Volha Haidukova not allowed to see her son
Aleh Barysevich, an investigator of
Vitsebsk KGB Department, refused to allow Volha Haidukova to visit
her son, 24-year-old Navapolatsk resident Andrei Haidukou, charged
with high treason and kept in the remand prison of the KGB.
The
term of the preliminary investigation into his case expires on 8 May,
but maybe prolonged again.
"I don't know anything. KGB
has never informed me about the extension of the terms of the
investigation and I have to ask the counsel about it. However, even
the counsel cannot meet with Andrei any time, as some troubles have
started again. Earlier he used to be admitted to the remand prison
regularly for a certain period time, whereas now he is not always
allowed such meetings... And the counsel cannot tell me everything as
he has signed the undertaking not to disclose the secret of the
investigation," commented Volha Haidukova.
As she already
knows from Andrei's letters, the investigation is already over, as on
29 April he wrote about having studied the case materials, and after
this they were to be passed to the prosecutor's office. The trial may
take place after 20 May.
"I think he won't be released
until trial, the more that I wasn't allowed to meet him. I have filed
such requests two times already. During the first time I got a
refusal, but the investigator said that perhaps I would be allowed to
meet the son after the end of the investigation. The investigation is
already over, but I got another refusal, without any explanations.
Most probably, soon there will be a trial but there is no hope for a
meeting with Andrei. It's good that he writes us letters. They are
not large, just a half of a copybook sheet, but I feel easier knowing
that he is in a good mood and still supports us."
Andrei
Haidukou has been kept in custody for 6 months already. He was
detained on 8 November in Vitsebsk, allegedly while making a hiding
place with the information which could interest foreign intelligence
services. Since then the investigation has been extended. The mail
correspondence between Andrei and his relatives has been interrupted
several times and his lawyers was often denied the opportunity to
meet him.
At the end of 2012 another accused was added to the
case – Navapolatsk adherent of Belarusian Christian Democracy
party, Illia Bahdanau. At first he was interrogated as a witness and
then was told that he was transferred to the status of a suspect.
However, several months later the suspicions were removed and
Bahdanau was returned the status of a witness.
The apartments
of Bahdanau and Haidukou were searched right after the detention of
the latter. Apart from Bahdanau, other friends of Andrei Haidukou
were summonsed for interrogations.
The friends tell that the
charges in high treason and espionage look absurd and explain the
arrest of Haidukou with the wish of the authorities to intimidate
other public activists. Andrei Haidukou took part in a number of
opposition's events, was a member of the electoral team of Andrei
Sannikau during the last presidential election and helped democratic
candidates during the last local election.