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There's only one way for Pichugin and the other defendants in the Yukos case to be rehabilitated - by this politically-inspired verdict being overturned at the very highest level. And the process is clearly political. Until it is changed at the very highest level, and given the current composition of the court and that it takes its orders from the authorities, nothing will change.
Sergey NIKITIN, director of the Amnesty International Moscow office:
Amnesty International has several times called on the Russian authorities to respect their international obligations on human rights during the Yukos trials, including in the case of Yukos security department officer Aleksey Pichugin. On several occasions it has written to the Russian Federation Ministry of Justice and Procuracy General to express its concerns about the progress of these cases. There have, after all, been reports of access to legal representation being obstructed, of interference in meetings between defence teams and defendants, of trials being held in camera especially in Pichugin's case, and of a lack of medical care for Pichugin and Platon Lebedev. We received complaints of Pichugin and Svetlana Bakhmina being roughly treated while in custody. Amnesty also expressed its concern about Aleksey Pichugin being held at Lefortovo, a detention facility run by the Federal Security Service. These cases raise the issue of independence of the courts in Russia, of citizens' access to legal assistance, and of the use of torture. Amnesty International regards the conditions in which Pichugin was held as cruel.
Russian human-rights activists have often asked Amnesty's International Secretariat to declare that Mikhail Khodorkovskiy and everyone caught up in the Yukos case are political prisoners. Amnesty's secretary general, Irene Khan, has agreed that the Yukos case does contain a significant political element, but although the organisation recognises the importance of the case it is not yet ready to call Khodorkovskiy and the others political prisoners. This might happen in the future. For the time being, Amnesty simply lacks expertise in the type of crimes of which these people are accused. But regardless of whether there is a political imperative in court cases, the Russian authorities must ensure a fair hearing.
Genri REZNIK, defence lawyer:
Pressure was put on the defence team at Aleksey Pichugin's trial. I know that an application was made to the Chamber of Advocates to have Kseniya Kostromina and Mikhail Zhidkov barred from practice. I also know that the case was virtually torpedoed by the way the first panel of jurors was composed. Most people who followed the case think that Pichugin was not guilty. In addition, the fact that the trial was held in camera was also an exception to the general principle. In this instance I'm inclined to believe Pichugin's lawyers when they say that examining the case in closed session was in breach of the law.
From the legal standpoint, getting Pichugin's verdict overturned will be difficult because it was handed down by a jury. Not only that, the verdict was accepted by the presiding judge. So Pichugin is now in a fairly grave position. In these cases, there is always much less chance of getting a decision in favour of the defence than the prosecution. But I do believe that were it to appeal, the defence team has solid grounds to have the verdict overturned.
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