Linguists Didn’t Find in Pomor’s Case Accused of Hatred to the Russians Appeals to Extremism

Defendant Ivan Moseev gave evidences today in Octyabrsky District Court of Arkhangelsk where case on initiation of hostility to ethnic group "The Russians" is heard. He presented extrajudicial linguistic research carried out by specialists of the Nizhny Novgorod State University named after Lobachevsky in which, as well as earlier in the report of the expert of Northern (Arctic) Federal University, is stated that in attributed to him phrase there are no "appeals to discrimination of citizens on the basis of their ethnic origin". Moseev reported about it to the Interregional Human Rights Association "Agora" himself.

Let's remind that at last court session on February, 6 Ivan Moseev made an application about return of the case to the prosecutor because of the severest violations at presentation of the charge. The judge having gone to the consultative room didn’t made any decision on the petition and continued court session today without explanation I continued a court session.

Research which was presented in court by Moseev, was carried out by the member of guildship of linguists-experts on documentary and information disputes, Candidate of Philology, the associate professor of Philology Department of the Nizhny Novgorod State University named after N.I.Lobachevsky, the professor of the International Slavic Academy with length of service in 35 years, experience of expert work in 15 years Elizabeth Koltunova and the Doctor of Philology, the Professor of the Modern Russian Language of the Nizhny Novgorod State University with length of service over 20 years Timur Radbil.

Experts came to a conclusion that the statement "What will you do with us? There are million cattle of you, while there are 2 thousand people of us" for which Moseev is pursued "doesn’t contain speech means promoting grounds or justification of need of implementation of genocide, mass repressions, deportations, commission of other illegal actions, including applications of illegitimate violence in relation to ethnic group".

Linguists declared that "there are no statements containing grounds and justification of need of violation of the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of a person and citizen depending on his national or ethnic origin" in the materials.

Elizabeth Koltunova and Timur Radbil came to conclusion that "the comment "What will you do with us? There are million cattle of you, while there are 2 thousand people of us" doesn't contain appeals to discrimination of citizens on the basis of their ethnic origin".

Today in the court Ivan Moseev as in still not allowed petition to return case to the prosecutor earlier declared that there is no charge specification in his case. Moseev is pursued for that, according to the version of the investigation, he "placed the comment "containing humiliating characteristic and evident negative emotional assessment of ethnic group "The Russians" raising hatred to the specified ethnic group in the society". However, firstly, indictment doesn't contain the phrase (quote) for which he is pursued and, secondly, such charge doesn't correspond to the article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation within which he is brought to responsibility.

Plenum of the Supreme Court of Russia in its Resolution "About Criminal Cases Jurisdiction Regulating Crimes of Extremist Orientation" (June 28, 2011) precisely specified that "statements proving and (or) affirming need of genocide, mass repressions, deportations, commission of other illegal actions, including application of violence in relation to representatives of some nation, race, adherents of this or that religion and other groups of persons can be understood as actions directed on stirring of hatred ".

Meanwhile statements imputed to Moseev don’t prove and don't affirm "the need of genocide of the Russians, their mass repressions, deportations, application of violence to them or commission of other illegal actions". These words as it is specified in charge contain only characteristic and assessment, they don't form structure of the crime provided by the article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, human rights activists note.

Let's remind that interrogated earlier in the court expert in the field of the Russian language, linguistics of the text, speech conflictology and juridical linguistic, the Doctor of Philology, professor of the Department of the Russian Language and Speech Culture of the Institute of Philology and Cross-Cultural Communication of Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after Lomonosov Tatyana Sidorova with length of service in 40 years including 20 years in expert area noted that in the disputable phrase "What will you do with us? There are million cattle of you, while there are 2 thousand people of us" for which Moseev is pursued "there is no indication on any known nationality and race", "every people can be meant under the word million”. She emphasized that these are "opponents of the user under nickname POMORAM use in their comments opposition of the Russians to the Pomors…., the user under nickname POMORAM doesn’t make such oppositions, the user under nickname POMOR even identifies the Pomors and the Russians ("Unless there are non-Russian Pomors?")".

Secondly, expert Sidorova drew conclusion that "humiliating characteristic "cattle" in the given context realizes not dictionary value, but simply marks image of dumb crowd".

- Thirdly, the form of the statement – opinion-forecast, - expert Sidorova declared in court. - As a whole analyzed statement realizes speech scenario of self-integration (language means - opposition of dumb crowd to concrete people fighting for their rights) as the answer to threat.

The 47-year-old director of the Pomor Institute of Local and Indigenous Peoples of Northern (Arctic) Federal University Ivan Moseev is accused of stirring of hatred and hostility to ethnic group "The Russians" (part 1 of the article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). FSB is initiator of the criminal prosecution of Moseev.

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