in their work various environmental and other non-governmental organizations" - has been interpreted as a quite clear directive, which many rushed to implement. In the same interview, long before trial, you quite clearly stated that "it does not matter what intelligence he (diplomat Valentine Moiseyev) worked for, South Korean or North Korean". Your statement that he had been working for a foreign intelligence is also a quite clear directive.

On the background of the state megalomania, the country is overcome with an espionage mania comparable with that of the worst Soviet times.

Among the recent "spy" cases (Nikitin, Pasko, Soyfer, Moiseyev, Sutyagin, Schurov) cases of Moiseyev and Sutyagin stand out due to complete lack of proof and flagrant arbitrariness against the accused. Because the prosecution's case against Sutyagin is obscure, we can only so far discuss Moiseyev's case, since there are documents in this case that prove his complete innocence.

Meanwhile, Moiseyev has been in jail for more than two years.

You are not being deceived when they tell you that Moiseyev was caught red-handed. Nor are you being deceived when you hear that Korean diplomat Cho Son U was also caught red-handed. The question, however, is different: what did they hold in their "red" hands? We are attaching this to this letter (Moiseyev's report Russia's Policy on the Korean Peninsula).

From our point of view, this text could be found secret only by people with impaired reality perception, either ignorant or professional falsifiers. Difficult to say, which is worse, but it is doubtful that such people may be entrusted with the security of the country.

As a lawyer, academician and politician, it will take you a few minutes to see the weight of what the FSB shows as found in the "red hands". If you manage to find but a little piece of secret there, the society will agree that Moiseyev truly is a spy.

Sincerely, the worst thing is that the court and the procurator's office, in order to cover-up FSB people, who had led themselves into a difficult situation, are by all means trying to convict Moiseyev without any reference to the law. Falsifications and counterfeits are a common practice in this case for both investigation and trial. Contrary to the Russian laws, Moiseyev has never been served his indictment.

The unity of investigators, court and procurator's office answers the question of judicial independence and raises legitimate concerns.

Second trial in the Moscow City Court has become a traditional Soviet farce: all the defense's motions and demands are being rejected (a list of rejected motions is attached). There is not even an illusion of the parties' equality. Contrary to Art. 46 of the Federal Law On RF Procurator's Office, the Moiseyev case is handled by the military procurator's office. Under the conditions of such "unity", a come-back to the thirties is a matter of time rather than a problem.

The Supreme Court clearly established that neither the investigators nor the Moscow City Court have proved Moiseyev's guilt. However, instead of acquitting Moiseyev, as an independent court would have, the case was sent "for additional investigation". Although the accusation had not been proved, Moiseyev was not released from custody. This demonstrates the great pressure that even the Supreme Court was facing.

Following is what the Supreme Court stats in its resolution (July 25, 2000):

"Therefore, the circumstances in which the crime was committed, described in the [Moscow City] court's verdict, are non-specific, and the conclusion regarding his guilt of this act was drawn with no respect to all facts of the case.

Under these conditions, the verdict cannot be viewed as lawful and grounded, and, therefore, must be reversed".

AS a lawyer, you will be interested to know what the Moscow City Court saw as proof at the first trial:

"Recognizing that V.I.Moiseyev provided all the information [who needs finding out? Just all the information, period] identified by the investigators to the foreign intelligence service as thereby instructed, the court proceeds from V.I.Moiseyev's own testimony that he was ex officio familiar with the specific documents and information both prior and after their drafting, and therefore finds that V.I.Moiseyev has had a reasonable opportunity to convey the information even during a short-term business trip." "He knew, therefore he could." This is the brilliant logic of an "independent" and "just" court! Does it smell like the "dictatorship of the Law" that you so often talk about?

The next incident may be of interest to you as a former KGB officer.

During a search in Moiseyev's apartment, 4,647 US dollars were seized in one roll (spies are not that rich these days, are they?), which was reflected in the search record. As this record shows, the money was packed in one package, package No. 2.

When the evidence was examined in court, the dollars turned out to be neatly distributed between seven envelopes addressed to Moiseyev with logotypes of the South Korean Embassy (must have been some evil forces). The court found that these seven envelopes proved that Moiseyev had been paid for his espionage activities.

Admitting the envelopes as evidence and attaching them to the verdict, the court legitimized the investigators' falsification.

Mister President! As a professional, do you believe that intelligence services pay their agents using envelopes with their names and logotypes? If you do not, what do you think of the FSB investigators' professionalism?

Moscow City Court, following the FSB investigators, believes that spies are paid according to payrolls in personal envelopes. Otherwise it would not have seen the envelopes as proof of Moiseyev's espionage activities and sentenced him to 12 years. As the President of this country and guarantor of the Constitution, are you happy with such judicial independence and impartiality?

The truth is that falsifications are used only when the prosecutors have no real proof. As a matter of fact, the whole Moiseyev case consists of unpunished falsifications. This is the main lesson of the dirty story with the envelopes, cooked by FSB people.

WE are beginning to suspect that Moiseyev is a cover-up for real spies. Then where and at what level is this cover-up prepared?

Does FSB not have impartial professionals able to untangle the investigation? Whose security does this fake protect?

If there is a fake, it looks like some high-ranking officials are interested in its continuation. Whether afraid of the mistake they made or something worse, but someone wants to get rid of this man by any means. And they are getting rid of him. By the hands of an "independent" court.

This is an evidence that we are one step away from the new terror. Do not be deceived, Mister President, that you will manage to stop or turn away at the very last moment.

You have repeatedly stated that our courts and procurators are independent and are governed only by law. We believe that there are no grounds for such confidence. The public knows that facts show otherwise.

In such situation, the government and you as the guarantor of the Constitution and law have no right to remain indifferent. You must interfere.

The situation is such that the country's President has to break the vicious circle of the security services' campaigns against Russian citizens and stop the wheel of espionage mania, since somebody appears to be willingly dragging you into an unsavory business (bind you with a crime or blood). After a few more steps along this path there will be no return.

The cumulus of lies in Moiseyev case has gone so far that in order to protect the esprit de corps, the people involved will stop at nothing. We are asking you, Mister President, to stop the persecution.

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