The first sentence in Belarus for "denying the genocide of the Belarusian people"
On October 30, the Minsk City Court handed down a sentence for "denying the genocide of the Belarusian people" (Part 1 of Article 130-2 of the Criminal Code) for the first time in Belarus. Andrei Savitski, a 55-year-old plasterer from Ždanovičy, was sentenced to three years in a penal colony, also accused of "insulting" Lukashenka (Part 1 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code). The man was persecuted for posting on Odnoklassniki about the Katyn massacre and Lukashenka. This verdict was handed down by Yauhen Pisarevich, who has repeatedly handled politically motivated cases.
- Detention of Andrei Savitski
According to the prosecution's version, from October 2020 to November 2023, Andrei Savitski "administered an open group on Odnoklassniki. There he posted several publications with a 'negative assessment of Lukashenka', as well as a publication where he 'denied the mass destruction of civilians in the village of Katyn by soldiers of the 118th Schutzmannschaft battalion of the security police and the special battalion of the SS O. Dirlewanger as a result of the punitive operation on March 22, 1943.'
It is known that the man was detained in February and placed in custody. Employees of the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Corruption (GUBOPiK) and the special quick reaction unit (SOBR) carried out the detention.
"In his publications, the defendant denied the genocide of the Belarusian people by the German invaders during the Great Patriotic War, rehabilitating fascists and attributing crimes committed by the occupiers to Soviet citizens," the Interior Ministry claimed after the detention.
- Andrei Savitski. Photos from social media
The case was heard in four court sessions. The details of the process were revealed by a pro-government publication sb.by. It is reported that the court examined Katruk's sentence of March 18, 2024, interrogation reports, as well as "sentences confirming the destruction of Katyn by soldiers of the 118th battalion of the security police, as well as the special battalion of the SS Dirlewanger."
"There are witness statements in the case. There are many things that confirm the genocide of the Belarusian people. Assessing the presented body of evidence, the court concluded that 'the burning of the inhabitants of Katyn is one of the examples of genocidal practices of collective responsibility carried out against the population of the BSSR by the occupation authorities of Nazi Germany and their accomplices.' These data are well-known and confirmed by numerous proofs, which the accused Savitski should have known about," the propagandists write.
It should be recalled that Lukashenka signed the law "on the genocide of the Belarusian people" on January 5, 2022. It is proposed that the accused be punished with imprisonment for up to five years.
