Svetlahorsk: opposition activists get fined

Svetlahorsk town court fined 1.4 million rubles (about $650) Sviatlana Mikhalchanka, the leader of Salihorsk district organization of the Party of Communists Belarusian, and Viktar Akhramchuk and Siarhei Shavialenka, activists of the Belarusian Popular Front Party and the United Civil Party.

The matter is that on 27 October the police had detained a car by which the oppositionists were driving and confiscated from them copies of the Tovarishch newspaper (which has the state registration), pre-electoral posters of the candidate Siarhei Daineka and several copies of the unregistered editions Glotok Vozdukha and Vybory/8.

The activists were detained and charged with distribution of editions containing no imprint. Though the police failed to prove their accusations (only distribution of Tovarishch was proved), the court delivered an accusative verdict.