Hold up...

Didn’t the Soviet Union Collapse Already?

Russian Justice

The Khodorkovsky Story

From Oligarch to Martyr

By Shannon Bona

I apologize in advance for any mispronunciations of Russian words or names.

“I am far from being an ideal person, but I am a person with an idea. For me, as for anybody, it is hard to live in prison, and I

do not want to die here…”-Mikhail Khodorkovsky

Early Life

“We lived our lives in the Soviet Period, and we warned him that you cannot trust power in our country.”

-Khodorkovsky’s Mother• Born June 26, 1963 in Moscow• Graduated from the Mendeleev Moscow Institute of

Chemistry and Technology in 1986 - Chemical Engineering

.Less Exposed than others to Soviet Indoctrination

Rise to Power

Deputy Head of Komsomol (The Communist Youth League)

1987 – Founded the Youth Center for Scientific and Technical Development

1989 – Founded Bank MENATEP

1997 – Group MENATEP decided to acquire the majority interest inYukos

Acquisition of YUKOS

Made possible by…Yeltsin’s Economic Reforms:

State assets Private Hands

“Loans-for-Shares”

“Rigged” AuctionsKhodorkovksy and associates were sole bidders

78% of YUKOS acquired for only $309 million

YUKOS

Petroleum Based Company- First “smart” office building in Russia- Self-Sufficient – latest technology- Russian Capitalism at its finest

By 2002 YUKOS was worth 15 billion

A Turn for the Worse….Criminal Allegations

“A Thief should sit in jail”-Putin

Putin has brought criminal charges upon Khodorkovsky twice…

1) Accused of tax evasion and fraud charges2) Between 1998 – 2003 Khodorkovsky and his business

partner Lebedev were suspected of stealing “every drop of Yukos oil”

There is even rumor of murder….

Thoughts to Consider

VS

•The charges Khodorkovsky face do not focus at all on the “loans-for-share” program

•Almost all Russian criminal trials end with a guilty verdict

Putin’s Potential Motives

• Funding of opposing political parties• A plan to build a private oil pipeline to China• Merger of YUKOS and Sibneft• Transformation of YUKOS into a westernized company• Widespread distaste of Oligarchs among Russians• Possession of Russia’s natural resources• Political ambitions• Potential Sale to Exxon Mobil and ChevronTexaco

The Trial

On Oct. 25, 2003 Khodorvosky was arrested at gunpoint, marking the beginning of a extensive, tumultuous “legal” process…

“Our Court is the most humane court in the World”-Putin

“Despite the obvious lack of evidence for my guilt, and numerous witnesses having testified that I was not involved in committing any crime, this court decided to send me to prison, and I am

aware that my verdict was decided in the Kremlin” -Khodorkovsky

• May 16, 2005 – Sentenced to 9 years in prison Later reduced to 8 years

• June 30, 2008 - new charges bring forth a second trial • August 22, 2008 – Parole is denied• March 31, 2009 - Second trial began• December 2010 – Sentenced to 14 years in prison• May 2011 – Russian appeals court upheld conviction but

sentence is reduced to 13 years

Tentative Release Date - 2016

Defiance in Prison

• August 19, 2005 - Hunger Strike to protest the placement of Lebedev in the “punishment cell”

• August 31, 2005 - Announcement of his desire to run for parliament

• January 28, 2008 – Hunger Strike to protest unfair treatment of his associate Vasily Aleksanyan

• Throughout his sentence he published numerous works criticizing the Russian Government and illustrating his experiences.

Threshold of Support•European Court of Human Rights

•U.S. House of Representatives

•Elie Wiesel – Holocaust Survivor

•Italian Parliament

•German Budnestag

Philanthropy

• 2001 – Founds the Open Russia Foundation• Funds liberal opposition groups and independent media

organizations• Khodorkovsky lived no lavish lifestyle, even despite his 8 billion

dollar net worth.

“The last years before the arrest, I was actively engaged in civic activity focused at fighting for civil liberties: I funded the

opposition, supported the independent mass media, and helped in the work of teaching youth how to be politically informed.”

-Khodorkovsky

Economic Impact

“Putin cares about foreign investors; he just doesn’t care about them enough to allow one oligarch to use his ill-gotten gains to hijack the state for his own economic purposes”

-William BowerVeteran Money Manager in Moscow

“The main task for my country is to not miss the historic ‘window of opportunity’ for an orderly liberalization, the

provision of political freedoms to the people and the creation of the institutions of a democratic state and a civil

society.”-Khodorkovsky

The Lingering Hope

“Jail changed the means, but not the goal. The situation is such that my line of behavior in prison no longer carriers potential threats for my friends, family and colleagues.

For myself I am not afraid. And life without a goal – is not life at all.”

-Khodorkovsky

And here lies our hero…

• As of June 10, 2011, Khodorkovsky has been sent to an “undisclosed” prison

• While not finding enough proof to identify his case as political motivated, The European Court of Human Rights ordered Moscow to pay $35,300 in reparations to Khodorkovksy.

• The thought of new charges have not been dismissed.For further reading check out Khodorkovsky Unabridged…posted in The Wall Street

Journal

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303714704576385240381210756.html?KEYWORDS=khodorkovsky+unabridged

“…But if I Have to, I will have no hesitation. What I believe is worth dying for. I think I

have shown this.-Mikhail Khodorkovksy

Works Sited

"BBC News - Mikhail Khodorkovsky Case: European Court Faults Russia." BBC - Homepage. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13600198>.

"BBC News - Mikhail Khodorkovsky 'sent to Secret Prison'" BBC - Homepage. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13735507>.

"Business in Russia: After Yukos | The Economist." The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://www.economist.com/node/9167397>.

Jolis, By Anne. "Anne Jolis: Khodorkovsky Heads Back to Siberia - WSJ.com." Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj.com. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303714704576385552112075440.html>.

"The Khodorkovsky Case: The Tycoon and the President | The Economist." The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://www.economist.com/node/3983898>.

"Khodorkovsky Unabridged." Wall Street Journal. 14 June 2011. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303714704576385240381210756.html>.

"Mikhail Khodorkovsky's Trial: Justice Delayed | The Economist." The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://www.economist.com/blogs/easternapproaches/2010/12/mikhail_khodorkovskys_trial>.

"Moscow Court Upholds Khodorkovsky Conviction - WSJ.com." Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj.com. Web. 22 June 2011. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303654804576343100298677870.html>.

Nocera, Joe. "Russian Justice." The New York Times. The New York Times, 23 May 2011. Web. 17 June 2011.

O'Brien, Timothy L., and Steven Lee Myers. "The Russia Hous, After the Oligarchs." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 June 2005. Web. 17 June 2011.