Campaign on Informing Students about Politically Motivated Expulsions Starts at Belarusian State University

The campaign is conducted by a group of the year-mates of the oppositionist Franak Viachorka, who has been expelled from the third year at the journalistic faculty of BSU.

According to Viachorka’s information, on 21 February the distribution of leaflets with information about politically motivated expulsions from high schools started in the class rooms and student hostels.

‘It is done by my year-mates and friends, not me’, emphasized Franak. ‘The leaflets tell people not only about my case, but about expulsion of other students as well, and about the pressurization of the press-secretary of the BPF Party Katsiaryna Markouskaya, who is threatened with expulsion.

Franak Viachorka also informed the BelaPAN about his intention to apply to the authorities for authorization of a picket near Minsk State Linguistic University, which has recently expelled a member of the youth wing of the BPF Party Anton Kalinouski. ‘Anton, in his turn, will apply for authorization of a picket near Belarusian State University’, Viachorka said.

Both Kalinouski and Viachorka were expelled from their high schools after administrative arrest. They were detained on 16 January in the building of Tsentralny district court of Minsk, to which they came to support a youth activist Yuliya Siutsova, who was accused of petty hooliganism. Viachorka was sentenced to 15 days of jail and Kalinouski – to 10 days. As a result both students failed to pass their exams in time, which served as a formal reason for their expulsion.