The verdict by scientists is a fine

On November 22, 2013, a hearing in the Tver Court was held on the Dokt's Affairs. Geol.-miner. Sciences of Bronislav Gongal and Cand. biologist. The sciences of Alexander Osipov, detained on September 25 during the "walk of scientists" at the Federation Council. Recall that on that day, by the building of the upper house of parliament, scientists protested against the adoption of the bill on the reform of the Academy of Sciences. After the detention of B. Gongalsky and A. Osipov, they accused of violation of Article 20.2 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (“Organization or holding a public event without submitting a notification in the prescribed manner”) [1].

The testimony - first to Bronislav Gongalsky, then for Alexander Osipov - was given by the policeman Andrei Kukanachev, who delayed them. Where the action took place, the witness did not remember very firmly, so the accused was told - to the displeasure of Judge Tatyana Nevene. Otherwise, the meaning of his testimony was as follows. There was a protest, quite large: several hundred people. People behaved in aggressively, gave interviews and did not pose threats. “These citizens” (the defendants meant) came to the rally with posters and stood so that the distance between them was less than 50 meters. They did not have permission to hold a picket, so they had to be detained.

The testimonies of witnesses of defense were very much different from the accusatory - except that their memory was better. This, however, is quite traditional for Russian courts. However, the devil, as always, in details: Gongal and Osipov stood their backs to each other and could not see each other in any way.

The Gongalsky poster represented a folder with files and hung on his chest, while the Osi-Opsky was attached to a wooden pole and towered above his head. The texts on posters differed. At Gongalsky: “Representatives of the regions, how will you get out of the crisis without science? The hunger strike 9th day. 9.2 kg I am sacrificing for the benefit of Russian science ”(in protest against the new Law on the Russian Academy of Sciences, Bronislav Gongalsky announced an perpetual hunger strike, which he ceased after the signing of the law Putin).

And Osipov’s text was like this: “Oil worms, thieves in law, ruin the academy while we are inactive.” The addressees were also distinguished: the Epistle of Gongalsky was intended for representatives of the authorities, while Osipov emphasized that he was addressing the society, urging him not to remain passive and indifferent; In his opinion, it is useless to speak with the state.

The argumentation of the defense was built on the fact that scientists acted independently of each other and carried out an unauthorized action, but two single pickets that do not require approvals and notifications. Judge Neverova preferred to consider these circumstances “contradictory materials of the case”, that is, the policeman’s testimony, as well as detention protocols. However, she re -qualified the prosecution by “lowering” scientists from the organizers of the inconsistent action to ordinary participants, and the punishment imposed a minimum, namely a fine of 10 thousand rubles. Gongalsky and Osipov with a sentence do not agree, both are going to appeal him in the Moscow City Court.

Anna Rodionova

1. I note that the case received a rather great resonance thanks to the public support of the accused scientists by their colleagues, scientific journalists and simply indifferent people (I will call, for example, P. Arkadiev, S. Burlak, M. Gelfand, N. Demin, K. Yeskova, T. Krasnov, N. Mavelvich, A. Makarov, A. Markov, I. Shchurova).