Interrogation in police for taking photo of a flag

Syarhei Serabro, the editor of “Narodnye Novosti Vitebska” newspaper, has been called to police for an interrogation.

The cause is information about a white-red-white flag hung out on February 8 and photos on the independent website “Narodnye Novosti Vitebska”, the press service of the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) reports.

Syarhei Serabro is the author of the material about hanging out a flag by Young Belarus activists Surhan brothers in solidarity with CCP-BPF activist Syarhei Kavelenka, who is in a detention facility.

Serabro noted in a phone conversation with the transport police chief he wanted to use the right of a journalist not to disclose sources of confidential information unless the case over the flag was heard in court. The police officer said the journalist was expected to give explanations in any case.

“Transport police officers detained me when I was taking photos of the flag. They wanted me to delete the snaps, but they could not give reasons. I showed them my BelaPAN press card and they wrote down my personal data and released me. They used them later to find me and call for explanations,” Syarhei Serabro noted.