Svetlahorsk: proxies of democratic candidate are taken to police station

On 27 September in Svetlahorsk the proxies of the democratic candidate Siarhei Daineka were guarded to the police station. Moreover, the police examined the private apartment of one of them.

Viktar Akhramchuk, Sviatlana Mikhalchanka and Siarhei Shavialenka were stopped by the police while agitating for Siarhei Daineka. They were guarded to the police station together with the driver of the car by which they were driving in Svetlahorsk. The whole operation was performed by three police cars.

56 copies of the Tovarishch newspaper, 15 informational bulletins Hlytok pavetra and about 75 copies of the informational bulletin Vybary ’08 were confiscated from Mikhalchanka by the deputy head of the crime detection department Alexander Prykalotsin in presence of the head of Svetlahorsk district police department Uladzimir Rusinovich.

Soon Akhramchuk and Shavialenka were released and went to the precincts, whereas S.Mikhalchanka and the driver were kept at the police department for two hours. According to Sviatlana Mikhalchanka, it all lasted for four hours.

The police officers explained their actions by saying that a candidate for deputy V.Kavaliova appealed to them in connection of distribution of leaflets on her behalf. Kavaliova has been an MP since 2004. Before this she was the deputy head on ideology of Svetlahorsk district executive committee. In the leaflets that were distributed on her behalf her intention to run for the second term was described quite ironically.

However, the policemen failed to find such leaflets in the car and in Mikhalchanka’s apartment. Daineka’s proxies state that they have no relations to this production. They believe that the real reason for the detention is to prevent them from agitating for S.Daineka on the eve of 28 September, the Election Day.

Human rights activists for free elections