Overview

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 into defending myself, after forming a company, Buddha Biopharma OY, with two Russian partners and running it for over three years. The company promised a treatment for Alzheimer's, and other age-related neurological ailments, and was hopeful of obtaining funding from TEKES, the Finnish government agency responsible for supporting start-ups with promising technologies. When no funding was provided, I was fired, illegally, prompting the initiation of first an arbitration, and then civil and criminal cases, in the District Court of Helsinki. The book details the nightmare experienced in a judicial system where only Finnish, a language I do not speak (in spite of my Finnish name) is recognized. Shady court procedures and broken promises are exposed. I explain Finland"s potential as a positive force in Russia's modernization, and frustration at seeing how existing attitudes by Finns fall short of addressing this potential. The appendix of the book includes business plans describing the promising Alzheimer prevention technology and absurd legal decisions. I was assisted by Finnish lawyers, some acting against my interests, others abandoning me at crucial moments, forcing me to proceed with only the aid of translators. The picture it paints of Finland, a country with a reputation of openness and fair play, is not a pretty one.