Mr Martti Vallila

Bannana's Crime and Punishment: Justice in Finland Mr Martti Vallila

Publisher Marketing: This Bannana book speaks about Finland, my father's country and how I was treated there as an "outsider," not speaking the language of a court system that does not put its best foot forward in these pages. I was forced to defend myself after forming a company, Buddha Biopharma Oy there, with two Russian partners. The company offered a promising treatment for Alzheimer's disease and was hopeful of obtaining funding support from Tekes, the Finnish government agency responsible for supporting start-ups with promising technologies. When no funding was provided, I paid myself a salary from funds provided by the financial backer of the company. This prompted my firing, and the initiation of first, an arbitration, and then civil and criminal cases, in the district court of Helsinki. The book details the nightmare I experienced in a judicial system where only Finnish, a language I does not speak, in spite of my Finnish name. Shady court procedures and broken promises from lawyers are exposed. I explain both Finland"s potential as a positive force in Russia's modernization, and my frustration at seeing how existing attitudes towards Russia by Finland's "public servants" are falling short of addressing this potential. The appendix of the book includes business plans describing the promising Alzheimer prevention technology and absurd legal decisions, all appealed. I was assisted by Finnish lawyers, some acted against my interests, others abandoned me at crucial moments, forcing me to proceed with only the aid of translators, often found at the last possible moment. Portions of this legal saga are told in previous Banana books. Here they take center stage. The book will be of interest to any foreigner doing business in Finland. The picture it paints of Finland, a country with a reputation of openness and fair play, is not a pretty one. The "process" of appealing verdicts described in the book continues, but the book can be considered as a completed work. The book includes many emails and original documents, allowing the reader to judge the validity of the points I make, from an objective perspective. When Dr. Pomytkin's approach to the treatment and prevention of Alzheimer's emerges from the shadows it currently occupies in Kazakhstan, there will probably be renewed interest in why, and how, this technology was forced out of Finland, after being introduced to the country as an entrepreneurial opportunity.