Riot Squad Not Punished for Beating a Girl

Maskouski district police department of Minsk refused to bring a criminal case on beating of a youth activist Tatsiana Tsishkevich by riot police. The girl was beaten by them on Solidarity Day, 16 August, while trying to prevent the detention of a youth leader Mikita Sasim by them. They threw her on the ground and started kicking her in the back, legs and head. 

Tatsiana Tsishkevich spent a week in the neurosurgical department of hospital #9 of Minsk and was diagnosed with a light cranial trauma, inflammation process in the kidney, haematomas and bruises on the head and other parts of the body. 

On 24 August Tatsiana Tsishkevich was signed out of the hospital, though she was still unwell. Being asked why they did so, the hospital medics answered that the activist was feeling bad because of the heat (it was really hot at that time). Then they added: ‘You should understand it yourselves…’ 

The girl had to apply to other doctors. Now she is on a course of medical treatment in Aksakaushcyna. On 29 August Tatsiana was visited by the leader of the public campaign For Freedom! Aliaksandr Milinkevich.