Political prisoner Aliaksei Melnikau sentenced to five years in prison on ‘rioting’ charges
https://spring96.org./en/news/102422
2021
2021-03-16T13:58:20+0300
2021-03-16T13:58:20+0300
2021-03-16T13:58:21+0300
en
https://spring96.org./files/images/sources/melnikau_palitviazen.jpg
The Human Rights Center “Viasna”
The Human Rights Center “Viasna”
The Human Rights Center “Viasna”
The Human Rights Center “Viasna”
On March 16, Judge Hanna Khvainitskaya of the Zavodski District Court of Minsk handed down a verdict in a criminal case political prisoner Aliaksei Melnikau, sentencing him to five years in a medium-security penal colony.
After his arrest on December 4, 2020, Melnikau was accused of “rioting” under Part 2 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code.
The charges stem from a post-election protest on August 10, when Aliaksei Melnikau tried to talk to the riot police urging them to “settle the matter peacefully.” A trolleybus driver who appeared at the trial as a witness confirmed that the demonstration was peaceful.
Melnikau admitted his guilt in part.
The court also ruled to support the right for a financial claim.
