Persecution of Opposition Members in Brest Region

Human Rights Center Viasna registered many cases of harassment of democratic activists in Brest region.

17 January 2006
Pinsk. Aliaksandr Auseianka was warned by the administrative commission for hindrance to passers-by that manifested in standing with photo of A.Milinkevich

3 February
Drahichyn. The administrative commission of Drahichyn Town Executive Committee fined Uladzimir Kazeka 145 000 rubles for violation of part 3 of article 172 of the Code of Administrative Violations, which manifested in ‘handing out fly-sheets for political aims’.

17 February
Drahichyn. A group of citizens including the chair of Drahichyn headquarters of A.Milinkevich Kanstantsin Mysliavets were going to Minsk to congratulate Mr Milinkevich with the official registration of his candidacy, were detained by the road police, who examined the car, took them to a police station because ‘a seal wasn’t cut out in the technical passport’ and detained there for 2,5 hours.

20 February
Kobryn. The police detained the under-aged Stanislau Kuchynski and took him to Kobryn District Board of Internal Affairs. There they composed on him a report for illegal distribution of mass media and on his father - for non-execution of the parental duties.

22 February
Pinsk. The police detained Aliaksandr Ramanovich and the chair of Pinsk headquarters of A.Milinkevich Andrei Sukhaverkhi for ‘examination of their belongings’. However, they didn’t found anything and the chair of Pinsk City Board of Internal Affairs apologized.

23 February
Ivatsevichy. The road policeman U. Mikhailenka detained Iury Hubarevich, Milinkevich’s proxy and the chair of a regional headquarters of the candidate, while the latter was driving out of Ivatsevichy. The reason for the detention was ‘checking of the car documentation’. Iu.Hubarevich was taken to Ivatsevichy District Board of Internal Affairs, where the car was examined. The police found there agitation fly-sheets. The policeman V.Vysotski asked about the origin of the printed production. Mr.Hubarevich showed to him the receipt and the waybill. Only after it he was let out of Ivatsevichy.

24 February
Baranavichy. Senior police lieutenant Viachaslau Kandratchyk detained Valery Shyla, who agitated for A.Milinkevich and held in his hands several copies of Narodnaia Volia. Mr Shyla was kept at a police station for an hour.

25 February 2006
At 8.55 a.m. on the highway Brest-Minsk the road policeman Valasiuk detained several cars with members of A.Milinkevich’s initiative group who were driving in Brest region for agitation purposes. After checking the documents for the car that belonged to Mikalai Koush Mr Valasiuk and the police captain Andrei Lysenka detained the car, explaining it with an oral order. Soon several police cars arrived from the town of Kobryn. They brought the chair of the local police U.Bartaniuk, the investigator L.Kamarchuk, the lieutenant M.Surma, the major police lieutenant A.Leaniuk, the lieutenant P.Kalikh and the lieutenant-colonel of KGB A.Batsko. They insistently asked whether the cars didn’t traffic anything prohibited, then checked the fly-sheets and at 9.45 released the car.

The road police of Drahichyn district checked the car documentation once again.

On the territory of Ivanau district the road police again checked the documents and the lieutenant M.Marchuk reported to somebody that four cars were going to Pinsk.

On the territory of Pinsk district the cars were met by a police car that followed them in distance till Pinsk. At the entrance to Pinsk three cars were detained by the road policeman Prysiazhniuk, who was ordered to take them to a police station. Almost immediately there arrived two police cars that escorted the agitators to Pinsk City Board of Internal Affairs, where they were awaited by the vice-chair of Pinsk CBIA, major Hrynko, who again asked whether something prohibited was trafficked, asked to examine the car from the outside, invited the people to his office in order to check the documents, put down all passport data and explained where the agitators could lead the agitation, spend the night, have a lunch, etc. At parting he asked them to destroy the photos of him that were taken by the human rights activist Uladzimir Vialichkin. In Pinsk the agitators were watched, but no further obstacles were put.

26 February
Stolin. Workers of Stolin Town Executive Committee watched a group of agitators for Milinkevich on the territory of Stolin district. Some of them walked, and some drove by the car Audi-100 with the number 36-39 AV-1.

Davyd-Haradok. At about 1 p.m. a main in plain clothes came up to Iryna Laurouskaia and demanded to show the documents that permitted the agitation. At the same time, he refused to introduce himself. He was shown the appropriate articles of the Belarusian legislation and then went away. The local citizens explained he was a big cheese from the special police unit Strala. He also followed the agitators on the territory of the market for a while.

Village of Rubel. Unidentified police lieutenant tried to hinder to the agitators in their activity and accused him in holding of an authorized meeting, probably because of the presence of Milinkevich’s proxy Stanislau Shushkevich.

Kobryn. At 2 p.m. the police came up to the agitator Aliaksandr Ieliseieu who was handing out the agitation fly-sheets. They made him stop the agitation, threatening to detain him lest he stopped spreading the fly-sheets.

27 February
Drahichyn. Uladzimir Kazeka received summons to court for 14 March 2006. The court will try him for alleged violation of part 3 of article 172 of the Code of Administrative Violations. In fact, the case was brought on the report that was composed by the major lieutenant N.Vaitovich because Mr Kazeka handed out the registered newspaper Narodnaia Volia, whereas the article provides punishment for distribution of the editions that didn’t contain the data-line.

28 February
Village of Vysokaie. A police major came up to the agitators for A.Milinkevich Iryna Laurouskaia, Siarhei Vakulenka, Palina Panasiuk and Kanstantsin Turchaniak and categorically demanded from them to go away. He said: ‘Get out of here, otherwise I’ll cal a patrol and they’ll seize you!’ He also demanded from the agitators to introduce themselves, but refused to introduce himself in return. The agitators explained that according to the Electoral Code and the Constitution his demands were lawless. This put an end to the incident. Later at Vysokaie Village Soviet the agitators found out it was the local police inspector Uladzimir Pratasevich.

28 February
Pinsk. The administrative commission of Pinsk City Executive Committee fined Aliaksandr Auseianka for violation of the Electoral Code during collection of signatures for registration of Milinkevich’s candidacy.

28 February
Kamianets. Two persons in plain clothes drove towards the agitators for Milinkevich Iryna Laurouskaia, Siarhei Vakulenka, Palina Panasiuk and Kanstantsin Turchaniak in a Volga, number BNS 0575. They demanded documents permitting the agitation, behaved provocatively rude and videoed the agitators. One of them publicly insulted Palina Panasiuk, pointing at her bag. ‘Look, he has sheaves of dollars there!’. The cameraman also recorded his voice during while videoing the agitators. He asked: ‘Show your documents!’ and answered - ‘They refuse!’ The policemen also mocked at the agitators when the latter ones asked them to introduce themselves. That’s why the agitators applied to the road policeman Siarhei Zaleuski (duty number BN 1509) and managed to find out the camera crew consisted of workers of Kamianets KGB office.

Later they also found that the man with the camera was the chair of the local KGB Uladzimir Trukhan (duty certificate number UB 0000303, personal number T-953122) and the second KGB worker was Siarhei Padbiarezski. The agitators demanded from Mr Trukhan the book of complaints, but he refused to present it to them, violating one of Lukashenka’s decrees.