With a Criminal Past Into Public Life

In accordance with the federal law of 10 June 2008 No. 76-FZ "On public control over the protection of human rights in places of forced detention and assistance to persons held in places of forced detention," the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, from 1 September, initiated the procedure for nominating candidates for the new composition of Public Monitoring Commissions. From the Rostov region, 26 people from 14 public organisations expressed a desire to join the new composition of the PMC. Let us examine the composition of the candidates carefully, and many surprising facts will be revealed to us.

In particular, Leonid Valdemar Petrashis, head of the public reception office of the Russian Ombudsman Lukin V.N. in Volgodonsk, chairman of the human rights sector of the Public Chamber of Volgodonsk, representative of the Moscow Helsinki Group (MHG) in the region, submitted documents to the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation. At the same time, residents of the Rostov region know him as, apparently, one of the former leaders of the Volgodonsk criminal group "Paris," who from 1993 had been involved in organising criminal business under the cover of commercial structures. In December 2003, he was convicted by the Volgodonsk city court under Article 318, Part 1 of the Russian Criminal Code ("Use of violence against a representative of authority") to 2.5 years imprisonment to be served in a settlement colony. Soon the verdict against Petrashis was altered by a judicial panel of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation with reclassification under Article 119 of the Russian Criminal Code ("Threat of murder or causing serious bodily harm"). In 2005, after serving his sentence and returning to Volgodonsk, Petrashis L.V., to protect his business, decided to take an active part in human rights activities, using the image he had cultivated of an innocent victim of law enforcement arbitrariness. Having established trust with the head of the MHG L. Alexeyeva, Mr Petrashis lobbied for his appointment as head of the Volgodonsk reception office of the Russian Ombudsman. The candidacy of Petrashis L.V. for joining the PMC of the Rostov region is actively lobbied for in the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation by Lukin V.N.

A desire to join the composition of the PMC of the Rostov region was also expressed by Fyodor Petrovich Derigo, recently removed from his post as chairman of the PMC of the Rostov region. He was convicted on 18.08.2008 by the Voroshilov district court of Rostov-on-Don under Part 1 of Article 318 ("Use of violence against a representative of authority"), Article 319 ("Insult of a representative of authority") of the Russian Criminal Code. Despite having a criminal record (which had not been expunged), he nevertheless submitted documents in 2008 for joining the first composition of the PMC of the Rostov region. He was approved by the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation and became the chairman of the commission. After these facts were revealed in autumn 2010, under pressure from commission members (so as not to discredit it), he wrote a statement resigning from his duties as chairman. At the same time, to this day he gives interviews to journalists and presents himself to everyone as the head of the PMC of the Rostov region. In 2010, Derigo F.P., as chairman of the commissions, joined the Inter-regional Public Organisation "Council of Chairmen of PMCs," heading its Rostov branch, and, it seems, has no intention of relinquishing control of this structure. The lobbying of Derigo F.P.'s candidacy is, according to people close to the matter, carried out by a member of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, president of the non-profit organisation "Inter-regional Charitable Fund for Assistance to the Imprisoned," chairman of the Public Council of the Federal Penitentiary Service Kannabikh M.V. (Moscow).

An extraordinary desire to join the composition of the PMC of the Rostov region compels Derigo F.P. to seek allies and lobby for the inclusion in the commission of previously convicted persons and representatives of foreign religious organisations.

Thus, documents to the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation were submitted by Alexei Alikovich Selezen, representative of the regional branch of the organisation "Society for the Protection of the Rights of Consumers of Educational Services," the Rostov regional youth public organisation "Choice". Selezen A.A. was accused in 1994 under Part 3, Article 224 ("Unlawful manufacture, acquisition, storage, transportation or sale of narcotic substances") of the Criminal Code of the RSFSR. In accordance with Article 9 (transfer on personal bail) of the Criminal Procedure Code, the case was discontinued. In 2001, he was convicted by the Voroshilov district court of Rostov-on-Don under Part 4, Article 222 ("Unlawful acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation or carrying of weapons, its principal components, ammunition, explosive substances and explosive devices"), Part 3, Article 159 ("Fraud"), Article 22 ("Criminal responsibility of persons with mental disorder not excluding criminal responsibility") of the Russian Criminal Code.

Derigo managed to interest Maxim Alexandrovich Kuzhelev in joining the commission, who in autumn 2010 stood as a candidate for deputy to the Duma of Rostov-on-Don from the regional branch of the political party KPRF in district 24. The unsuccessful would-be deputy now plans to become actively involved in human rights activities.

And that is not all. Wishing not simply to be elected to the composition of the PMC of the Rostov region, but to become chairman, Derigo F.P. actually managed to reach an agreement with members of "Exodos," the church-based group tasked by church leadership with penetrating various socially-oriented programmes, including for the purpose of obtaining budgetary financial resources.

Regarding "Exodos," it is known that in May 2010, the prosecutor of the Rostov region issued a warning to their bishop – Deremov E.A. – regarding the inadmissibility of carrying out extremist activities. In particular, from "Exodos," Vladimir Evgenyevich Smolkotin and Artem Grigoryevich Makhmuryan have been nominated to the composition of the commission.

Smolkotin V.E. in 2000 was accused by the Police Department of Taganrog under Part 1, Article 228 of the Russian Criminal Code of unlawful acquisition, storage and transportation of narcotic substances, psychotropic substances or their analogues in large quantities. At the same time, the case against him was discontinued in accordance with Article 5, Section 4 of the Criminal Procedure Code (due to amnesty). At present, he is the head of "Exodos" construction brigades, which use free, often slave labour of persons undergoing rehabilitation in the church from drug and alcohol addiction.

Thus, interest in joining the commission is shown by representatives of criminal structures, previously convicted persons and representatives of non-traditional-for-Russia religious organisations. Moreover, a number of them are being lobbied for in the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation by respected figures – the Russian Ombudsman Lukin V.N. and the chairman of the Public Council of the Federal Penitentiary Service Kannabikh M.V.

A reasonable question arises: will the activities of these persons be directed towards implementing the tasks set out in the federal law of 10 June 2008 No. 76-FZ to protect the interests of the imprisoned, or towards promoting the interests of criminal structures and religions non-traditional to Russia in correctional institutions?

It is up to the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, which, on 1 December 2010, must announce its decision. But something suggests that the words of Lukin and Kannabikh will carry more weight than common sense. That, despite the criminal records they previously had, Derigo and Petrashis will be elected to the PMC of the Rostov region. But how then can other decent public activists work with them? What kind of development of civil society are we talking about, if we elect to public structures not the worthy, but the convenient, those with connections?! Are we not discrediting the very institution of the Public Monitoring Commission with such candidates?